Saudi Arabia: No road tolls planned

Cairo: Saudi transport authorities have denied claims about a plan to charge users of some roads in the kingdom.

Advisor to the transport minister Yasser Al Mesfar denied allegations made on social media that toll gates will be set up on some roads.

A video clip has recently gone online showing an unidentified person claiming that the Saudi authorities are planning to impose a toll on users of a highway linking Mecca and Jeddah in western Saudi Arabia.

The Transport Ministry dismissed the claim as baseless.

“This talk circulated in the video is untrue,” Al Mesfir told Saudi news portal Sabq. The official explained that works are under way to expand the Mecca-Jeddah road to ease the traffic there mainly during peak hours.

Al Mesfir also denied another online claim of planned tolls on using a suspension bridge in the capital Riyadh.

In recent years, Saudi Arabia has increased investment in expanding its network of roads as part of fast-paced efforts to boost economy.

Last February, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman directed the upgrade of ring roads and building more routes in Riyadh with the aim of turning the city into a transport and logistics hub in the Middle East. A related plan is envisaged to link different parts of the growing city and cut times of journeys.