Saudi Arabia: 5% of parking spaces to be designated to electric vehicles

Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs plans to allocate five per cent of the total available parking spaces for electric vehicles, local media reported.

According to new municipal rules and regulations, there will be charging stations for electric vehicles at all car parks.

The ministry has classified electric vehicle charging sites into three levels. The first level is long-term parking such as parking lots in residential buildings, offices, airports, railway stations, and regional transport stations.

The second level is short-term parking such as parking lots in commercial facilities, including shopping malls, theatres and hotels, while the third level is parking lots on both sides of commercial streets and main roads and Class A fuel stations.

The project aims to define the requirements and conditions for charging electric vehicles, which are in line with the modern trend in supporting the use of clean energy sources instead of oil derivatives to reduce pollution and preserve the environment and public health.

The ministry said the move is in line with the global trend towards the use of clean energy sources, instead of oil products to reduce air pollution and carbon footprint as well as to preserve the environment.

The major global auto companies invest and participate in the modernization and development of electric cars whose popularity increases with the passage of time along with the development and innovations that are added to them.

Likewise, the cost of electric cars is declining continuously with its development, which leads to an expansion in the use of these types of cars.

“Switching onto electric vehicles help preserve the environment and conserve energy sources, while improving public health and improving the quality of life of Saudi citizens, the ministry added.