Article 20 of the Saudi Road Transport Law

This article sets out the general role of the Ministry of Transport: it undertakes regulation and supervision of the transport sector in the Kingdom except air transport, and coordination between its modes in a way that serves the national economy and the development plan. To that end it has the following:

1. Planning: planning the sector as one unit, coordinating the plans of its activities such as roads, railways and ports, and with the air transport plan, and linking it to the general development plan.
2. Research: preparing technical and economic research in line with scientific and technical progress.
3. International agreements: preparing and reviewing them and supervising their implementation in a way that protects national establishments.
4. Preventing duplication: coordinating between types of transport in a way that prevents duplication of services and achieves maximum efficiency.
5. Statistics: for the means of transport within the Kingdom, and for goods and passengers inside and outside it by sea, land or air.
6. Fares: setting the various fares for transport by all its means except air.
7. Supervising companies: those holding concessions or licenses, and taking suitable action regarding any shortcoming on their part.

Note that air transport is excluded from regulation and supervision, but the text requires coordination with its plan and includes it in the statistics on goods and passengers.

This article is connected to Article 18, which gives the Minister of Transport the power to set goods transport fares, and to Article 21, which entitles him to issue the regulatory and implementing regulations of the Law. Transport companies dealing with the Ministry may consult a lawyer who specializes in administrative cases and transport regulations when needed.