A state-of-the-art cab service is to be commissioned in Riyadh beginning next year under a new joint company comprising ministries of transport, labor, interior and  Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) which was formed in the capital on Tuesday night.

The company, whose formation was announced at a press conference held at the Ministry of Transport, will be staffed wholly by Saudi nationals.

The briefing was attended by Transport Minister Jabara Al-Seraisry, Labor Minister Adel Fakeih and Ali Al-Rasheed from the Riyadh Traffic Police. Deputy Minister of Transport Abdulaziz Al-Ohaly made a presentation of the new project which will be commissioned in early next year. 

Al-Seraisry said that the joint company, dubbed Tahamel Holding Company, will have its board of directors members from all the ministries and the HRDF.

The transport minister explained that the new service, which will have a fleet of 500 cars with 600 Saudi drivers in Riyadh in the first phase, will have a variety of features and facilities for the comfort and convenience of passengers.

“These features would ensure the security, safety and comfort of the commuters, who will definitely feel the difference from existing taxi services,” he said. There are vehicles that would have six separate seats for passengers and separate compartments for the chauffeur.

The taxis could be hailed through phone calls and there will be a control center to operate the entire system, he said.

He also said that working women, school children and people with special needs will be paid special care and attention to ferry them to their respective destinations.

The services will be initially commissioned in the capital and will subsequently be extended to other major cities.

The minister said that no female drivers will be deployed in accordance with local regulations. He said the idea behind the initiative is to nationalize the taxi service in the Kingdom and also to offer premier services to customers in accordance with global limousine services.

Describing it as a major step in enhancing the nationalization program, Fakeih said that the new service would supplement existing taxi services and stressed that it is not a substitute for taxi services that are currently available.

He added that the staff deployed under this project will be 100 percent Saudi and that the drivers will be trained and will undergo an orientation program before they are assume their roles.

In his speech, Ali Al-Rasheedi said that this is a good scheme, where taxi drivers would work in a conducive work environment that could raise their level of services to the customers.

“Most road accidents occur since present-day limousine drivers are forced to collect their fares by hook or by crook to pay a stipulated sum to taxi owners on a daily basis,” he said.

“Here, however, drivers receive a fixed salary irrespective of their day’s collections. Drivers will be paid a monthly wage of SR5,000.”

He also noted that around 15,000 new taxis take to the roads every year in the Kingdom.

Deputy Minister Al-Ohaly told Arab News that the new holding company will start work from now to recruit drivers, import vehicles and call for tenders for the various sectors in the project.

The deputy minister said that the project reaps a two-fold benefit in terms of both nationalization and sector improvement.