MADINAH: Small pickup trucks (commonly known as “unait”) cruising the streets of Madinah have become a nuisance to the residents of and visitors to the holy city, particularly women who complain of harassment by the drivers.
Many of these vehicles are being used as unlicensed taxis. Many residents and visitors to Madinah, especially women, say these vehicles are filling a gap caused by an insufficient number of licensed taxis in the city. These drivers are aggressively seeking out customers, which has given rise to the phenomenon of strange men in unmarked cars offering their services to women. Some say the drivers often have ulterior motives.
“The concerned authorities are turning a deaf ear to this phenomenon. We are being harassed openly by the drivers of the pickups and nothing is being done to deter them,” said one local resident, a woman, who did not want her name published. She did not condemn all of the drivers, saying that some are simply trying to make money, but others seem to be flirting or otherwise directing untoward attention at women.
Hanadi Al-Subahi, a young Jeddawi woman who came to Madinah with her mother to worship at the Prophet’s Mosque, said she and her mom were shocked when they came out of the airport.
“I was expecting to see a fleet of (marked) taxis like those in Jeddah,” she said. “Instead, we saw a large number of pickups whose drivers were quarreling to take us to the mosque. In the process, they exchanged bad words that I feel ashamed of repeating. We had no other option but to take one of them though it was dirty and the seats were uncomfortable. Where are the officials who would stop these drivers, who roam the streets ?”
Manal Al-Qathami, who was visiting from Makkah, was surprised that women would use these gypsy cabs, but said she could understand the situation, thanks to the small number of available taxis.
For her part Al-Qathami would like to see the officials from the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice crack down on these drivers who harass women. “Why does the commission only focus its efforts on busting young men who harass women in malls and supermarkets, but leave these drivers undeterred?” she said, adding that in many cases there are no other options but to take these pickups.
“I was going from the Prophet’s Mosque to my hotel,” she said. “A number of pickup drivers stopped, each offering to give me a lift. I waited in vain for a taxi for more than 45 minutes. Finally I had to take a pickup, risking harassment.”
Local resident Um Muhammad says she can’t believe that a city as big as Madinah would not have enough taxis.
“Whenever I want to go to the market, I can’t find a taxi; just these pickups, which are designed to transport goods and animals.”
She says that each time she uses one of these drivers, she ends up dealing with uninvited and crude advances.
“I wonder when officials will take necessary measures to protect the dignity of women in Madinah and protect them against this vulgarity,” she said.
Col. Siraj Kamal, the director of Traffic Police in Madinah, admitted the existence of these drivers.
“We have tried to prevent them from using their cars for public transport but it seems their number is rapidly on the rise,” he said, admitting a “scarcity” of taxis and pointing out that the pickups tend to offer lower fares, too. He also said that some of these drivers are public service employees and members of the military, providing this service to supplement their incomes. The colonel said part of the solution would be for the Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) to expand its intracity services rather than focusing primarily on intercity transport.