Saudi Arabia to ban taxis from picking up passengers

Riyadh - Saudi Arabia, notably the only country in the world to ban women from driving, is to introduce a new 'no-hailing law' for taxis. From October taxis will no longer be able to cruise the street to pick up passengers.

Passengers requiring a taxi will be ignored if they attempt to flag down a cab under the new legislation. They won't even be allowed to hop in a cab at the airport. Al Arabiya reported that the new law will come into effect on October 22 and will require all passengers in need of a cab to make an advance booking. Saudi Arabia's 43,000 taxis must be pre-booked or their drivers will face a fine. All taxis must be fitted with an Automated Vehicle Locater system which will record pick-up locations. According to Arabian Business the no-hailing law is to be introduced to curb the amount of traffic on Saudi roads.