Greenhouse gas emissions from road transportation in Saudi Arabia - a challenging frontier

The world is experiencing a tremendous growth in transportation sector which is also prevalent in Saudi Arabia. This phenomenon results in an increasing demand for fossil fuel for both national and international transportation. This study presents the (i) analysis of the historical fossil fuel energy consumption trend, (ii) forecasted energy consumption using double exponential smoothing method, (iii) study of estimated and projected emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG), (iv) factors influencing GHG emissions, (v) potential mitigation measures, and (vi) mitigation initiatives to reduce GHG emissions from the road transportation sector of the Kingdom. This study revealed that the per capita fuel consumption in Saudi Arabia is increasing at higher rates in recent years compared to some other neighboring countries along with the consistent increase in number of cars and population growth. As a result, the domestic fuel consumption is growing significantly and the growth dynamics of GHG emissions is becoming quite challenging for planning, development, and implementation of appropriate mitigation measures. An integrated national effort with strong commitments from all the stakeholders is a strategic imperative for the Kingdom to ensure its rapid development and successful implementation of commendable national policy for reducing the emission of GHG, particularly from the road transportation sector. Success of the Kingdom's efforts to manage GHG emissions from the road transportation sector while maintaining its ambitious development stride and commitments to a stable global energy supply demands increased and comprehensive focus on vehicle efficiency, environment friendly fuels, and management of growing travel demand considering the specific socio-economic characteristics.