Mecca Public Transport Guide 2026: Makkah Bus Routes, Fares, Timings & Stations

Mecca’s city buses — Makkah Bus — run 12 routes across the holy city, around the clock, for a flat SR 4 fare. The network is run by the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites (RCMC) and operated by the Modern Bus Company (MBC). This guide covers every route with its published timetable points and frequencies, the four central stations that ring the Grand Mosque, the Haramain railway connection, and the two Miqat routes pilgrims rely on for Umrah. All Mecca pages sit under the Mecca city hub, and the operator page is Makkah Bus on BusUpdate.

🧭 Makkah Bus at a glance

• Routes: 12 (numbered 1 to 12)
• Fare: SR 4 flat since the paid launch on 1 November 2023 (the 2022–2023 trial period was free — old “free buses” articles are out of date)
• Hours: a 24-hour network — published timetable grids run from 04:00 through to past 02:00
• Network size: about 400 buses and 431 stations (Saudi Press Agency, January 2026), roughly 580 km of routes, and more than 188 million riders carried since launch
• Frequencies: where RCMC publishes a timetable grid, buses run every 10 to 16 minutes (see each route below)
• Paying: the Makkah Bus app and website, and station vending machines

🎫 Fares and tickets

Every Makkah Bus journey costs a flat SR 4. The fare has applied since 1 November 2023, when the paid service replaced the free trial that ran from the network’s February 2022 launch. Buy through the Makkah Bus app or website, or from vending machines at the main stations. There are no zones and no distance bands to calculate — one ride, one fare — and the same SR 4 covers the long cross-city routes (such as the 6 to Umm Al-Qura University) as the short central hops between the Haram stations.

🚌 All 12 Makkah Bus routes, route by route

Termini and timing points below come from RCMC’s published timetable documents and the operator’s route list; where RCMC publishes a departure grid, the frequency is quoted from it. Three routes (2, 7 and 10) have no published grid, and this guide says so rather than guessing.

Route 1 — Al Buhayrat to Batha Quraish

A north-side corridor tying Al Buhayrat to Batha Quraish through Al Fayhaa and Zahrat Kudai. Published timing points: Al Buhayrat → Al Fayhaa → Zahrat Kudai → Batha Quraish. Frequency: every 16 minutes in the published timetable grid (first buses from 04:00). See the route 1 page for the full detail.

Route 2 — An Nawwariyyah to Jabal Al-Kaaba Station (Jarwal)

The 2 runs from An Nawwariyyah in the north-west to the Jabal Al-Kaaba central station by Jarwal — the station district for the Grand Mosque’s northern side and the intercity bus terminal. RCMC publishes no separate timing-point grid for this route, so no frequency is claimed here. See the route 2 page for the full detail.

Route 3 — Al Kakiyyah to Ash Shuhada

A southern corridor from Al Kakiyyah through Al Shoqiyah to Ash Shuhada. Published timing points: Al Ekaishia → Al Shoqiyah → Zainab Al Hilalyia Walkway → Al Hajj. Frequency: about every 12 minutes in the published grid, tightening to roughly every 7 minutes at busy times. See the route 3 page for the full detail.

Route 4 — Al-Marwa Station (Terminal 2) to Kudai

Al-Marwa is the central-area station for the Al Gazzah side of the Grand Mosque, so the 4 is the direct Kudai to central-Makkah link — one of the most useful routes for pilgrims staying in Kudai. Published timing points: Al-Marwa Terminal 2 → Kudai. Frequency: about every 12 minutes in the published grid, tightening to roughly every 7 minutes at busy times. See the route 4 page for the full detail.

Route 5 — Ajyad Station to Al Awali

The 5 has 26 stops and was one of the six routes that kept running through the Hajj 1443 operating plan — a mark of how central the Ajyad to Al Awali corridor is. Published timing points: Ajyad Terminal 4 → Al Naseem Walkway → Al Awali. Frequency: about every 12 minutes in the published grid, tightening to roughly every 7 minutes at busy times. See the route 5 page for the full detail.

