World City Guide

Getting Around

Public Transport
Public transport within Frankfurt is run by the Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt-am-Main – VGF, Kundenzentrum, Kurt-Schumacher-Strasse 10 (tel: (069) 19449 or 2132 2235 or 2132 2361; fax: (069) 2132 2727; e-mail: info@vgf-ffm.de; website: www.vgf-ffm.de). VGF is run by the larger organisation, the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund – RMV (tel: (069) 273 0762 or (01805) 768 4636; website: www.rmv.de), which also provides excellent public transport information.

VGF consists of seven underground (U-Bahn), nine tram (Strassenbahn) and over 40 bus lines. These are supplemented by an extensive network of city trains (S-Bahn) operated by Deutsche Bahn (tel: 11861 or (0800) 150 7090 or (01805) 194 195; website: www.bahn.de). The system is in operation daily 0400-0200 and eight night bus routes also operate 0100-0500.

There is a VGF information pavilion at the Hauptbahnhof, which is open Monday-Friday 0800-1200.

The entire VGF network is divided into zones, which determine the price of tickets. Within the city, a single ticket (Einzelfahrt) costs from 1.25 (within zone one) to 11.30 (zones one to seven).

A one-day pass (Tageskarte) allows unlimited travel within zones one to three, during a 24-hour period, and costs 4.60, while a seven-day ticket for the same restrictions costs 17.50. Single, short-journey, group and day tickets can all be bought from automated RMV ticket machines (card-o-maten), which have instructions in English. However, weekly, monthly and yearly passes should be bought from VGF and DB sales points. The 3.50 Congress Ticket must be purchased in advance from Frankfurt Tourist+Congress Board and entitles the holder to one full day’s travel throughout Frankfurt, including the airport. It is only available for those attending a conference or similar event.

Taxis
Taxis are usually beige Mercedes and they can safely be hailed on the street. They can also be ordered from the central issuing agency Taxi Zentrale (tel: (069) 230 001 or 250 001 or (08000) 230 001, toll free within Frankfurt; website: www.taxi-frankfurt.de). The initial starting rate is 3.80 (5 2200-0600), plus 2.50 per kilometre or 2.80 for journeys of between one and three kilometres. A tip of 5-10% or rounding up of the fare is normally expected.

Limousines
ETS GmbH, Wiesenhttenplatz 39 (tel: (069) 271 010; fax: (069) 235 695; e-mail: etsfrankfurt@web.de; website: www.grayline.de), offers a range of services, including chauffeured limousines and sightseeing tours. Top-Alliance, Rudolf-Diesel-Strasse 18, Eschborn (tel: (06173) 934 950; fax: (06173) 934 960; e-mail: info@top-alliance.com; website: www.top-alliance.com), offers a range of limousines. Rates start from 60 per hour for a standard Mercedes E class including 25km (15.5 miles), with a charge of 1.50 for each additional kilometre thereafter. A minimum booking of three hours is required.

Driving in the City
Driving in the centre of Frankfurt can be stressful, as it requires a good knowledge of the one way system. It can be heavily congested, especially during rush hours (0800-0900 and 1700-1800), when it can be even more confusing. Furthermore, German drivers are not known for their patience. The Strassenverkehrsbehrde, Mainzer Landstrasse 323 (tel: (069) 2124 2636; fax: (069) 2124 3757; e-mail: info.strassenverkehrsbehoerde@stadt-frankfurt.de), provides up-to-date information on the traffic situation in the city.

Drivers should note that trams always have priority in the city, although driving on their tracks is permissable and usually unavoidable. Buses also have priority when leaving stops.

Parking on the street is rarely available and being towed away can cost at least 120 – even up to 250. Street parking is by meter and costs 1 for 30 minutes. Car parks are expensive (between 2 and 5 per hour) and get congested very quickly. There are 19 covered car parks in Frankfurt. The following are open 24 hours: Hauptwache, Kornmarkt 10; Schiller-Passage, Taubenstrasse 11; Junghofstrasse, Junghofstrasse 16; Brse, Meisengasse; Alte Oper, Opernplatz; Alt-Sachsenhausen, Walter-Kolb-Strasse 16; Konrad-Adenauer-Strasse, Konrad Adenauer-Strasse 15; Nordwestzentrum, Erich-Ollenhauer-Ring; Mousonturm, Waldschmidtstrasse 6; and Westend, Savignystrasse 58.

Car Hire
Regulations vary depending on the company but drivers generally must be at least 19 years old and have held a full driving licence for at least one year (an International Driving Permit is needed if the national licence is not in roman script). The average price for a basic car is about 60 per day, plus 25 per day for insurance. Providers include Avis, Schmidtstrasse 39 (tel: (069) 730 111; website: www.avis.de), Budget, Schulstrasse 7 (tel: (069) 614 004; fax: (069) 624 070; website: www.budget.de), Hertz, Hanauer Landstrasse 117 (tel: (069) 449 090; fax: (069) 440 101; website: www.hertz.de) and Sixt, Allerheiligenstrasse 52 (tel: (069) 138 7080; website: www.e-sixt.de).

Bicycle Hire
Bicycles can be hired from Theo Intra, Westerbachstrasse 273 (tel: (069) 342 780; fax: (069) 347 494), and Rebicycle, Tngesgasse 23-25 (tel: (069) 4080 7436). A range of bicycles, including trekking bikes and mountain bikes, are available from 10 per day. A deposit of 50-100 is required. See also Bicycle Tours in Tours of the City.