| Author(s) | Saud A. Taher * and Abdulmohsen A. Al Shaik * |
| Affiliation | * Associate Professor, Civil Engineering Department, College of Engineering, King Saud University |
| Title | Analysis of Water Tariff: Representative Sample from Riyadh City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |
| Source | Journal of King Saud University. Engineering Sciences. Volume 18, No 1. (2006/1426) |
| Abstract | A cross sectional analysis for a representative sample of residential water consumers of Riyadh city was conducted. The analysis was carried out to determine the percentage of users’ income that they pay for water service, their awareness and acceptance of the current tariff, and finally their willingness to accept another tariff that is more economical and representative of the actual cost of this service. The analysis was based on data collected by the use of a questionnaire distributed over the city in the year 1424H. Results have revealed that 97% of the users pay, on average, 0.45% of their monthly income for water bill. Moreover, this percentage does not exceed 0.17% for 81% of these users. Results, using statistical analysis, have also indicated that 65% of water users are aware of the current tariff and 95% of them do not mind paying up to 1% of their monthly income for this service. On the other hand, 51.5% of the users believe that the current tariff is very reasonable, while 39.2% think it is low and the remaining 9.3% consider it high. Furthermore, it was observed that income level is the most significant factor affecting the acceptance of increased new tariff. Finally, the study has proposed two new tariffs based on “Increased Block Structure.” Their objectives are to improve water conservation and to boost revenues to partially cover the cost of this service and the development of new water resources. The re-structured tariff is expected to reduce consumption by 13%-17%, increase revenues by 155%-170%, in addition to, trimming down governmental subsidy by 24%-27%. Keywords: Water tariff, Statistical analysis, Saudi Arabia |
