A royal decree lifted the ban on women driving in the Kingdom effective June 24, 2-018. More than 120,000 women have applied or expressed interest in obtaining a license so far JEDDAH: Dr. Sharifah Al-Rajhi, a professor at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, used to ask the family driver to take her children to school. Not anymore. When schools opened on Sunday, she herself did the driving, thanks to the Saudi government"s decision to lift the ban on women driving. Al-Rajhi says life has become much easier since she started driving her own car. As soon as the door was made open for women to apply for driving licenses on June 24, she said she immediately got her driver license. “It has helped me to become more independent. And today I drove my daughter Tolyn to school and we were happy to be able to do it like we used to do it in US,” she said on Sunday as schools opened. “Thank you King Salman for giving us the ability to drive in the KSA.” The lifting of the ban on women driving in the Kingdom was a historic move that gained overwhelming support not only in the Kingdom but all over the word. More than 120,000 women have applied or expressed interest in obtaining a license so far. The move is expected reduce the dependence of Saudi families on foreign drivers and also enable more women to seek employment.