Okaz / Saudi Gazette

RIYADH — About 61% of Saudi women are all set to drive when they are allowed to do so in June.

A survey, conducted at a conference in Riyadh on Monday titled “drive safely”, found that only 9% of Saudi women have not yet made up their mind about driving.

About 48% of them said they need to drive to their place of work and 18% said they wanted to drive in order to take their children to school.

About 41% of women said they were scared of driving because of the perils of the road while 31% said there was no need for them to drive and 27% said they preferred private drivers.

The survey revealed that about 50% of women have some knowledge of traffic safety.

Tamador Al-Rammah, deputy minister of labor and social development, said the decision to allow women to drive came at the right time.

“Driving is necessary for women to cater to changing life circumstances,” she said.

Rammah said the next phase represents a turning point in the lives of Saudi women and asked them not to heed the cynicism of men about their driving.