---Earlier:---No single deal solves Hormuz, but the Gulf keeps quietly building its way around it anyway. The initiative is intended to enhance transit traffic, improve supply chain efficiency and streamline the movement of goods between the two Gulf economies, though the companies have not disclosed financial terms, projected freight volumes or an implementation timetable. The direct Saudi Oman road connection through the Rub' al Khali, or Empty Quarter, opened in December 2021 and eliminated the need for road traffic between the two countries to pass through the United Arab Emirates. Taken in isolation, the deal is a minor logistics story. None of these initiatives, including the newly announced Saudi Oman freight deal, offers any near term relief to shipping capacity through Hormuz, since transport infrastructure of this kind typically takes years to build out and scale.