Parking Reform Atlas
Jeddah on-street parking fees and improved management
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Brief summary of this reform
On-street parking fees using pay-and-display parking meters were introduced to the Balad area of central Jeddah, along with effective parking enforcement. Previously, on-street parking in the area was free-of-charge and extremely chaotic.
Why should you care?
This case demonstrates the power of ordinary straightforward on-street parking pricing with enforcement and improved demarcation of spaces to make a huge difference to the parking and street conditions in a commercial/shopping area.
It is striking that it achieved results even though public transport in Jeddah is still extremely limited. This is a city of more than 4 million people that has only 6 bus routes and no urban rail system yet.
Country
Saudi Arabia
Vehicle type
cars
State/province
Hejaz (Western Province)
Key actor type
Local government
Jurisdiction
Jeddah Municipality
Primary motivation
orderly parking (usually for wider benefits too)
Agencies involved
Jeddah Municipality, Jeddah Urban Development Company, Mawgif, the country's national parking company.
Is it a model or a warning?
useful model
Reform type
Main parking category
Main parking paradigm shift
pricing
On-street in mainly commercial streets
Helpful for park-once-and-walk approach
Adaptive Parking thrust
Implementation status
Year adopted
P: Price parking in the right ways and with the right rates for each place and time
implemented
2014
Goals of the reform
Parking availability and turnover; prevent obstructive parking; improve traffic; enable more space for pedestrians and shoppers; allow access for emergency and Civil Defense vehicles; make it safer for pedestrians and individuals with disabilities.
Impetus (what problem, campaign, opportunity or event prompted action?)
Extreme parking chaos in the area before the parking management intervention caused various problems.
Detailed description of the reform
Paid parking and improved parking management was implemented in Balad in central Jeddah. The initial paid parking area extended from the intersection of King Abdulaziz Street with Al-Dhab Street to Al-Baieh Square.
Initially, more than 39 pay-and-display meters were installed, with a price of SR3 per hour.
Parking spaces were marked out and numbered.
Enforcement is principally by towing initially.
Payment was initially by coin or e-wallet (opening an account with credit in advance). Smartphone app-based payment has been added.
Results or impacts
According to Andrew Perrier of Mawgif in 2017, the on-street parking management in Jeddah was successful in greatly reducing the level of illegal and obstructive parking and in maintaining parking availability on the priced streets. See the images, which are drawn from Andrew's presentation.
Sources and acknowledgements
"Generating Additional Revenue Through Parking Operations & Management Initiatives", presentation by Andrew Perrier, Chief Business Development Officer, National Parking Company (Mawgif) to the 2nd Annual Parking Management Conference, Singapore, Feb. 2017.
"No more free parking in downtown Jeddah", Saudi Gazette, September 08, 2014
Fouzia Khan, 2015-05-18 "Many motorists unaware of Balad paid parking scheme", Arab News. https://www.arabnews.com/saudi-arabia/news/748501
"Paid parking system in Jeddah", Mediaone TV (Tamil language local news item), 11 Sept 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOO4EzOngQU
https://www.reinventingparking.org/2017/06/on-street-parking-fees-despite-zero.html
https://www.edarabia.com/bus-routes-jeddah/
Last updated:
12 Mar 2021