RIYADH: The tax drivers of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) fear that they may lose up to 60% of their revenue if women are allowed to drive. Sources, say that they may also have no other alternative other than shutting down their services.
Saudi women getting behind the wheel have triggered waves of fear for among all the drivers of KSA. According to an Egyptian taxi supervisor, Ali Sayed his firm may lose customer base up to 60%.
“It is well known that many more women than men use our taxis. We depend on the revenue from women customers. Many taxi firms will close down if women are allowed to drive their own cars,” said Sayed.
Many women have contracted with the taxi drivers for pick and drop from university or work. At the month’s end, they get more than SR 1000 as a result of these contracts.
A Yemeni driver, Mukhtar Salem said, “I have a contract to drop off two Saudi women every day at King Abdul Aziz University for SR 1500 a month. If they drive their own cars, I will lose this money”.
On the other hand, An Egyptian taxi driver Mahmoud Abdul Shafi said that if the women get permit, they might end up facing “real crisis”. “We cannot depend on men customers who have no cars. It’s easy for them to find friends to drop them off or to take a bus”.
“Other men use taxis on a temporary basis until they can buy their own cars. We have long term contracts with women because they have no other option and are dependent on us” He said.
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