Saudi land borders handled 70.7 million passengers in 2025, up 7.2%

Saudi Arabia's roads were busier than ever in 2025. New road transport statistics from the General Authority for Statistics, the kingdom's official data agency, cover travellers, cargo, cars, crashes and driving licences. Here are the eight numbers that matter.

1. 70.7 million passengers

Land ports handled more than 70.7 million arriving and departing passengers in 2025. That is up 7.2 per cent from about 65.9 million in 2024.

2. More people arrived than left

Arrivals topped 37 million, or 52.3 per cent of the total. Departures came to 33.7 million, or 47.7 per cent.

3. King Fahd Causeway leads the way

The King Fahd Causeway, the bridge linking Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, took 49.1 per cent of all land passenger traffic. Khafji, near the Kuwait border, was second with 12.2 per cent. January was the busiest month, with over 7.4 million passengers, while March was the quietest at about 4.6 million.

4. Freight hit 26.8 million tonnes

Goods moving in and out by land rose 4.4 per cent to more than 26.8 million tonnes. Exports reached 14.3 million tonnes, up 6.3 per cent. Imports totalled 12.5 million tonnes, up 2.4 per cent.

5. Al-Wadiah is the freight giant

The Al-Wadiah crossing handled 27.9 per cent of land exports and 31.9 per cent of imports. Al-Hadithah ranked second for exports with 23.2 per cent, and Al-Batha took 26 per cent of imports.

6. 16.7 million vehicles on the road

Registered, roadworthy vehicles passed 16.7 million by the end of 2025, up 5.3 per cent. Private-registration cars make up 71.2 per cent. About 1.1 million vehicles were registered for the first time, up 3.6 per cent.

7. Road deaths rose

The kingdom recorded 17,805 serious crashes, up about 3.2 per cent from 17,251. Deaths totalled 4,448, compared with 4,113 a year earlier, or 11.99 per 100,000 people. The injury rate fell 3.9 per cent to 65.53 per 100,000. Men made up 86.2 per cent of the deaths, and people aged 19 to 30 accounted for the largest share at 33.5 per cent.

8. Fewer new driving licences

Valid licences passed 11.3 million. About 1.17 million new licences were issued, down 8.1 per cent. Saudis hold 51 per cent of licences and women 12.4 per cent. Riyadh region issued 37.4 per cent of new licences, followed by Makkah at 25.8 per cent and the Eastern Province at 17.2 per cent.

Overall, the figures show a country on the move, with more travellers and cargo but a worrying rise in road fatalities.