Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
costs £1 to £2 per hour, with a 30-minute to four-hour maximum. If you break the rules,
you'll get a fine, often within minutes of your ticket expiring - Edinburgh's parking war-
dens are both numerous and notorious. The fine is £60, reduced to £30 if you pay up with-
in 14 days. Cars parked illegally will be towed away. There are large, long-stay car parks
at the St James Centre, Greenside Pl, New St, Castle Tce and Morrison St. Motorcycles
can be parked free at designated areas in the city centre.
Public Transport
For the moment, Edinburgh's public-transport system consists entirely of buses (a tram
network is under construction, due to come into operation in 2014). The main operators
are
Lothian Buses
(
www.lothianbuses.com
)
and
First
(
0131-663 9233;
www.firstedinburgh.co.uk
)
; for timetable information contact Traveline (
Click here
)
.
Bus timetables, route maps and fare guides are posted at all main bus stops, and you
can pick up a copy of the free
Lothian Buses Route Map
from
Lothian Buses
Travelshops
.
Adult
fares
are £1.40; purchase from the driver. Children aged under five travel free
and those aged five to 15 pay a flat fare of 70p. On Lothian Buses you must pay the driver
the exact fare, but First buses will give change. Lothian Bus drivers also sell a Daysaver
ticket (£3.50) that gives unlimited travel (on Lothian Buses only, excluding night buses)
for a day.
Night-service buses
(
www.nightbuses.com
)
, which run hourly between mid-
night and 5am, charge a flat fare of £3.
You can also buy a
Ridacard
(from Travel-shops; not available from bus drivers) that
gives unlimited travel for one week for £17.
The Lothian Buses lost-property office is in the Hanover St Travelshop.
H anover St Travelshop
(27 Hanover St; 9am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-6pm Sat)
Shandwick Pl Travelshop
(7 Shandwick Pl; 9am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-6pm Sat)
W averley Bridge Travelshop
(31 Waverley Bridge; 9am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-6pm Sat,
10am-5.15pm Sun)
Taxi
Edinburgh's black taxis can be hailed in the street, ordered by phone (extra 80p charge),
or picked up at one of the many central ranks. The minimum charge is £2 (£3 at night) for
the first 450m, then 25p for every subsequent 195m or 42 seconds - a typical 2-mile trip
across the city centre will cost around £6 to £7. Tipping is up to you - because of the high
fares local people rarely tip on short journeys, but occasionally round up to the nearest
50p on longer ones. Some taxi companies:
