JEDDAH: King Saud University (KSU) on Friday inaugurated the three-day forum on safety for women drivers, under the theme of “The First Time,” in the presence of Princess Nourah bint Mohammed.
KSU Vice Chancellor for Female Students Dr. Inas bint Suleiman Al-Issa said the cultural forum is a response to the royal decree allowing women to drive.
She added it revitalizes the university’s role in society as it helps to raise awareness and disseminate the regulations and laws issued by the state’s bodies.
The change in the law on women driving comes into effect in June this year.
Al-Issa expressed thanks to the forum’s participants and supporters and praised their contribution to the success of the forum.
The forum includes a scientific program that discusses the psychological and social readiness of women to drive under the supervision of the elite of the university’s teaching personnel. It will also include family-oriented entertainment events.
This forum is considered as the biggest platform of the bodies supporting women’s driving with the participation of governmental entities such as the General Directorate of Traffic, the Ministry of Transport, Riyadh Secretariat, Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA), the Saudi Council of Engineers, insurance companies, fuel station companies, medical centers and car companies.
The forum aims to inculcate the culture of women driving, and introduce an educational and cultural experience toward-safe driving in an entertaining atmosphere. The forum allows women to learn the traffic laws and how to get driving licenses. It will also include talks with KSU’s best academics.
Entry to the three-day event is free. The forum will include entertainment events, and space will be set aside in which children can play and draw.
Noha Turki Al-Mala, a member of the Saudi Society for Traffic Safety, said the society aims to develop the practical side of safety.
Saudi forum helps put women drivers on the road
Saudi forum helps put women drivers on the road
Two Holy Mosques authority launches smart interactive map system
MADINAH: A new smart interactive map system has been inaugurated for the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque.
CEO of the General Authority for the Care of the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque Ghazi Al-Shahrani said that the smart interactive map facilitated the movement of visitors and worshipers while significantly enhancing navigational efficiency within the two holy mosques. The system is designed to guide visitors along the most suitable routes, support real-time updates, ensure safe navigation and enhance the overall quality of the experience.
Al-Shahrani said that the results achieved were part of the authority’s efforts to advance digital transformation and leverage smart technologies in serving pilgrims. He said that this system was one of dozens launched recently that contributed to generating operational data that supported decision-making, enhanced understanding of challenges and paved the way for developing future digital systems.
Interactive maps are part of a smart digital system that provides real-time spatial guidance, powered by live operational data linked to control rooms. This enables visitors to be directed to the most appropriate routes during closures or congestion, with immediate and accurate updates.
Executive vice president of digital transformation at the authority, Mohammed Al-Saqr, said that the pilot phase of the maps, which began during Ramadan, was integrated with the color coding and metric addressing system, which divided the Two Holy Mosques into clear geographical zones that supported smart operations and activated spatial data as part of an integrated services and analytics ecosystem. He said that this launch represented the first step in a project that would continue to evolve over the coming years, with further development planned through 2026.
Al-Saqr said that the system featured more than 950 points of interest across 13 service categories, supported by more than 650 QR codes for easy access. It could also generate more than 100,000 dynamic routes, automatically optimized in real time based on operational conditions and crowd flow.
Director of business solutions at the authority, Waheeb Al-Mutrafi, said that the maps enabled precise location-based reporting and contributed to accelerating access to electric carts through ticket numbers via a smart platform built on field data verified over several months, enhancing operational efficiency and improving the quality of services provided to worshippers.
