Okaz newspaper

EVER since the issuance of the royal decree allowing women to drive on the Kingdom’s roads, no measures have been taken to establish new driving schools for women in some regions of the country despite the high demand for such schools.

This goes against the royal decree. We have been talking about the significance of women driving, its positive social and economic impact and the big changes it would bring to society, while there was enough time to open such driving schools for women.

The launch of women driving on June 24 has further increased the demand for driving lessons as more and more women are inclined to obtaining driving licenses. No doubt such schools are essential to implement the royal decree and protect the women’s right to driving, which will lead to women empowerment and help more young women get explore opportunities across the Kingdom.

We agree that the introduction of any new thing in society should be done in a gradual manner to ensure its success. But this should not mean we should unnecessarily delay the opening of driving schools, which shows negligence on the part of the authorities.

Newspaper reports have mentioned the controversies created in some regions due to the absence of any move by the authorities to open driving schools since the royal announcement in September 2017 to lift the ban on women driving and until the actual implementation of the decision on June 24, 2018.

Young women would require at least one month to get proper training to learn driving and receive driving license if they had not already mastered driving. Women need at least 10 days of training before testing if they already know how to drive, according to experts.

If we add this period to the deliberate delay in opening driving schools in different regions despite the huge demand, it would take months for some women to sit behind the wheel. This situation is not only depressing but also disgusting. It was unexpected and it has no justification.

I hope the authorities would give an explanation for this long delay in opening driving schools in various parts of the country despite the royal decree that called for necessary measures and arrangements to facilitate women driving in the country.

Some women have travelled to other regions of the Kingdom spending time and money to get trained and receive their driving licenses. But this is not an easy option for many women as it involves a lot of expenses for travel and stay.

Measures must be taken to ensure the smooth implementation of women driving in the Kingdom by opening driving schools in all regions without further delay. How can they open only a few number of driving schools to implement the royal decree that allows all women in the country the choice of driving themselves?