Investigating attitudes of women towards carpooling in Jeddah

This study examines attitudes of women towards carpooling in Jeddah, exploring the intersection of personal, cultural, and logistical factors following Saudi Arabia’s post-2018 reforms that granted women the right to drive. Drawing upon qualitative data from five focus groups comprising 27 female participants, the study employs multiple sentiment analysis techniques (lexicon-based, machine learning, and deep learning), thematic analysis, and word cloud visualisation to identify key motivations and barriers. Although the study recognises economic and environmental benefits of carpooling, women’s participation in it is still constrained by concerns regarding safety, trust, and sociocultural norms governing gender interactions, as 22.2 % of respondent have shown negative sentiments. The findings emphasise the necessity for gender-sensitive transport policies, including women-only carpool initiatives. Importantly, clear regulatory frameworks are highly recommended to enhance the viability of sustainable mobility in Saudi cities. Given its exploratory nature, the study provides a foundation for further research; future studies employing larger and more diverse datasets would enable greater generalisability and validation of these findings.