Transportation System in Milan, Italy

As far as I know, Milan is probably the Italian city with the best transportation system, but do not get too excited because this does not mean that it is that good. Means of transport can be:

• Metropolitana (Underground Train Line);
• Passante;
• Regular Train;
• Buses;
• Taxi;
• Bikemi;
• Car Sharing.

Starting with the first, the metro system is composed of four lines and the fifth is now under construction. It will connect the city to the Linate Airport. On regular basis, every four or five minutes there is a train. Sundays and holidays there are fewer rides, around ten to fifteen minutes of wait between one train and the next. One ride is one euro and fifty cents. If you are headed to places like:

• Sesto San Giovanni;
• Assago;
• Cologno Monzese;
• Rho;
• Etc.

Your ride will be more expensive and one single ticket can rise to two euros and fifty cents (like the one to Rho Fiera). I like the underground because it is probably the fastest and cheapest way to get around pretty much the whole city.

(You can find maps like this one pretty much anywhere, but there should also be some info-points around. Best places where you can find them, I guess for free, are airports).

The Passante is a particular train and what is cool about it is that it makes fewer stops than a metro train and it costs the same amount of money. Regular trains, for instance, regionals, can get you to the suburbs of Milan and approximately tickets are around four euros (e. g. A ticket for Como from Milan costs four euros and ninety cents).

(This is Cadorna, one of the train stations in Milan)

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Maybe if you are a tourist the best option could be buses because that way you can look outside the window and still feel like you are visiting the city while on the go, but there are a couple of down sides: if there is traffic your ride can take double of the time you thought it would take to reach your destination; the second is that it can be a little confusing for a person who does not know the city to get out at the right stop.

Attention: A ticket lasts ninety minutes from its validation, which means that during that amount of time you can take as many buses as you need to but you can only take the metro once with one ticket. My suggestion is to validate your ticket at a metro station, take a train and then use buses. If you know you will be taking a lot of buses or will rely on any kind of transport a lot throughout the day, there is a pass that lasts twenty-four hours for only four euros and fifty cents. You need to scan it only once and then hold on to it for the next hours and you can take as many buses and trains as you want. Buses you will be most likely take are 61 (goes to San Babila), 90-91. Among the trams there is the 16 which goes to Duomo, 10 goes to Navigli and 3 goes from Duomo to Navigli.

Among the many car sharing services there are I remember the following:

• Enjoy;
• Share 'n Go;
• Car2Go.

My brother uses Share 'n Go because it is electric so you do not need to put gas back in the car. Easy right? Car2Go is a service which is present only in a few cities so far, you can find it in Milan (of course), Madrid, Vienna, Vancouver and a few more.

Bikemi is a service for bike lovers. You can borrow a bike and cycle around the city instead of walking. One day costs four euros and fifty cents, a week costs nine euros and one month is only thirty-six euros. Pretty cheap right?

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Cabs are the most expensive way of getting around, but it is also nice when you have bags or it is hot and you do not want to get into a packed train. The only thing you have to pay attention to are fixed prices for and from the airport, which should not change from car to car. Also, getting a cab in the night is more expensive than during the day.

I guess now you are well prepared, or at least I hope, to come and visit Milan. If you have further questions inbox me.

- Cristian

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