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Florence public transportation: bus, tram and taxi
While many companies service for coaches connecting Florence to other cities, the urban bus service of Florence is managed by a municipal company called ATAF. TAXI service is managed by two companies, SOCOTA and COTAFI.
ATAF bus service
ATAF buses, previously coloured in orange, starting from August 2010 are white&red and from 2013 they are also grey&blue.
ATAF tickes are sold at many shops and newsagent's shop, just look for an orange sticker Biglietti ATAF on the entrance doors.
You could also purchase them on board (as soon as you get on the bus), but it will cost you more, 2 euros, and the driver can refuse to sell or not give change. So it's better to buy them before getting on the bus.
There is an exception: the ticket for Volainbus 55 shuttle line (from and to Florence airport) can be purchased on the bus without an extra fee. Please note that normal ATAF tickets are not valid for that bus line.
The main ATAF information desk is located inside Florence Railway Station Santa Maria Novella, on the ramp and clock side. It is opened every day from 7:30 to 19:30. They also provide bus timetables. See the official site for more information.
Real-time transit information
To know when the next bus will pass, you can connect to temporealeataf.it, otherwise you can send an SMS to 342-411-2512 with the name of the bus stop and the bus number (eg "Fm0178 22" where fm0178 is the identifying name of the stop and 22 the line for which you require information). The stop code is shown in the upper right corner of the bus shedule on the pole. Another option is calling 055-565-0500 and dialing the same bus stop code as above.
Ticket options
A single trip ticket costs 1.20 euros and is valid for 90 minutes from the time it's stamped. A 2 trips (biglietto da due corse in Italian) ticket costs 2.40 euros, a 4 trips one costs 4.70 euros.
There is also a 24 hours ticket, at the cost of 5 euro, and tickets lasting 3 days at 12 euro or 7 days at 18 euros. There is also the option of Carta Agile, an electronic card valid (10 trips 10 euro, 20 trips 20 euro or 30 trips 30 euro), although its use could be a little difficult for some.
Begininng with december 2011, it is also available a special ATAF ticket for families, called "Daily Family". This ticket costs 6 euros and permits up to 4 people belonging to the same family to travel together on the same buses for 24 hours. To use the Daily Family ticket you must write on it the name and surname of all the family members. If a periodic check occurs, travellers documents must be shown to the ticket controllers.
The Daily Family ticket is valid through all the ATAF bus lines and Tram Line 1, excluding as usual the NotteTempo and VolaInBus services.
Mobile ticketing
You can also buy virtual tickets using a mobile phone with a SIM by an Italian operator (TIM, Vodafone, Wind, 3 Italia) and send an SMS with "ATAF" as text to the number 4880105, before entering the bus. That way you'll buy a 90 minutes ticket for 1.20 euro, the total cost depends on how much your operator charges for an SMS. More information are given on the ATAF web site.
Firenze Card
ATAF tickets are included in the Firenze Card. You have a three days unlimited access to the Florentine bus service, except the VolaInBus line connecting the airport to the central railway station.
Remember to stamp your ticket
Tickets must be validated as soon as you get on the first bus, by punching them in the machine on board. ATAF tickets are time based and are valid 90 minutes –or more, depending on the ticket, see above– from the time it is stamped. You can get all the ATAF buses you want while the ticket is still valid. You don't have to stamp them each time you get on board, but when time is over, you have to stamp a new trip.
Nightly bus on call
NotteTempo is an on call bus service running every day from 22:00 to 02:00, using the usual routes and bus stops. The service must be reserved in advance calling 055 565 0555 from 18:00 to 00:15. The ticket can be bought cash only on board for €4, money change could be refused, so make sure you have the exact fare in cash. If you have an ATAF multi-day ticket or pass, it's valid also for NotteTempo. You can reserve a trip from a stop to another in the same sector, to one of the two bordering sectors or to the centre of Florence. For example you can reach the centre or Scandicci from Galluzzo, but not go to Coverciano. For doing that you need two separate reservations.
Taxi
Taxi service in Florence is managed by two companies, Socota and Cotafi. Taxis can not be hailed, to get one you have to reach a Taxi parking, call them by phone or you can use their websites to book a service. Fares are precisely indicated on the official sites. Many routes have a fixed fee, for example the trip from Florence's airport to city centre costs 20 euros (add 1 euro for each luggage and an extra fee if it's night or festive day).
Tram
Starting from 2010 Florence has got a tram service, by now just one line is operative, Linea T1, connecting Scandicci to Santa Maria Novella station. The ticket is the same used on ATAF buses, so you have to follow the same rules applied to buses.
This page was last updated on Thursday 04 August 2022.