On Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s first electric public transportation bus began service in Jeddah.

On Thursday, the first electric public transportation bus in Saudi Arabia went into service in Jeddah.

In a ceremony held with the mayor of the Jeddah Governorate, Saleh Al-Turki, and the president of the Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO), Eng. Khaled Al-Hogail, the bus service was officially launched by acting chairman of the Public Transport Authority (PTA), Dr. Rumaih Al-Rumaih.

The people of the Jeddah governorate will receive services on the public transportation routes from the newest types of electric passenger buses run by SAPTCO. The electric buses will run on the Prince Saud Al-Faisal Street and Madinah Road sections of the A7 route connecting Khalidiyah and Balad. The services are available to travelers in the Baghdadiyah, Khalidiyah, Rowdah, Andalus, and Ruwais areas.

According to Dr. Al-Rumaih, Saudi Arabia has made significant progress in the transportation industry, including the use of fuels like hydrogen and clean fuel, electric cars, and logistical services to cut emissions from moving vehicles by 25%. This will be done through utilizing renewable energy transportation methods, extending their use, and employing them all year long in Jeddah and other parts of the Kingdom.

Dr. Al-Rumaih noted that the goal of PTA and Jeddah Mayoralty is to begin offering public transportation service in medium-sized cities including Jazan, Sabya, Abu Arish, Taif, and Qassim this year in regards to upcoming initiatives meant to reduce traffic bottlenecks. Additionally, the public transportation system will be made available in Tabuk, Al-Ahsa, and other cities, offering great transportation for locals to get to and from their places of employment.

“As a target for the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, we are working to use other taxi and public transportation alternatives, and we have various tests to use alternatives that reduce carbon emissions, until we reach a 45 percent reduction in carbon emissions in transportation, leading to clean energy,” he continued.

The introduction of the electric public transportation bus service, according to the PTA, is in line with the goals of the National Strategy for Transport and Logistics Services, which aims to cut carbon emissions by 25% by 2030. This is a component of implementing contemporary techniques and tools in transportation-related activities and services to cut carbon emissions and improve the quality of life in urban centers through environmentally friendly transportation.

According to the authority, the bus has a 300-kilometer range on a single charge and is one of the more efficient modern buses because it uses less than 10% of the energy that other electric buses do.