Journal of Sustainability Science and Management
Volume 14 Number 2, April 2019 : 157-171
Umar Lawal Dano and Ali Muflah Alqathany
161
availability of cheap energy. The market prices
of petroleum and its products are relatively
cheap compared with other nations
with similar
gross domestic product (GDP) (Abubakar &
Aina, 2016). The price of petrol in Saudi Arabia,
which ranges between US$ 0.36 and 0.54 per
litre, is the lowest in the Middle East and North
African (MENA) region, and far lower than
the world average cost of US$ 1.41. It is even
cheaper than the United States (US), where the
average is US$ 0.74. The price is comparable
with Nigeria (US$ 0.45)
but cannot match
neighbouring Kuwait, where it is US$ 0.23
(Lahn & Stevens, 2011).
Thus, the increase in private cars in Saudi
Arabia is because of the subsidized rate of
petroleum,
which
is
economically
unsustainable. The low price of petroleum
is the key driver for
a high percentage of car
ownership and suburbanization, which, in
turn, increases accident rates. According to Al
Obaidallah (2012), the average car ownership
per household in Dammam is 6.1 %, which is
quite high
compared with other US cities, such
as Alexandria in Virginia (1.34%), Amarillo
in Texas (1.81%), Arden-Arcade in California
(1.58%), Arvada in Colorado (2.07%), and
Brandon in Florida (1.69%) (Governing the
States and Localities, 2016). As shown in Table
1, approximately five % only of Saudi families
do not have cars whereas 95% have at least one.
Compared with non-Saudi families, 29 % do not
have cars while 71 % have at least one. These
facts show that
Dammam residents depend
on their own cars for a daily commute, thereby
making it a priority for mobility.
Table 1: Car ownership in Dammam (Source: Al-Sharif, 2010).
The number of cars
Saudi families (%)
Non-Saudi families (%)
No car
4.97
28.72
One car
48.21
58.86
Two cars
25.28
7.78
Three cars and more
21.54
4.63
Total
100
100
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