Home FAQs Chile What kind of public transport is there in Santiago?

What kind of public transport is there in Santiago?

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Buses: There are two kinds of buses in Santiago - micros (white and green buses) and metro busses (shuttle buses to the metro stations). All buses have a sign with the respective number, important stops and the terminal station placed behind the windshield. If you are not sure about the route, ask the driver.
Generally, Chileans are very polite and offer their seats to elderly people and pregnant women. Tourists should consider that as well.
The micro ticket currently costs 520 pesos and since the introduction of the Transantiago in February 2007 the fare has to be paid with a chip card, the so-called tarjeta bip!. This chip card can be bought in every metro station and in centros bip! (for example kiosks).
Metro: The fastest public transport in Santiago is the metro. Operation hours are Monday to Saturday from 6:00am to 11:00pm and Sunday and holidays from 8:00am to 10:30pm. The new tarjeta bip! serves to pay the fare and can be bought at every metro ticket booth or in one of 50 centros bip!. The card is transferable, costs 1,250 pesos and can be recharged frequently with any amount between 1,000 and 25,000 pesos. With the tarjeta bip! you can use the public transport system for 120 min (in one direction only, maximum of three transfers and only one entry into the metro system) without paying anew (in the case of fare differences the corresponding amount of money will be deducted from your card). In the time from 7:00am to 8:59am and between 6:00pm and 8:00pm  the tickets cost 60 CLP more.

Taxis: Taking a taxi in Chile is cheap and convenient. Taxis are black and they have a yellow roof. You can just stop them at the roadside or order one per telephone at a taxi control center (so-called radio taxis). Besides the usual taxis there are also so-called colectivos (shared taxis). They have defined routes and pick up a maximum of four passengers. You can easily recognize them by the big sign on their roof that indicates the route. Everybody has to pay the same rate and you can get on and off where and when you want. You just have to wave your hand to stop a colectivo.