Route 6 — Ar Rusayfah (Haramain Station) to Al Abdeyah — Umm Al-Qura University

The 6 is the Haramain station to university corridor, linking the high-speed rail station with Umm Al-Qura University through Al Naseem. Published timing points: Al Haramain Train Station → Al Naseem → Maternity & Children Hospital → Al Abdeyah. Frequency: about every 12 minutes in the published grid, more often at peak times. See the route 6 page for the full detail.

Route 7 — Ash Shubaikah to Haramain High-Speed Railway Station

The 7 was one of the first four Makkah Bus routes launched in the February 2022 trial, tying the central area at Ash Shubaikah to the Haramain station. RCMC publishes no separate timing-point grid for it, so no frequency is claimed here. See the route 7 page for the full detail.

Route 8 — Al Gazzah (Al-Marwa Station) to Um Ajud

From Al-Marwa down Al Masjid Al Haram Road through Al Mansour to Um Ajud. Published timing points: Al-Marwa Terminal 2 → Al Masjid Al Haram Road → Al Mansour → Om Al Jood (Um Ajud). Frequency: about every 12 minutes in the published grid, tightening to roughly every 7 minutes at busy times. See the route 8 page for the full detail.

Route 9 — Ash Shara’i to Al Awali

The 9 pairs with the 5 to give Al Awali two corridors into the centre — via Ajyad on the 5, via Ash Shara’i on the 9. Published timing points: Ash Shara’i → Al Masjid Al Haram Road → Al Awali. Frequency: every 15 minutes in the published grid. See the route 9 page for the full detail.

Route 10 — Al Gazzah to Ju’ranah

The 10 was confirmed in the final-phase launch reporting (October 2022), linking the central area at Al Gazzah to Ju’ranah in the north — the Miqat for residents of Makkah’s north side entering ihram for Umrah. RCMC publishes no separate timing-point grid for it, so no frequency is claimed here. See the route 10 page for the full detail.

Route 11 — Ash Shuhada to Ibrahim Al-Khalil Station

Ibrahim Al-Khalil is the central station serving the Al Hajlah side of the Grand Mosque, so the 11 reads as the Ash Shuhada to Al Hajlah corridor via Ar Rusaifah. Published timing points: Ash Shuhada → Ar Rusaifah → Ibrahim Al-Khalil Station. Frequency: every 12 minutes in the published grid. See the route 11 page for the full detail.

Route 12 — Jabal Al-Kaaba Station (Terminal 1, Jarwal) to Al Umrah — Aisha Mosque, Taneem

The 12 is the Taneem route: it runs from Jarwal to the Aisha Mosque at Taneem, the closest Miqat to the Haram and the standard Umrah re-entry point — which is why it earns the network’s tightest timetable. Published timing points: Terminal 1, Jabal Al-Kaaba → Ayesha Mosque (Taneem). Frequency: every 10 minutes in the published grid — the network’s best published frequency. See the route 12 page for the full detail.

🕋 The four central stations

Makkah Bus does not — despite what older guides claim — run every route to the Grand Mosque’s doors. Instead, routes terminate at four central stations placed around the Haram, each a short walk from a different side of the mosque. Knowing which station your route uses is the key to using the network:

• Al-Marwa Station — the Al Gazzah side, north-east of the Haram. Terminus of routes 4 (to Kudai) and 8 (to Um Ajud).
• Jabal Al-Kaaba Station — Jarwal, on the northern side, by the intercity bus terminal district. Terminus of route 2 (from An Nawwariyyah) and of the Taneem route 12 (Terminal 1).
• Ajyad Station — south of the Haram, on the Ajyad corridor. Terminus of route 5 (to Al Awali).
• Ibrahim Al-Khalil Station — serving the Al Hajlah side. Terminus of route 11 (from Ash Shuhada via Ar Rusaifah).

Staying near the Haram, then, is a matter of side: north-side hotels work with Jabal Al-Kaaba and Al-Marwa; the Ajyad and Al Hajlah hotel districts work with Ajyad and Ibrahim Al-Khalil. Cross-city routes such as the 3, 6 and 9 feed into these stations and the central stops along Al Masjid Al Haram Road.

