Amman, Nov. 9 (Petra) -- The app-based ride-hailing fleet expanded 9.68 percent between July and September 2026, reaching 19,223 vehicles from 17,527, according to the Land Transport Regulatory Commission.
The number of operating companies rose from five to seven, a 40 percent increase. The commission attributed the expansion to regulatory changes allowing unlicensed companies to obtain licenses and removing the previous cap of 13,000 drivers, while maintaining licensing requirements to support competition and curb monopolistic practices.
The scheduled public passenger transport fleet, comprising large and medium-sized buses and shared taxis, grew 1.10 percent from 5,346 to 5,405 vehicles over the same period. The increase reflected approvals for additional vehicles and new licenses to meet demand, particularly in underserved areas. Measures included allowing a medium-sized bus to be scrapped and replaced with two small passenger vehicles.
The licensed school transport fleet increased 5.98 percent from 2,491 to 2,640 buses as the new academic year began, while the number of companies remained at 27. These operators serve public and private schools and educational centers in Irbid, Zarqa, Amman, and Balqa.
The commission said it was seeking to expand the service’s geographic coverage by encouraging investment under the 2018 regulations governing school transport providers.
Taxi fleets and operator numbers remained unchanged. Yellow taxis accounted for 5,358 vehicles across 123 offices, while limousine taxis comprised 668 vehicles across 26 offices. Border-crossing and airport taxi services had one office each, operating 31 and 228 vehicles, respectively. Hotel taxis totaled 119 vehicles across 13 offices.
The commission said demand for taxi services continued and that it was monitoring services and working to develop and expand the fleet.
Cross-border passenger travel offices also remained unchanged at 41, operating 1,178 vehicles. Tourist transport companies numbered 29, with a combined fleet of 1,471 buses and other vehicles.
The bus rental fleet grew 2.91 percent from 1,101 to 1,133 buses following requests by existing operators to expand capacity. The number of operators remained at 14, with no new licenses issued.
International bus transport operators remained at 34, while their fleet increased 4.51 percent from 266 to 278 buses to meet demand for additional cross-border capacity.
The private transport fleet, which includes buses owned by private schools and vehicles transporting factory and company employees, expanded 16.60 percent from 10,000 to 11,660 vehicles. The number of registered companies and offices remained at 3,167.
Jordan’s freight fleet totals about 32,000 tractor units and freight vehicles, with approximately 20,000 trucks operating on routes serving Aqaba and border crossings. The commission attributed the increase in trucks operating on these routes to additional vehicles entering service.
Three government decisions issued since the beginning of the year to support freight vehicle replacement helped reduce the fleet’s average age to 18.6 years, with indications of a further decline.
Cabinet Decision No. 9328, issued on July 28, allowed older freight vehicles used for container transport to be scrapped or re-exported and replaced with newer tractor units, supporting the retirement of older trucks.
//Petra// AO
