Taking Transport in Russian

The Moscow metro moves more people than London's and New York's combined — and it speaks a very learnable dialect: numbers, station names, and about eight fixed phrases. Here they are.

The Fleet

How You Ride

ехать на + prepositional — you ride on the vehicle:

Я езжу на работу на метро, а домой иду пешком.

I take the metro to work, and walk home.

Note: Habitual езжу + на метро; one-way walk home — иду пешком.

Stops and Stations

Следующая станция — Арбатская.

Next station: Arbatskaya.

Note: The metro voice. Once you catch «следующая станция», you'll never miss your stop.

Getting Off

Common Mistakes

Bending метро and такси. Borrowed and proud: на метро, на такси — always.
Станция for a bus stop. Buses stop at остановка; станция belongs to rails.
Missing your stop politely. Learn «Вы выходите?» before you need it — the aisle parts like magic.

What You Can Do Now

You can buy a ticket, board the right vehicle, follow the announcements, and get off exactly where you meant to — the whole city is now reachable.