Moving around Florence
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
The principal public transport network within the city is run by the ATAF and Li-nea bus company, with tickets available at local tobacconists, bars and newspaper stalls. Individual tickets or a pass called the Carta Agile with multiple rides (10 or 21) may be used on buses. Once on the bus, tickets must be stamped (or swiped for the Carta Agile) using the machines on board unlike the train tickets which must be validated before boarding. The main bus station is next to Santa Maria Novella railway station. Trenitalia runs trains between the railway stations within the city, and to other destinations around Italy and Europe. The central railway station, Santa Maria Novella railway station, is located about 500 metres (1,600 ft) northwest of the Piazza del Duomo. There are two other important stations: Campo Di Marte and Rifredi. Most bundled routes are Firenze-Pisa, Firenze-Viareggio and Firenze-Arezzo (along the main line to Rome). Other local railways connect Florence with Borgo San Lorenzo and Siena.
Long distance 10 km (6.21 mi) buses are run by the SITA, Copit, CAP and Lazzi companies. The transit companies also accommodate travellers from the Amerigo Vespucci Airport, which is five kilometres (3.1 mi) west of the city centre, and which has scheduled services run by major European carriers such as Air France and Lufthansa.
The centre of the city is closed to through-traffic, although buses, taxis and residents with appropriate permits are allowed in. This area is commonly referred to the ZTL (Zona Traffico Limitato), which is divided into five subsections.[citation needed] Residents of one section, therefore, will only be able to drive in their district and perhaps some surrounding ones. Cars without permits are allowed to enter after 7.30pm, or before 7.30am in the morning. The rules shift during the tourist-filled summers, putting more restrictions on where one can get in and out.
Due to the high level of air pollution and traffic in the city, an urban tram network called the TramVia is under construction in the city. The first line runs from Scandicci to the southwest through the western side of the city, cross the River Arno at the Cascine Park and arrive to the main railway station of Santa Maria Novella. Two other lines are in the final design phase.
Railway station
Firenze Santa Maria Novella railway station is the main national and international railway station in Florence and is used by 59 million people every year. The building designed by Giovanni Michelucci was built in Italian Rationalism style and it's considered one of the main rationalist building in Italy. It's located in Piazza della Stazione, near the Fortezza da Basso and the Viali di Circonvallazione, and in front of the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella's apse from which takes its name.
(from Wikipedia)
