The first electric public transport bus in Saudi Arabia began operating in Jeddah on Thursday.

Acting Chairman of the Public Transport Authority (PTA) Dr. Rumaih Al-Rumaih inaugurated the bus service in a ceremony attended by Mayor of Jeddah Governorate Saleh Al-Turki and President of the Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) Eng. Khaled Al-Hogail

Residents of the Jeddah governorate will be served by the latest models of electric passenger buses operated by SAPTCO. Electric buses will operate along the A7 route connecting Khalidiyah with Balad via Prince Saud Al-Faisal Street and Madinah Road. The service is available in Khalidiyah, Rowdah, Andalus, Ruwais, and Baghdadiyah neighborhoods.

In addition to hydrogen and clean fuels, and electric vehicles and logistics services to reduce emissions from vehicles by 25 percent, Dr. Al-Rumaih said Saudi Arabia has made significant progress in the transport sector. Clean energy transportation will be used throughout the season in Jeddah and expanded to other regions of the Kingdom.

Dr. Al-Rumaih stated the mission of PTA and Jeddah Mayoralty is to provide public transportation service in medium-sized cities such as Jazan, Sabya, Abu Arish, Taif, and Qassim during this year. As well as Tabuk, Al-Ahsa, and other cities, public transport services will also be launched, providing excellent transportation services to citizens and residents.

We are working on using other alternatives for taxis and public transport, and we have a variety of tests going on to use alternatives that reduce carbon emissions, as a target for the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, until we reach a 45 percent reduction in carbon emissions from transportation, leading to clean energy,” he said.

An electric public transport bus service is part of the National Strategy for Transport and Logistics Services, which aims to reduce carbon emissions by 25 percent by 2030. Using modern methods and technologies in transport activities and services also contributes to reducing carbon emissions and improving the quality of life in central cities.

According to the authority, the bus can travel 300 kilometers on a single charge, and it has a high efficiency compared to other electric buses because it consumes less than 10 percent electricity.