Riyadh ranks among world’s top 20 cities for public transport

In 2026, Riyadh has been recognized as the 16th best city in the world for public transport, according to a Time Out survey. This achievement positions Riyadh as the only Arab city in the top 20, a feat achieved by outperforming cities such as Amsterdam and Oslo. The UK's Time Out magazine conducted a survey that polled over 24,000 residents from around the globe.

The survey results revealed that an impressive 78.2% of Riyadh residents rated the city's public transport system as either "good" or "amazing," a significantly higher percentage than other major cities like Hamburg, Amsterdam, Vancouver, and Oslo. Taipei emerged as the top-ranked city globally, with a satisfaction rate of 95%, closely followed by Singapore at 93.5% and Hong Kong at 92.8%.

Other high-ranking cities included Edinburgh at 92.4% and Seoul at 91.1%. The rankings were based on residents' evaluations of their cities' public transport systems on a scale from one to five, with options ranging from "very poor" to "amazing." Time Out's methodology permitted only one city per country to be included on the list, with each country's highest-rated city being featured.

This recognition for Riyadh comes just two years after the launch of the Riyadh Metro, one of the world's largest public transport projects, alongside the expansion of the Riyadh bus network.