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King Abdulaziz Project for Riyadh Public Transport

The King Abdulaziz Project for Riyadh Public Transport is part of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City’s ambitious city plan to equip Riyadh with public transport that will provide all population groups with suitable public transport services, accommodating existing and future mobility needs in Riyadh.

The project is dedicated to building, operating, and developing a world-class rapid transport network for Riyadh, providing comfortable, affordable, and time-saving mobility options for all citizens throughout the city. The project will be of great benefit to the traffic flow, economy, society, and environment in Riyadh. The public transport network will create an interconnected city with:

6 metro lines

84 metro stations

80 bus routes

2,860 bus stops

842 buses

The King Abdulaziz Project for Riyadh Public Transport will offer metro services and a comprehensive bus network. Combined, the Riyadh Public Transport Network will have a passenger capacity of 1.7 million passengers a day in the initial operation phase.

The network has been developed according to the following criteria:

Population density and distribution

Connecting main points of interest such as ministries, universities, hospitals, commercial complexes, transport hubs and government facilities

Estimated traffic size on the roads

Expected number of passengers

Duration of the trip on each line of the public transport network

Minimizing traffic congestion and vehicle emissions

Riyadh Metro Project

The Metro Project is the backbone of the public transport network in Riyadh, capable of transporting 1.2 million passengers a day in its first phase, and potentially 3.6 million passengers at a full-scale realization.

Metro network and stations

With six lines at a total length of 176 km and 84 metro stations, the metro network will cover most of the densely populated areas, public facilities, and the educational, commercial, and medical institutions. The network will be connected to King Khalid International Airport and King Abdullah Financial District, the main universities, downtown Riyadh, and the public transport center.

Metro lines

Blue line: Axis of Al-Olaya – Al-Batha – Al-Hayer roads, with a total length of 38 km.

Red line: Axis of King Abdullah Road, with a total length of 25.3 km.

Orange line: Axis of Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah Road – Prince Saad Bin Abdurrahman I Road, with a total length of 40.7 km.

Yellow line: Axis of King Khalid International Airport Road, with a total length of 29.6 km.

Green line: Axis of King Abdulaziz Road, with a total length of 12.9 km.

Violet line: Axis of Abdurrahman Bin Awf Road – Sheikh Hassan Bin Hussain Bin Ali Road, with a total length of 30 km.

Main stations

The Riyadh metro stations are designed according to a unified architectural pattern to give the project a unique identity. Intended to provide the passengers with safety and comfort, all stations will be air-conditioned, equipped with passenger information systems and provide internet access. Select stations will offer shops and car parks.

The Riyadh metro project includes four main stations located in highly populated areas and at the intersections of metro lines and the bus network. The stations provide support services such as parking lots, ticket outlets, shops, and customer service offices. The four main stations are as follows:

Qasr Al-Hukm District Station

King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Metro Station

Western Metro Station

STC Station

KAFD Metro Station

KAFD Metro Station

STC Station

Qasr Al-Hukm District Station

Western Metro Station

Western Metro Station

Metro cars

The trains are fully automated. All trains are uniformly designed, and are built for high passenger comfort and energy efficiency specifications.

74 Inspiro sets for Lines 1 and 2, supplied by Siemens

47 Innovia Metro 300 trains for Line 3, supplied by Bombardier

69 Metropolis sets for Lines 4, 5 and 6, supplied by Alstom

Amenities

Specifications of metro cars have included the world’s latest technologies. All metro cars share a uniform design, with colors following the color of their designated line. Passenger comfort has been a central element to all metro car producers.

Safety

Each train and station are equipped with advanced surveillance systems, firefighting equipment, tunnel safety systems, and sophisticated communications between network and the Operations & Control Center. The trains have been subjected to intense testing to ensure they can withstand the city’s harsh climatic conditions.

Environment

The metro cars are designed to be energy efficient, and some of the project’s facilities will make use of solar cells to help save the power required for air-conditioning and lightening.

Supporting infrastructure

Parking

21 park & ride locations with a capacity of 200-600 cars each, have been dedicated to facilitating the use of the metro network. The park & ride locations are well-distributed throughout the city to simplify commutes.

