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| City Guide - Sofia - Getting Around | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Getting Around Public Transport The city transport authority is the Ministry of Transport and Communications (tel: (02) 940 9424), which operates trams (0500-0100), buses and trolley buses (0500-2400). There are no night services. They also operate a single metro line, northwest from Ploshtad Sveta Nedelya to the Lyulin suburb. Plans to extend the underground system have made little progress. Tickets cost Lv0.40 and are sold at kiosks at the major bus stops or at newsagents. Once on-board, tickets should be validated using the metal punchers by the windows: failure to do so risks a Lv4 fine. Passes or transit cards, valid for one day, five days or one month, are also available, costing Lv2, Lv9 and Lv37 respectively. Taxis Much has been done to improve the reputation of Sofia's taxi drivers, who were said to overcharge foreign visitors. Since June 2000, taxis must be yellow and operate by meter. Official charges are extremely cheap: Lv0.30-0.56 per kilometre. The more reputable firms are Okay Supertrans (tel: (02) 973 2121); Yes Taxi (tel: (02) 91119 or 91009); Inex (tel: (02) 91919) and Taxi-S-Express (tel: (02) 1280). Taxi ranks are also located at strategic points throughout the city centre. A recent addition to Sofia is a fleet of privately run blue minibuses, known as 'Marsh-route Taxis'. These cover more obscure routes, dropping passengers on request. Most routes cost Lv1. Driving in the City Negotiating the interweaving paths of pedestrians, cars, trams and buses during rush hour (worst in the evening 1500-1900) can be a traumatic experience. However, once away from the city centre, traffic runs quite freely along the wide, open boulevards. Street names are almost exclusively in Cyrillic so, even with a map, orientation can be difficult for people who only read Latin script. Visitors should note that Bulgarians flash their lights to signal 'get out of the way', not to give another motorist the right of way. Alternatively, this can be a warning: Police ahead! Parking in the city centre is limited to two hours, in designated blue zones, which are found on Ploshtad Narodno Sabranie, Ploshtad Alexander Batenburg and Ploshtad Alexander Nevski. Up to one hour costs Lv0.80. Vouchers are usually sold on the spot by parking attendants. The larger car parks are found on Ploshtad Makedonija and in front of the NDK complex. Visitors should avoid parking in restricted zones, even if the locals appear to do so. Sofia City Council are quick to use yellow wheel clamps on offending vehicles. Car Hire Car hire is not cheap in Bulgaria. In fact, this is one of the few things that costs more here than in most Western European cities. Cars can be hired by visiting drivers aged 21 years (23 years for some firms) and above, on presentation of a passport and valid driving licence (held for at least two years). A credit card number or cash deposit is requested and a valid international insurance policy is also necessary. Full insurance is advised. Rates start from about Lv175 per day. Providers include Avis (tel: (02) 981 1082/3); Etma Holidays (tel: (02) 980 3472); Hertz (tel: (02) 980 0461 or 1062); M-Alito (tel: (02) 557 777); MD (tel: (02) 931 0851); Presto (tel: (02) 971 4866); and Rentavto (tel: (02) 292 5005). |
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