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City Guide - St Petersburg - Getting Around | ||
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Getting Around Public Transport Most people in St Petersburg rely on public transport so the city is well covered with buses, trams and trolley buses. Although there are 65 tram lines, 179 bus routes and 50 trolley bus lines, the infrastructure is pretty run down, cars are crowded, do not run regularly and are subject to frequent breakdowns. If time is of the essence, visitors should use the more efficient metro or take a cab. All public transport operates 0500-2430. Buses are run by a number of subsidised garages and operate mainly on the outskirts of the city and from metro stations. Bus stops can be identified by yellow signs marked with the letter 'A'. A ticket (talony) costs US$0.25, is available from kiosks or the driver and must be validated by an on-board machine. Trams and trolley buses are operated by Gorelectrotrans (tel: (812) 311 3220). Signs, marked with a 'T', hanging from the electric lines indicate the stops. The tickets are the same as those used on the buses. The metro or St Petersburg Metropoliten (tel: (812) 301 9700), with four lines and 54 stations, is the best way to travel. Stations are identified by large blue 'M' signs, which light up at night. To travel, a single-journey token (zhetony) or ten-journey magnetic card is required, which should be deposited or swiped into the machines at the top of the escalators. These can only be purchased at the station booths and cost US$0.25 per journey. All the names in the metro system are in Cyrillic, so a metro map with English translation is essential. Monthly (yedinyy bilet) and half-monthly (yedinyy bilety) passes, valid on all public transport, can be purchased but only on the first or the 16th of the month. They are obtainable from bus drivers, in the metro and from some street kiosks. Taxis Taxis are yellow 'Volga' cars with ' T' on the side. They can be hailed in the street or booked by calling central reservations (tel: (812) 312 0022). Official taxis should have a working meter but visitors should always negotiate a price before getting in and avoid unofficial, unmarked cabs. Visitors should never get into a vehicle that contains anyone other than the driver. A sample fare from the Astoria Hotel to the Hermitage should be about US$3 if the taxi is hailed or US$5 if picked up from the rank at the hotel. Limousines Limuzin-Servis (tel: (812) 118 2435) or Svit (tel: (812) 356 9329) provide limousines for hire. Rates are expensive, from about US$30-40 for the 15-minute drive to the airport. Driving in the City Potholes and appalling road surfaces, drivers with no apparent road sense and the dreaded traffic police all mean that driving in St Petersburg cannot be recommended. Indeed, self-drive car hire is barely available. Street signs in Cyrillic script and a high incidence of theft from parked cars means that hiring a car with a driver is a much safer and more popular option. There are no organised paid parking areas in central St Petersburg, although it is free to park on the city streets, provided there are no restrictions signs and spaces can be found. Car Hire Self-drive hire is all but non-existent and most hire cars come complete with driver. The main providers are: Hertz (tel: (812) 324 3242; website: www.hertz.com); Hotel Astoria (tel: (812) 112 1583); Svit (tel: (812) 356 9329) and Astra Plus (tel: (812) 430 7828). Rates start from about US$100 per day. Bicycle Hire City-centre cycling can be hazardous. Some bicycles are available for hire, however, at Ertzog, Nikitsky bulevard 25 (tel: (812) 202 2504) and Burevestnik Cycling Club, Engelsa prospekt 81 (tel: (812) 554 1741). Rates vary on an almost daily basis. |