Saudi train passengers surge 266% to 156.4M in 2025

The total number of passengers travelling by rail within and between cities in Saudi Arabia rose to 156.4 million in 2025, compared with 42.7 million in 2024, marking an annual increase of 266%.

This increase was driven by a 368% leap in the number of passengers travelling on urban rail services to 145.4 million, compared with 31.1 million in 2024, according to data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).

By contrast, the number of intercity rail passengers fell 6% to 10.9 million, from 11.6 million a year earlier.

The increase in passenger numbers in 2025 was mainly driven by higher ridership on the Riyadh Metro, which began operations in December 2024, as well as growth in passenger numbers on the automated train at King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA).

The Riyadh Metro ranked first in terms of passenger numbers in 2025, carrying around 105.4 million passengers, followed by the automated train at KAIA with 34.7 million passengers, and the Haramain High-Speed Railway (HHR) with 8.5 million passengers.

Rail Passenger Transport Performance

Rail passenger transport performance in Saudi Arabia reached around 3.60 billion passenger-kilometers in 2025, compared with 3.72 billion passenger-kilometers in 2024, down 3%.

HHR accounted for the largest share of total passenger-kilometers, at 76%, despite a 6% decline in its performance to around 2.74 billion passenger-kilometers.

Meanwhile, passenger-kilometers on the East Train rose 8%, while those on the North Train increased 7%.

Rail Freight

Freight volumes transported across Saudi Arabia's railway network, comprising the North and East trains, reached around 16.1 million tons in 2025.

The North Train accounted for the largest share of freight volumes, carrying around 14.4 million tons, while the East Train transported around 1.7 million tons.

The East Train also transported around 915,400 standard containers.

Train Operational Performance

Passenger trains operated around 1.4 million trips in 2025, covering a total distance of 42.3 million kilometers. The Riyadh Metro accounted for 949,400 trips, covering a total distance of 26.8 million kilometers.

Freight trains operated 8,885 trips, covering around 6.1 million kilometers. The East Train accounted for 5,918 trips.