Saudi Arabia has ranked first worldwide in the Road Network Connectivity Index, according to a report by the World Competitiveness Forum.

The Kingdom also ranked fourth among G20 countries in the Road Infrastructure Quality Index, thus reflecting the continuous development of the road sector. 

For a country, the size of Saudi Arabia, this ranking underscores its growing global standing.

The kingdom boasts an extensive road network whose total length exceeds the Earth’s circumference, reaching more than 73,000km, compared to the Earth’s circumference of approximately 40,075 km.

This extensive network serves as a vital artery, facilitating domestic mobility and connecting the kingdom with eight neighboring countries, including GCC states as well as Jordan, Iraq and Yemen, thus reinforcing its position as a global logistics hub and supporting key sectors such as Hajj and Umrah, tourism and trade.

On the key achievement, the Roads General Authority said this was mainly due to its global best practices aimed at ensuring the highest levels of safety, most notably through the launch of the Road Code as a unified technical reference for all entities responsible for roads, guaranteeing the highest standards of planning, design, implementation and maintenance. 

"We have also issued the Road Right-of-Way Permits Regulation, aimed at organising activities within road corridors, enhancing safety levels, and improving user experience, in line with its regulatory and supervisory role," said a spokesman for RGA.

The Authority continues to implement key projects and initiatives to boost the road infrastructure sector, to achieve the targets of the Roads Sector Program, he stated.

"These include ranking sixth globally in the Road Quality Index by 2030, reducing road fatalities to fewer than five deaths per 100,000 people, covering the road network with road safety features in accordance with the International Road Assessment Programme (IRAP), and maintaining advanced service levels to meet the network’s capacity requirements," he added.-TradeArabia News Service