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| Home - City Guide - Barcelona - Getting Around | ||
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Getting Around Public Transport With the exception of one metro line, transport in the city is operated by TMB (tel: (93) 318 70 74; website: www.tmb.net/eng/menu.htm). There are TMB information offices in the foyer of the Universitat metro station, open Monday to Friday 0800-2000. There are also offices at Diagnol, Sants Estacio and Sagrada Familia metro stations. Regional rail services and the purple metro line are operated by Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) (tel: (93) 205 1515; website: www.fgc.catalunya.net). The information office, located in the Catalunya metro station, is open September to July, Monday to Friday 0700-2100 and in August, Monday to Friday 0800-2000. Apart from during the rush hour (0730-0930 and 1800-2030) when it becomes very crowded, the metro (M) is the most efficient means of transport in the city. Metro lines are all identified by a number and a colour; the direction is shown by the name of the line terminus. A single ticket (billet senzill) costs Pta145 and must be validated in a machine on the platform before boarding and carried at all times to avoid the Pta5000 penalty. The metro runs from Monday to Thursday 0500-2300, Friday and Saturday until 0200 and Sunday 0600-2400. The FGC line is fully integrated with the rest of the TMB-operated metro system and runs daily until 0130. Buses in the city run from 0530 or 0600 until about 2230. The network is extensive and almost all services run through Plaça de Catalunya, Plaça Urquinaona or Plaça de la Universitat. Single tickets cost Pta150 and must be clipped in machines on boarding. There are 16 night bus routes running 2300-0400 to some destinations, which require separate tickets. The TombBus is a shopping service that runs between Plaça de Catalunya and Plaça Pius XII Monday to Friday 0800-2130 and Saturday 0900-2130. A single ticket costs Pta170. A number of multi-ride tickets (T-1, T-2 and T-50/30), which cost Pta825-Pta3500 depending on validity period, modes of transport and changes permitted and one-day (Pta625), three-day (Pta1600), five-day (Pta2400) and monthly (Pta5500) passes are available. In addition, for tourists, there are three-day (Pta1900) and five-day (Pta2400) Aerobus+Metro+Bus passes which cover all transport in the city including the journey to and from the airport. For the suburbs and surrounding area there are regional rail lines run by the FGC and RENFE. The RENFE local network is known as Rodalies or Cercanías; the central station in the city is Plaça de Catalunya. A funicular railway trundles up Montjuïc from the corner of Carrer Nou de la Rambla and Avinguda Parallel to Avinguda Miramar 1100-2200 daily in summer and 1100-2015 daily in winter (Pta250 - single; Pta375 - return). From the amusement park there is a cable car (telefèric) to Montjuïc Castle summer daily 1200-2000 and winter Saturday and Sunday 1100-1930, it costs Pta475 single and Pta675 return. Taxis There are 11,000 yellow-and-black registered cabs operating in the city. As well as being hailed on the street, taxis can be booked in advance (tel: (93) 358 1111). The basic charge is Pta300, which should show on the meter; each kilometre is charged at Pta92-107. A Pta100 supplement is charged for each piece of large luggage. Taxi drivers should be tipped 5-10% of the meter fare. Limousines A number of companies offer limousine services with multi-lingual drivers. These include Barcelona Limousine Service (tel: (93) 247 0699; fax: (93) 265 1484; bcnlimousine@spain-bcnlimo.com; www.spain-bcnlimo.com), who charge from Pta42,000 for eight hours and Limousine Rental (tel: (93) 372 0000; fax (93) 473 6077; e-mail: central@limorent.com; website: www.limorent.com), who charge from Pta6,900 for airport transfers and Pta30,000-Pta68,000 for a full day. Driving in the City The proximity of the main attractions and the excellent public transport system mean visitors will not need a car to get around the city. This is an advantage, as rush-hour traffic in Barcelona can be particularly overwhelming and parking is tricky in some areas. Cars require a paid ticket to park in the 'blue' zones daily 0800-1400 and 1600-2000. Illegal parking results in the offending vehicle being towed away. Parking costs from Pta220-Pta350 per hour to Pta3,250 per day. Car Hire Cars can be hired by drivers from overseas aged 21 years and above on presentation of a passport and a valid driving licence. A valid international insurance policy is also necessary although this can be purchased at the time of hire. In addition to companies at the airport, car hire in Barcelona is provided by Avis, Carrer Casanovas 209 (tel: (93) 209 9533; website: www.avis.com); and Hertz, Carrer Tuset 10 (tel: (93) 217 3248; website: www.hertz.com). Hire of a small car costs from Pta9,300 a day and from Pta60,000 a week. Bicycle Hire Barcelona has a limited network of bicycle lanes and some bicycle racks. Bicycles can be carried on the public transport system, although there are some peak hour restrictions. Bicycles can be hired at Scenic, Carrer Marina 22 (tel: (93) 221 1666; e-mail: scenic@ctb.es; website: www.scenic.es), Un Coxte Menys, Esparteria 3 (tel: (93) 268 2105) and Biciclot, Sant Joan de Malta 1 (tel: (93) 307 7475). Hire charges start at around Pta3,000 a day and additional ID is required. |
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