Safety and security

The metro network meets all safety and security requirements for passengers and facilities; all metro cars and stations will be provided with advanced security systems, which include CCTV-cameras and early warning systems, firefighting systems, tunnel safety systems and a communication system that supports real-time communication with the Control & Operation Center and security personnel.

Depots

The Riyadh Metro project includes the establishment of seven parking & maintenance centers, including workshops for regular maintenance, offices for the staff and parking areas for the metro train fleet, as well as control centers. Five advanced centers will operate, control, and monitor the metro lines, trains, stations, and other project facilities.

East Depot

South Depot

West Depot

Riyadh Bus Project

The bus network is fully integrated with the metro network, connecting the districts of Riyadh with the business and commercial centers. With the capacity to transport over 500,000 passengers, the bus network will serve as a main means of transportation within residential districts. Providing comfortable and efficient transportation for all residents of Riyadh, the bus network will enhance city mobility and reduce traffic congestion and environmental impact from individual vehicles.

Bus network and stations

Once fully launched, the comprehensive bus network encompasses 2,860 stops and 80 routes, served by 842 buses.

Three Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes will provide 160 km of dedicated bus lanes serving high-capacity corridors, offering faster, more direct, and reliable journeys.

The 19 community lines (910 km of network) will link major attractions and services such as hospitals, universities, shopping malls, parks, and recreational centers, and will connect to BRT and Metro stations.

58 feeder lines (835km of network) will provide seamless connections to the metro and BRT system.

There is a planned Demand Responsive Transit (DRT) service aimed to provide the link to the ‘first or last mile’ of a passenger’s journey in residential areas.

The bus network project includes four types of stations that match the different network levels in terms of design, capacity, and function. It also features a bus tracking system and a passenger guidance and information system which aims at increasing the efficiency of the network operation and providing the passengers with real time updates about their trip and bus schedules.

Vehicles

The brand-new Riyadh bus fleet consists of 842 buses, manufactured by Mercedes and MAN. By acquiring 600 Mercedes buses, the RCRC made the largest commercial vehicle procurement in the history of the vehicle manufacturer. The bus fleet is made up of three bus types:

421 Mercedes Citaro G

179 Mercedes Citaro

242 MAN Lion’s City

Amenities

The buses have a modern and sleek design. All buses are equipped with on-board Wi-Fi and a smart ticketing system. The buses are spacious and well-adapted to accommodate different passenger groups and are wheelchair accessible. All vehicles and bus stops are equipped with air-conditioning for a comfortable experience.

Safety

The Riyadh buses meet international safety standards. To secure the safety of our passengers, CCTV monitoring is installed on all buses and bus stops. Our driver performance monitoring system ensures that drivers hold the highest standards.

Environment

Running on ultra-low-sulfur fuel, the new Riyadh buses are the most environmentally friendly ever used in Saudi Arabia. The buses will help reduce CO2 emissions and traffic congestion in the city.

Bus Type 1

Bus Type 2

Bus Type 3

Supporting infrastructure

Parking

Four dedicated park & ride sites allow easy access to the bus network. Each parking site has a capacity of 200-600 cars. These are part of the 25 parking sites within the King Abdulaziz Project for Riyadh Public Transport, which covers both the bus and metro networks.

Bus depots

The Riyadh Bus Project has two bus depots, which include workshops for regular maintenance, staff offices and parking areas for the bus fleet.

West Bus Depot

West Bus Depot

West Bus Depot

Control Center

Located west of Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, an 80,000 m² Control and Operation Center will:

Control the operation of buses

Communicate with the drivers

Manage the passenger information system and tracking system

Ensure integration between the metro and bus networks

Manage the unified ticketing system

Monitor security and safety systems

Current Status of Bus Project

The first phase of the network is currently under testing and trial running. This is to ensure that our service delivery capability meets the highest operational and safety standards. During the current trial runs, we have up to 273 buses on the road that are measured according to a set of key performance indicators such as operated service, punctuality and trip completion. This testing is the final and crucial stage where we test all aspects of bus operations and resolve any final issues with the bus infrastructure before welcoming passengers aboard for a safe and efficient ride.

We are assessing the operator and drivers’ skills and behavior, adherence to safety procedures, and vehicle condition and cleanliness. In addition, operations are assessed in the bus depot and the Control & Operation Center. Here, bus logistics, controller activities and communication, and operational data capturing is tested.