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Bucharest public transport

Bucharest has a well-developed public transport network: there are 4 metro lines, a dense network of buses, trolleybuses, and trams. Buses and trams meet both old and modern air-conditioned Mercedes buses. Bucharest has one of the largest public transport networks in Europe.

Bucharest public transport tickets

Please note that some types of tickets are only valid for metro travel . Magnetic cards are used as tickets in Bucharest. You can buy tickets for metro travel at kiosks at the entrance to the metro or at ticket offices with the inscription Casa. Ground transportation tickets are purchased at kiosks with the RATB sign.

Ticket namePublic transport modeFare in LeiPrice in Euro
2-trip ticketUnderground5,00 RON1.13 Euro
10-ride ticketUnderground20,00 RON4,50 Euro
Pass for 1 dayUnderground8,00 RON1.80 Euro
1 week passUnderground25,00 RON5.60 Euro
1 month passUnderground70,00 RON15.80 Euro
Ticket for 1 trip with duration of 60 minutes with unlimited number of stopsMetro, ground transportation5,00 RON1.13 Euro
Ticket for 10 rides, 60 minutes each, with unlimited connectionsMetro, ground transportation30,00 RON6.80 Euro
Pass for 1 dayMetro, ground transportation16,00 RON3.60 Euro
1 trip within the cityLand transport1,30 RON0,30 Euro
1 trip on express bus routesBuses No. 780 and 783 from the airport to Bucharest3.50 RON0.80 Euro
1 trip in the suburbsLand transport1.50 RON0,34 Euro

Underground (Bucharest public transport)

There are 4 lines in the Bucharest metro: M1, M2, M3 and M4 with stations for the transition between branches, which can be viewed on the metro map attached below. The metro operates from 05:00 to 23:00. The metro has modern trains manufactured by Bombardier and Romanian manufacturer Astra IVA. On the 2019 Bucharest metro map, you see, in addition to the letter designation, the color coding of the lines.

The total length of metro lines is 73 km and 53 stations. The metro transports over 700 thousand passengers daily. The metro is crowded in the morning and at rush hours. We went down the subway, and it seemed to me rather gloomy. The plus is that if you are traveling in summer, you do not have to shake in dusty and stuffy ground transport. Fortunately, the metro runs close to all the main attractions of Bucharest:

  • Botanical Garden (metro station Politehnica);
  • Cantacuzino Palace (metro station Piata Romana, Piata Victoriei);
  • Cotroceni Palace (metro station Politehnica);
  • Palace of the Parliament (metro station Izvor);
  • National Museum of the History of Romania (metro station Piața Unrii).

Ground transportation: buses, trolleybuses, trams

Bucharest’s ground transportation network is one of the densest in Europe. Ground transportation is used by 1.7 million passengers daily. Ground transportation in Bucharest runs on average from 04:30 am until 23:00 or 23:30.

What is important to know about bus routes in Bucharest:

  • City buses are numbered from 101 to 697;
  • Suburban buses – from 408 to 471;
  • Express buses # 780 and # 783 connect Bucharest Airport (Otopeni) with the city center .

There are 85 daily routes in the city. The cost of travel on suburban buses is slightly higher than on city routes, so pay attention to which specific bus routes you will use to get the right ticket.

The bus can only be entered through the front door. You can buy a ticket from the driver or validate a pre-purchased ticket that you already have. During validation, the cost of 1 trip will be deducted from your ticket, after which a green light on the device will light up.

There are 15 trolleybus routes in Bucharest. Outdated Ikarus operate on the routes, but there are also more modern low-floor trolleybuses. If you are planning to travel around Bucharest by trolleybus, I recommend that you print out a map of its routes.

There are 23 tram routes . In addition, there is 1 light rail line. In my opinion, trams look extremely ancient and depressing. I noticed that few people use them: apparently, the locals prefer the metro and buses.

Night routes

If you are walking in the center and suddenly night has fallen, you can take a chance and take one of the night bus routes. However, if I were you, in such a situation, I would take a taxi: you are not in civilized Europe, and you need to understand that it is not as safe to travel here by night transport as in the Czech Republic or Germany. Fortunately, a taxi costs a mere penny here.

There are 25-night bus routes in Bucharest. In the interval from 23:00 to 01:00, buses run at intervals of 40 minutes, from 01:00 to 03:00 – at intervals of 120 minutes, from 03:00 to 04:30 – at intervals of 40 minutes. Night routes are numbered N101 – N125. Below you can see the routes for night transport in Bucharest.

Taxi in Bucharest

Taxis in Romania are not a luxury: here they are more than cheap. But you need to make sure you get into the car with the official carrier. The fare for 1 km from official carriers ranges from 1.39 to 3.5 lei. The taxi must be marked with checkers and other typical designations. When boarding, the driver turns on the counter, to which the boarding fee is added. Tipping is usually not given to taxi drivers in Romania.

Some tips for ordering a taxi safely in Bucharest and Romania in general:

  • To avoid bad taxis, it is better to order a taxi from the official taxi services (Meridian, Taxi 2000, or Taxi AS) by phone or through mobile applications. If you don’t want to mess with the Romanians, order a reliable taxi, and don’t fool your head.
  • Before the trip, check the address of your destination on Google Maps and get at least a rough idea of ​​which direction you need to go so that the taxi driver does not arrange for you a tour with loops and detours of the entire city.
  • Always take a small change with you in a taxi: bills of 1, 5, 10 lei, so as not to face the fact that the taxi driver “has no change.”
  • Avoid taking taxis on the street near crowded places: in the Otopeni airport area, by the main shopping street of Lipscani. Tourists for local drivers are a great profit, so do not take a taxi in these places, this is a complete divorce.
  • Always check the cost of 1 km indicated on the taxi door. Taxi drivers sometimes resort to tricks and keep the door open so that you don’t see this number.
  • If you think that the taxi driver has cheated you, call the police on 112.

Alternatively, you can order a taxi transfer online in advance on the Internet, it is comfortable and no one will deceive you.

Rent a car in Bucharest

There is no point in renting a car to explore Bucharest because of problems with parking and traffic jams. But if you decide to go to the castles and other cities of Romania, then it’s hard to do it without a car. The roads in Romania are of normal quality, there is always asphalt to popular tourist sites. Traveling by car in Romania is comfortable, and the mountain roads are very picturesque. When traveling, it is worth considering that a liter of gasoline costs about € 1.2.

Don’t know where are the best car rental conditions? Then go to Rental cars and select a car according to the parameters you need. The advantage of the site is a comparison of rental prices from all large and reliable rental companies.

Bucharest public transport
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