🚄 The Haramain railway connection

The Haramain high-speed station at Ar Rusayfah is Makkah Bus’s rail interchange. The route 6 runs from the station through Al Naseem to Umm Al-Qura University; the route 7 ties the station to the central area at Ash Shubaikah; and the route 11 passes Ar Rusaifah on its way between Ash Shuhada and Ibrahim Al-Khalil station. Trains from Madina, Jeddah and King Abdulaziz Airport connect into the city network here — usually a better bet than a taxi queue at peak arrival times.

🌙 The Miqat routes — 10 and 12

Two routes matter specifically for Umrah logistics. The route 12 runs every 10 minutes from Jabal Al-Kaaba (Jarwal) to the Aisha Mosque at Taneem, the nearest Miqat to the Haram — the standard trip for Makkah residents and pilgrims renewing ihram. The route 10 runs from Al Gazzah to Ju’ranah, the northern Miqat. Both are ordinary SR 4 city routes; there is no special Umrah fare or separate pilgrim service to look for.

🚌 Intercity buses from Mecca

Makkah Bus is the city network; for travel beyond Mecca, intercity coaches leave from the Jarwal district by Jabal Al-Kaaba station — the same northern station district that routes 2 and 12 use. Saudi Arabia’s intercity concessions changed in October 2023: SAPTCO‘s old kingdom-wide concession ended, and the corridors from Mecca are now run by the successor operators — SAT on the southern network (Jeddah, Riyadh and the south), Northwest Bus towards Madina, Tabuk and AlUla, and Darb AlWatan in the north. If an older guide tells you to book a SAPTCO intercity bus from Mecca, it is describing the pre-October-2023 network. For Madina specifically, most pilgrims now prefer the Haramain train from Ar Rusayfah (routes 6 and 7 above) — about two and a half hours city to city, against roughly five by road.

📅 Hajj and Ramadan

During Hajj, Makkah Bus operates under a dedicated Hajj operating plan and the central area is reorganised around pilgrim flows; some regular patterns change. The Al Mashaaer Metro that serves the Hajj sites (Arafat, Muzdalifah, Mina) is a separate, Hajj-only railway — it is not part of Makkah Bus and does not run outside the Hajj season. In Ramadan, expect the heaviest demand around Taraweeh and in the last ten nights; the 24-hour network and 10–12 minute frequencies on the central routes are built for exactly this.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

How much is the bus fare in Mecca?
SR 4 flat on every Makkah Bus route, since 1 November 2023.

Are Mecca buses free?
No — they were free during the trial period (February 2022 to October 2023) but have cost SR 4 since the paid launch on 1 November 2023.

Who operates Makkah Bus?
The network is run by the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites (RCMC) and operated by the Modern Bus Company (MBC).

Do Makkah Bus routes run 24 hours?
The network operates around the clock; published timetable grids run from 04:00 through to past 02:00.

Which bus goes from the Haramain station into Mecca?
Route 6 (to Al Abdeyah via Al Naseem) and route 7 (to Ash Shubaikah); route 11 also passes Ar Rusaifah.

How do I get to Taneem (Aisha Mosque) by bus?
Route 12 from Jabal Al-Kaaba station (Jarwal) — every 10 minutes in the published grid, SR 4.

How do I reach Ju’ranah by bus?
Route 10 from Al Gazzah.

Do all Makkah Bus routes go to the Grand Mosque?
No. Routes terminate at four central stations around the Haram — Al-Marwa, Jabal Al-Kaaba, Ajyad and Ibrahim Al-Khalil — each a short walk from a different side of the mosque.

How do I pay for Makkah Bus?
Through the Makkah Bus app or website, or at station vending machines.

When did Makkah Bus start?
The trial service launched in February 2022 with free rides; the paid network (SR 4) launched on 1 November 2023 and has since carried more than 188 million riders.

How many stations does Makkah Bus have?
431 stations across the 12 routes (Saudi Press Agency network figures, January 2026), served by a fleet of about 400 buses.

Is the Al Mashaaer Metro part of Makkah Bus?
No — it is a separate Hajj-only railway serving Arafat, Muzdalifah and Mina, and it does not operate outside Hajj.

Data: RCMC published Makkah Bus timetable documents and route list; network figures from the Saudi Press Agency (January 2026). Independently compiled by the BusUpdate editorial team — confirm time-sensitive details with the operator before travelling.