Learning the public transport of Thessaloniki

If you want to get around Thessaloniki, the only mean of transportation that exists is the bus. Currently, the subway is being built, but it will take a long long time until it will be finally ready for use. Until then, the residents of Thessaloniki use the public buses for their everyday needs. I will provide you with some useful information about the routes of the buses, but before that I think I should make the introduction with a summary of the history of public transportation in Thessaloniki.

Everything started in 1879 when a Belgian Company decided to undertake the transportation of passengers and brought carriages of 4 and 5 seats.

From 1905 the 4 and 5 seats became 15 and 20 and they were carrying passengers daily on rails.

In 1908, the first tramways were introduced in the city.

Between 1930-1935 new cars started driving around the city and were competing the tramways because they had the capacity of 20 to 25 seats.

By 1940, the city had already 150 buses of 40 seats belonging to private motorists. At the same time is the acquisition of the Belgian company of the State and generated the State Operation Electric Tramways & Lighting of Thessaloniki.

During World War II all the buses were destroyed, and the public transportation was being operated exclusively by trams.

In 1957, the Organization of Public Transportation of Thessaloniki (in greek O. Α. Σ. Θ) was finally founded by the government, to service the needs of the residents of Thessaloniki. With the foundation of OASTH, the trams stopped operating forever.

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From that time until today, people in Thessaloniki use the buses to get around all the parts of the city and the suburbs, with the number of 622 busess that are being used.

After the short history, now it's time for the useful information.

The buses are operating during the whole day, from 5 am until 12. 30 in the night. Some buses are very common and are passing every 5 minutes, but for more rare routes, you may have to wait even 20 minutes at the bus station. Luckily, at the main stations, there is a screen where you can see in how many minutes will the next bus arrive.

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During the night there is only one bus operating, that starts from the main bus station and goes until the airport. This bus is the number 78N and it passes every half an hour. It passes from the main stations at the center of the city, Kamara, Aristotelus and Antigonidon, where the most common places to go out are located. It is almost always overcrowded, and if you don't push to get in, there are many chances to stay out and have to wait for the next one or walk home.

The fee for the tickets is 1 euro for one way for the adults and 0, 50 euros for the students and the elderly. If you buy a ticket from the machines that are inside the bus, you will have to pay 0, 10 euros more for each ticket.

The route of 78N is more expensive and the student ticket costs 1 euro while the normal ticket costs 2 euros. However, when the bus is overcrowded, a lot of people don't validate their tickets, and to tell you the truth I also do the same.

Here are the main bus routes of Thessaloniki :

• Bus no 1: it starts from the supermarket ''Carrefour'' in a region outside the center called ''Efkarpia'', passes through the hospital called ''Papageorgiou'' and stops at the main bus station.
• Bus no 2: it starts from the east public bus station of IKEA and ends in the railway station which is in the center of the city, going to the west part.
• Bus no 3: it starts from eastern station of Ikea, passes through the center of the city and finishes at the main railway station.
• Bus no 4: it starts from an eastern neighborhood of Thessaloniki named ''Kalamaria '' and the terminal is another eastern neighborhood of Thessaloniki named ''Charilaou '' where the football field of the team Aris is located.
• Bus no 5: it starts from the eastern part of the city, 'Nea Krini ' region and stops at the center of the city in a main street named 'Venizelu'.
• Bus no 6: it starts from eastern 'Kalamaria ' and also stops at the center of the city in the main street named 'Venizelu'.
• Bus no 7: it starts from a neighborhood called 'Agios Ioannis ' and stops at the university and passes from both Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and University of Macedonia.
• Bus no 8: it goes from the eastern main station of Ikea to the main bus station at the west part of the city. It passes from the center and has stops at the two main squares of Thessaloniki, Kamara and Aristotelus.
• Bus no 9: it starts from the main railway station and goes to ''Lachanagora''
• Bus no 10: it starts from the eastern neighborhood called ''Charilau'' and goes until the main railway station. This bus also passes from the main points at the center of the city, and it is very frequent during the day.
• Bus no 11: it starts from the north eastern part of Thessaloniki, from a region called 'Pilea' and goes until the main railway station.
• Bus no 12: it starts from the main bus station at the west part of the city and goes until a region in the north eastern part of Thessaloniki called ''Kato Tuba''.
• Bus no 14: it starts from the main bus station and goes until a region called 'Tuba' where the football field of the team 'PAOK' is located.
• Bus no 15: it is a small bus and drives at the upper town, from the neighborhood ''Saranta Ekklisies '' to ''Istoriko Kentro''.
• Bus no 16: also a small bus driving at the upper side of the city, from ''Evagelistria ' to 'Istoriko Kentro'.
• Bus no 17: it starts from a neighborhood over the campus named 'Triandria' and goes through the center to the main railway station
• Bus no 18: it drives through a west part of the city, from a neighborhood called 'Agioi Anargiri'' to 'Kordelio'.
• Bus no 19: it starts from the west region 'Kordelio' and drives until the main railway station.
• Bus no 20: it starts from the west part 'Menemeni '' until a main street in the center of the city named "Ermu".
• Bus no 21: it starts from a big region at the west part of the city called ''Evosmos'' and drives until the main square of 'Aristotelus'.
• Bus no 22: it drives through the upper part of the city named ''Ano Poli''.
• Bus no 23: it starts from the main railway station and goes until a region in the upper side of the city called ''Sikies''.

• Bus no 24: it starts from a square close to the port of Thessaloniki, named 'Platia Eleftherias ' and goes until a region named 'Chilia Dentra'.

• Bus no 25: it starts from the north-west region named 'Neapoli ' and goes until a main street in the center of the city named 'Venizelu'
• Bus no 26: it starts from the ''Kallithea '' region and drives until ''Platia Eleftherias''
• Bus no 27: it starts from the west 'Stavrupoli' neighborhood and goes until the universities.
• Bus no 28: it starts driving from the 'Carrefour' supermarket in Efkarpia until the universities.
• Bus no 29: It starts from the west region 'Polichni' and drives until the main square of 'Aristotelus'.
• Bus no 30: It starts from the region 'Triandria' and goes until the east 'Apothiki'.

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