Public Transportation

The Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO) is responsible for operating the country's inter-city and intra-city bus service. Established in 1979, SAPTCO runs a fleet of over 2,000 buses in large urban centers such as Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Madinah and Makkah, and between cities and towns across the country, carrying over three million passengers annually.  In addition, there are ten international routes, used by almost half a million travelers each year.

One of the company's principal tasks is to ensure that the millions of Muslims who come to perform the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to the holy sites in Saudi Arabia, can travel in safety and comfort. To fulfill this responsibility, the company operates special services during the pilgrimage season with as many as 15,000 buses used to carry pilgrims to and from Makkah. SAPTCO's other services include school transportation and non-postal package delivery, and in August 2003 a deal was made to import 2,500 buses from South Korea.