Subway Maps- Getting Around/Around the World

Sure. On my last trip to Italy, which covered 30 days, I only walked, took subways and trains a lot - and a long distance bus a few times. Of the thirteen cities I visited, I hadn't been to nine of them.

edit, I just remembered that I took a cab once.

Thanks for providing this link, Phoenox!

Actually, I always use public transport (additional to subways, which you don't find everywhere) like trams, buses, suburban railways. (You can drive for three days with a tourist ticket in most cities and towns at a price for which you just can park a car for a few hours.

For a general overview plus the actually planning of a trip I think UrbanRail.net to better more suitable than the site you quoted, especially, since you find information to tickets, other local transport etc there as well as new maps and plans.

Thanks for links from both of you.

edit, yours "not found" for me, Walter.

edit again, it worked when I looked for urbanrail at google.

Link correction: http://www.urbanrail.net/index.html

I looked up Rome on both sites (any excuse I can find...) and liked the urbanrail site because you can also click on New Construction and it'll show both ongoing construction of extended lines and new lines, and planned lines. Cool.

What I like to use a car for is to "tootle around" a mostly countryside region that has smaller cities, towns, villages - we once rented a car when we were leaving Florence to spend a week roaming around Tuscany, small roads, mostly smaller towns: great way to see the area, great being able to just stop.. whenever you want.

I'm not sure that I would be more inclined to pick a vacation spot because there is a subway at this point in my life, but I can see where that might be a factor for some. I love that you can find this stuff online.

Both sites use the urbanrail map I see.

To clarify, I'd be apt to visit a strange city in any case, subway system or not, given I had some interest in seeing the city. But given a subway system, I'd be using it at least part of my time there. In some cities, a car is more of a pain the the ass than not, though handy in that you can carry your packed goods with you so you can take more suitcases. I like to travel light though.

When I was in Nice this year, I looked up the timetables online, bought the ticket for the direct airport<>city/station bus at the airport (which included five days free transport in the city). Bus tickets for San Marino, Italy, Cannes etc were just 1 Euro.

We did the same when we were in France recently. And when we were (with some A2K'ers) in Potsdam/Berlin a few weeks ago, the hotel keycard was the regional bus/tram/subway/suburban train ticket as well.

Phoenix, I always try to take the public transportation system even in countries that do not speak English. It's one of the best ways to see the people up close and personal. When I was in Beijing last November, I took the new subway from the hutong (old village) to Tianamen square by myself. When I went to the window at the station to buy my ticket, I met a woman from Tennessee who gave me directions on where to get off and which train to take to get to the square. We talked for a few minutes, and I learned she's been in China for about ten years, and was an editor for a English language publication. She said she started out teaching English in China, but will probably return home in a couple of years.

Would have never met her if I didn't take that opportunity to take public transportation.

I do not base travel plans on the public transit system of a place; however, if a city has public transit, I am more than happy to use it-much more cost effective than cabs or car rentals and an excellent way to see how the locals move about daily.

Since I'm not at all a friend of cars in cities, I'd certainly be more apt to visit somewhere that I knew had a good public transit system.

Fantastic.

Phonix, I posted your link into my Favorites. All I need to do now is remember it's there. LOL

Miserable rail transportation system - with a history of dismantling the Red Car system. What you see on the map is fairly recent.

Los Angeles





More miserable by far than LA's is Albuquerque's. Alas, it doesn't make the map level.

This one used to be one of my favorite destinations.

Miserable rail transportation system - with a history of dismantling the Red Car system. What you see on the map is fairly recent:

Los Angeles





More miserable by far than LA's is Albuquerque's. Alas, it doesn't make the map level, though there is a train that goes between Abq and somewhere outside of Santa Fe.

Here's a bus map. Uh, this city is said to be 181 square miles. The route closest to me, route 94, (still a long walk to the bus stop) runs twice a day: last I looked, at something like 6:30 am and pm. With my dark adaptation problem, I can't do that, even if I wanted to, much of the year. I'd looked at the bus routes before I bought, but failed to check the actual schedule. Slaps self.

Plus, apparently no one in the transportation department or city planning ever considered pedestrians or what I call "pedestrian culture". You could easily die crossing Cours at a timed signal. I have to jog to make it across and it's f/scary.

Oops, the bus map for Abq -



Mine's the aqua route on the west side.
Alas.

Jes
Thanks for the subway map.

Now - do I take the Blue Line to see the Blue Man Group?

And what about THE DUCK???