Transportation in New York

There are many means of public transportation in New York City, which vary in terms of price, speed, and convenience. Getting around in New York is complicated; people who have lived here for years often have trouble getting around, so don't worry if your first few experiences are difficult.

General advice:

• Look at maps before you start travelling. Get recent copies of subway and bus maps; you can ask at any subway stop where there is an attendant. Routes change often; don't rely on last year's map, or even one that is six months old.
• Addresses in New York are often given as a combination of building numbers and intersections; for instance, 777 UN Plaza (corner of 44th St. and 1st Ave.). Know both.
• Don't be afraid to ask for directions, whether you are on the street or in the subway. New Yorkers are used to people needing directions.

Taxis

The streets of Manhattan are full of yellow taxis. Their prices are regulated by law and don't require any negotiation. Catching a cab is easy, if there are cabs around; simply stand on the curb and hold out your arm. When a cab pulls up, get in and tell the driver where you are going. If there isn't a cab where you are, try walking to the corner and looking there; you are most likely to find taxis on avenues, not streets. Taxis are one of the more expensive ways of getting around in New York, but are sometimes the best way to get between places that aren't near other forms of transportation, or if you are travelling late at night.

Subways and Buses

Paying for Public Transportation

A single ride on a bus or subway costs $2.00. On buses, you can pay in coins; on all buses and subways, you can use tokens or a "Metrocard." Metrocards are most efficient; you can transfer for free between buses and subways, and you can get discounted rides. You can either put a certain amount of money on a Metrocard, or you can buy an unlimited card which lets you take as many trips as you want for a certain period of time. A Metrocard for one day costs $7; for a week, it costs $21; for a month, it costs $70. If you will be taking more that 2 or 3 rides a day, buying a Metrocard is more efficient. Otherwise, you can buy a Metrocard and put any amount of money on it. If you put more than ten rides worth of money on it, you will get a free ride.

Subways

There are two kinds of subways; express and local. Express trains travel long distances and stop at major centers, while local trains follow the same routes but stop more frequently, taking longer to get from one place to another. There are many subway lines in New York which connect most of the places in the city. At some stations, you can transfer between different lines. Subways are also the best way to travel if you need to get outside of Manhattan to Brooklyn, Queens, or the Bronx, three of the five "bouroughs" that make up New York City. (The fifth borough, Staten Island, is acessible only by some buses and by a free ferry.) Subways run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, though late at night and on weekends they are sometimes slow.

Buses

Buses cover more of the city than subways do, but take much longer to do it. They stop every few blocks in Mahattan. To find a bus stop, look for a blue pole with a sign at the top listing bus numbers. There might be a sign lower on the pole telling you how often the bus comes. However, these are only approximate times. Buses run most frequently during the day, and less frequently at night. Some stop running for a period (usually between midnight and 5 AM), especially on weekends. Buses do not automatically stop at all bus stops. To request that the bus stop, either ask the driver or press the yellow strip on the side of the bus. There are also limited buses, which stop less frequently than regular buses, and express buses, which cost $3.00 and travel long distances, such as between Manhattan and the other boroughs.