A JOINT venture undertaking will prepare a feasibility study and preliminary design for Dammam’s first public transport system.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Transport has awarded the joint study contract to Dutch company Royal Haskoning DHV and Riyadh-based Mshari Al-Shathri Engineering Consultant, in a move to alleviate traffic congestion and improve living standards in the city.

Undersecretary for Transport Affairs Dr Abdul Aziz Al-Ohaly said: “In order to improve mobility and to alleviate urban congestion, reduce noise and air pollution we realise that we need to encourage people to use public transport.”

Nils den Hartog, project manager for Royal Haskoning DHV said: “Public transport is currently almost non-existent in this car-dominated city where petrol costs no more than 15 cents per litre. A key challenge of this project will be the successful introduction of such a system.”

In recent years, the Dammam and Khobar urban area has seen a significant growth in population, which stands at approximately two million people. Increasing use of private cars has led to traffic jams throughout the day, and at current growth rates, experts are forecasting gridlock across the Dammam urban road network within a few years.

The project entails a feasibility study and preliminary design for a combination of 50 km of light rail, 110 km of bus rapid transit system and 350 km of feeder buses in Dammam Metropolitan Area including King Fahd International Airport.