Bucharest Subway

Bucharest has a fairly extensive subway system consisting of four lines: M1, M2, M3 and M4, and run by Metrorex. In total, the network is 63km long and has 45 stations, with 1.5km average distance between stops. It is one of the fastest ways to get around the city.

The subway livery for Bucharest is either white with two yellow or red horizontal stripes below the window for ASTRA trains, or stainless steel with black and white for the Bombardier trains. All trains run on 750 V DC, either using a third rail, or an overhead wire (the latter is only used in maintenance areas where a third rail would not be safe). Maximum speed on the system is 80 km/h (50 mph), although plans are to increase it to 100 km/h (60 mph) on M5, a new line currently in planning stage.

Although the Bucharest Metro is, on the whole, an efficient transportation system, there are several common criticisms of the network. One of these is the relatively poor signage and the lack of network maps on the system. Most stations do not have maps that cover the entire network, instead having only panels showing the names of stations on the current line or, in some cases, only showing a selected number of stations from the respective line. Additionally, many stations have poor signage showing correspondence passages and exits. For this reason, it is common to get lost on the system or take the train in the opposite direction.

Another source of confusion is the audio announcements in stations and trains. In trains, the name of the station is never announced when entering the station. Rather, as the doors close, the next station is announced, as well as the location of the platform on the next station. The standard form for the in-train announcements is "Attention! Doors are closing! Next station is ... with the platform on the right/left side" (Atentie, se închid usile! Urmeaza statia ... cu peronul pe partea dreapta/stânga).

Buses

The RATB bus network is the most dense out of all the transport types in Bucharest. In fact, RATB's advertisements state that one can never be more than five minutes walking distance from a bus stop. There are 116 bus lines (see Bucharest bus routes), most of which operate in the Municipality of Bucharest. However, there are also a few bus lines which provide services to the towns and villages which border Bucharest, in Ilfov county, and whose populations usually commute to Bucharest for work. In mid-2005, the lines that linked the city to the peripheral area were licensed out to independent transportation providers, but in early 2006, they were placed once again under the control of RATB due to a wide range customer complaints about the private operators. [List of bus routes in Bucharest]

Trolleybuses

Trolleybuses supplement buses on the RATB network, which operates 20 trolleybus lines, mainly on high-usage routes. During the 1990s, the fleet was updated with modern trolleybuses manufactured by Ikarus, in light blue and yellow livery, which have acoustic station announcements and digital display screens. These trolleybuses now make up the majority of the fleet. In early 2007, wheelchair-accessible Irisbus Citelis trolleybuses were introduced on routes 61, 69 and 92.

Trams and light metro

RATB operates a complex system of trams and light metros in the Municipality of Bucharest. Beside tens of tram lines, there are currently three light metro lines (numbered 32, 35 and 41), all of which run in the western part of Bucharest. Light metros use more modern rolling stock than trams and also run on separate designated corridors for faster travel times. The light metro service is expected to be expanded by upgrading existing tram lines to light metro status. The next line to be upgraded is expected to be Line 21.