carolw

My daughter and I will be arriving in Rome by bus from Siena to Tiburtina. We'll need to take the metro or a taxi to our B&B. Is there an "official" taxi area at Tiburtina?

Does anyone know how much a 10 or 15 minute taxi ride will cost? Do we agreee on a price at the beginning? I've used public transportation in Rome but never a taxi.

Thanks for your help.

Carol

adrienne

Taxis are metered. They start with a small amount on the meter (can't remember how much). Make sure the meter has been reset when you get in. The meter could be located above the rear view mirror or on the console. You take the first taxi from the rank just like any place else.

I'm not sure where the taxis are located at Tiburtina as I've only left from that station, not returned to it but as I remember there's wasn't much space at the bus depot so you might have to walk over to the train station adjacent to the buses.

carolw

Thanks Adrienne!

LucieV

Just returned from Rome. I was advised by the owner of our pensione to use ONLY "Radio Taxi." Which I did, with no problems.

We got caught without umbrellas or jackets in an unexpected storm one afternoon, and didn't feel like walking from Borghese Gardens to our hotel on Via dei Coronari; so we ran into a fancy-shmancy hotel on the Via Veneto and the concierge graciously called a taxi for us. He, too, called Radio Taxi.

Here's some other good advice.
http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/rome_t...tion/taxis.htm

adrienne

I've used Radio Taxi when I've called them for a pickup but are you suggesting the OP ignore the taxi rank and find a phone to call Radio Taxi?

I'm not sure that's the best advice. Unless they leave the station to meet the taxi, the taxi will have to go to the end of the taxi line and wait his turn for a fare. And the OP will have to stand there and wait for all the other cabs to be taken. And make sure she knows absolutely which cab is the one she called.

LucieV

adrienne, you sound like you know what you're talking about. I just didn't want to take a chance on getting effed-over, so I followed the advice of our pensione owner, and it worked for me!

adrienne

Lucie - were you at a train station with a line of cabs sitting there waiting for fares?

If you need to call a particular cab company from a hotel or apartment Radio Taxi is great. They always have someone who speaks English and will get that person if you ask. They have their sticky tags plastered on just about every public phone in Rome.

LucieV

Actually, we did have to get a cab from Central Termini to FCO on a Sunday evening last month. The line was <i>ridiculously</i> long...by the time we got a cab, we had to ask the driver to haul a$$ so we wouldn't miss our flight. (Little did we know that our flight to Budapest would be cancelled due to volcanic ash...) In any case, I learned a lesson about planning: next time I have to take a cab from a train station in Rome, I will leave plenty of time!

kybourbon

Where is your hotel? Tiburtina is connected to the metro and is a major bus hub for Rome. I've used the subway when arriving there. If you want to figure metro/bus, ATAC lets you enter your location and destination, plots a route for you with bus/metro numbers and travel times.
http://www.atac.roma.it/?lingua=ENG

Here's the Rome Tourism website page on taxis.
http://www.060608.it/en/content/list...oglienza/id/73

Vehicles providing the City of Rome taxi service are white and have a "TAXI" sign on their roof, as well as an identifying number on their doors, on the rear, and inside the vehicle.

ORDINARY TAXI FARES
ORDINARY FARE
Fixed charge upon entry: normal (from 7 a.m. to 10.00 p.m.) Euro 2,80
Sundays and holidays (from 7 a.m. to 10.00 p.m.) Euro 4,00
Night (from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.) Euro 5,80
SUPPLEMENTS
For every piece of luggage larger than 35x25x50 Centimetres Euro 1,00 the first is free.
AMOUNT OF EACH SINGLE UNIT Euro 0,10
RATE 1 : in - town ( within G.R.A. ring road) Price for kilometres Euro 0,92
at the speed of more than 20km/hour
RATE 2 : Out-of-town (beyond G.R.A. ring road) price for kilometre Euro 1,52
at the speed of more than 20km/hour
At the speed of less than 20km/hour, units are besed on time.
Average price for one hour Euro 23,70
Concessionary fares: a 10% discount on the sum indicated by the meter for rides to hospitals and for women travelling alone between 9.00 p.m. and 01.00 a.m. Supplements to be added to the sum indicated by the meter: baggage, rides from Termini station, 5 or more passengers.

A complete list of the fares can be be found here:
http://www.comune.roma.it/was/reposi...o_completo.pdf

Scroll down a tad for a picture of the Comune Roma logo on the side of the taxi.
http://www.roninrome.com/%20transpor...-fiumicino-fco

greg

The taxis are metered, however, you still need to take steps to prevent being scammed. Even at "official" taxi stands, I still encountered evasive taxi drivers at Termini. Evasiveness was not limited to just one driver. The drivers whispered among themselves while refusing to give me an estimate.

Ask the B&B how much it would cost from Tiburtina to the hotel. Ask the taxi driver BEFORE he loads your luggage how much it would cost to your B&B. I go away or find another taxi stand until I find a driver that gives an estimate at par with what my hotel tells me.

carolw

Thanks kybourbon and greg-very helpful!

kybourbon

I think a driver should give an estimate, but they can't give you an exact price since the meter keeps running if you are stuck in traffic. Be sure to ask about additional costs for your baggage as they are allowed to charge for that except from the airports. It should be only 1€ per bag, but they might try to charge more. Maybe print the tariff page I linked above and have handy.