It is reported that the transport sector in Saudi Arabia is estimated to be growing by 6% to 10% annually, driven by aggressive construction of new roads, railways and integrated community development projects across the Kingdom.

Development of transport infrastructure for religious pilgrims has also been growing at an accelerated pace, expanding by 10% to 15% annually as Saudi Arabia continues to accommodate a growing number of religious tourists each year.

For 2010 alone, a total of 6,400 kilometers of new roads have been included in Saudi Arabia's transport budget, while other high profile projects underway in the country include the USD 3 billion Riyadh Light Railway, USD 5.6 billion worth of public transport projects under the Jeddah Strategic Development Plan and the 440 kilometer Haramain High Speed Rail being built in Mecca, Medina, Jeddah and King Abdullah Economic City.

In light of the massive transport development initiatives undertaken all over the country, the Saudi Arabia Urban Transport Conference 2011, the only dedicated business to business networking event for all stakeholders of Saudi's transportation sector, has been organized by the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Municipalities & Rural Affairs and International Quality & Productivity Centre, to provide a dedicated platform for government authorities, along with local and international consultants, contractors and service providers, to discuss the most suitable transport solutions that will support Saudi’s long term transport development agenda. The event has been rescheduled to run February 19th 2011 to February 22nd 2011 at the Riyadh Marriott Hotel.

Mr Jamie Dowswell conference director at International Quality & Productivity Center, organizers of the conference, said that "The Saudi Arabia Urban Transport Conference 2011 is an important complementary platform that supports the sustainable development of Saudi Arabia's transport sector. The conference will gather some of the most important personalities in the transport industry to discuss the latest challenges and the most up to date transport solutions that are fully capable of addressing Saudi Arabia's rapidly growing transport requirements. The impressive line up of speakers and participants from both the public and private sector reflects the significance of the conference in helping drive the country's transport development initiatives."

(Sourced from www.gulfbase.com)