المملكة: Proof of dependency is a condition for individuals to own buses…and an equation "Staff" Controls the corporate fleet

I put The General Authority for Transportis a crucial condition for individuals wishing to practice bus transportation activity, which is the necessity of obtaining a valid “operating card.” This document is granted by the applicant providing legal proof of his actual need for transportation, whether this is to serve his relatives via “proof of dependency” documents or to transport his direct employees, so that this card becomes the official and sole license to practice the activity.

And this came Requirements within the new technical regulations, the ninth article of which clearly stipulates that owning private buses for individuals is no longer available without a documented legal justification, as the individual must prove the number of his dependents or who work under his sponsorship to ensure that the bus is used for its intended purpose and prevent its exploitation in unlicensed commercial transportation operations.

In the parallel track related to commercial establishments, the new regulations prohibited granting licenses for private transportation buses to companies and small institutions whose number of employees is less than eight individuals, as To register the first bus, the Authority stipulated that the number of employees in the facility exceed this number, to ensure operational seriousness.

The authority adopted a precise mathematical equation to determine the permissible bus limit for each facility, based on dividing the total number of workers registered in social insurance or linked to long-term contracts (one year or more) by the seat capacity of one bus, with the fractions being divided in favor of the facility, to adjust the size of the fleet in proportion to the actual workforce.

Article Four of the regulations obligated establishments to provide At least one bus, whether through direct ownership or financial leasing, as a basic condition for obtaining a license, with a strict emphasis on the establishment being the actual user of these buses, which cuts the way for the phenomenon of sub-leasing.

With regard to the technical aspects, Article Fifteen referred the determination of safety equipment and mechanical specifications for buses to decisions issued by the Chairman of the Authority, stressing that these vehicles must comply with the requirements of the traffic system and Saudi standard specifications to ensure the safety of passengers and users. The regulation paid great attention to the safety of long-distance transportation, as Article Twenty-Six obligated all establishments that operate trips between cities in the Kingdom or outside it to strictly adhere to driving hours and compulsory rest periods for drivers “daily and weekly,” to reduce road accidents resulting from stress.

This comprehensive legislative system, a copy of which the Eastern Chamber received, aims to restructure the private transportation sector, raise the level of safety on the roads, and ensure that The use of buses is limited to the actual proven need, whether for large families or real commercial establishments.