Getting around Ankara

Ankara's public transport options range from buses and taxis to the dolmuş (shared minibus) and the subway - all but taxis operated by EGO (http://web.ego.gov.tr). Services are frequent and reliable, with the subway, in particular, a highly preferable alternative to navigating the traffic of the city by car.

Ankara's buses are cheap and frequent; yet crowded and sluggish at peak times. Red or blue Belediye Otobüsü buses are run by the municipality. Passenger board using a prepaid book of electronic tickets as this service is aimed squarely at the daily commuter. The privately run Halk Otobüsü service is cash-only (with a comparable price) and either green or blue in colour.

Ankara's underground network consists of two routes: Ankaray (light metro) and Metro, both comfortable and speedy with prepaid electronic bus tickets. Ankaray runs east-west between ASTI (Ankara City Terminal), the main bus terminal in the west, and Dikimevi in the east. Metro runs northwest-southeast between the central Kizilay Square and the northeastern suburb of Batikent.

Dolmuş, Turkey's inexpensive shared minibus, follows specific routes in Ankara. Payment is fixed by the city municipality and calculated according to the distance travelled with a choice of standard or requested stops (call out "inecek var" meaning "someone is getting off here" and the van will screech to a halt). The word dolmuş means stuffed so expect conditions to be cramped.