The city of Dammam and the surrounding Khobar urban area in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province will investigate public transport options including light rail, said the undersecretary for transport affairs, Dr Abdul Aziz Al-Ohaly.
Options include 50km of light rail and 110km of rapid transit buses.
The urban area, the site of Saudi Aramco’s headquarters, has seen significant growth in recent years, and is now home to 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.
International consultancy, engineering and project management service provider Royal HaskoningDHV in joint venture with Mshari Al-Shathri Engineering Consultant has been appointed by the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Transport to prepare a feasibility study and preliminary design for a first public transport system.
“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,” said Al-Ohaly.
Nils den Hartog, project manager for Royal HaskoningDHV 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.”
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.
The approach will be multidisciplinary and include public transport planning, infrastructure design, urban integration, operation planning, business case preparation, and procurement strategy.
