RIYADH, 12 December 2007 — Transport Minister Dr. Jobara Al-Suraisry launched the first Road Mobile Mapping System which will facilitate the ministry in maintaining roads in top condition. “This is the first unit in Asia and the Middle East and there are only 62 in the world,” the minister told newsmen yesterday following the launch. The state-of-the art SR7.8 million unit will collect data regarding the condition of the highways within a limited time. “The unit is equipped with eight video cameras and can map 500 kms a day,” the minister said, pointing out that such data would help the ministry get an accurate picture of the condition of roads thus facilitating necessary planning and maintenance.
A MMS (Mobile Mapping System) can acquire the road database, while offering an unbeatable productivity with the combination of navigation, and videogrammetry tools. The MMS, features a GPS/DR(Dead Reckoning) combined navigation system, a GPS-Gyro/IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), laser scanners, nearly horizontal cameras and high sampling rate road data measurement logger, can measure centerline and sideline location precisely considering 3D road surface model based on a laser scanner.
Prior to the launch of the MMS, the ministry also signed contracts worth more than SR455 million for the purchase of buses and road extensions as final expenditures from the last budget. Last year, the ministry was allocated SR8 billion for its expenses.
Suraisry signed a SR277.1 million contract with Al-Harbi Contracting Company for the construction of a 16km road between Safwa and Rahima which will connect with the Dammam-Jubail highway.
The minister oversaw the signing of agreements between the Abdullah Al-Mugbel, deputy minister of transport and chairman of SAPTCO (Saudi Public Transport Co.) and Khaled Juffali, vice chairman and managing partner of E.A. Juffali Brothers, for the purchase of 150 Mercedes Benz buses for SR178.6 million.
Speaking to Arab News, Juffali said a fleet of 75 vehicles would be delivered to SAPTCO before the month of Ramadan and the remaining vehicles would be handed over before next year’s Haj.
Al-Mugbel said that SAPTCO had a fleet of 2,800 buses in the Kingdom. The new buses will be used for shuttle services in Dammam, Riyadh and Jeddah.