Tag Archives: vaporetto

Take a Number: Venice Vaporetti regroup

Lines Stay the Same, Only the Numbers Change (but not all of them).

As of November 2, 2011, ACTV Spa and the City of Venice will implement a new numbering system for vaporetto public transport lines. The changes also include a new landing system that uses numbers, colors and letters which could, should help newcomers find the landing they’re looking for more quickly. Speriamo bene.

The new system does not affect routes and frequencies, just the numbering and organization.

Line changes include:

Line DM direct to Murano becomes Line 3
Lines 41/42 51/52 become 4.1/4.2 and 5.1/5.2 (n.1 runs counterclockwise, n.2 clockwise)
Lines 61/62 become Line 6
Line 5 from San Zaccaria to Murano becomes Line 7
Line T serving Burano-Torcello becomes Line 9
CLODIA Raphael which travels between Chioggia and Venice will be the new LINE 19

Other significant changes relate to the LN (Laguna Nord) which, while keeping the route and frequencies, will be split into 4 sections:

• Line 10 is the direct Lido – S.Marco Giardinetti shuttle (navetta)
• Line 12 serves F.Nove – Burano – Treporti – Punta Sabbioni
• Line 14 connects S.Zaccaria Pietà – Lido – Punta Sabbioni, while
• 14L (limited) serves Punta Sabbioni-Lido

Finally, there is a new Line 22 which serves Punta Sabbioni – F.te Nove – Tre Archi which has been a special line will now become a regualar one.

Easy as A-B-C

At larger piers like Piazzale Roma, the railway station, Rialto area, Fondamente Nove, San Zaccaria, and more, you’ll notice that the landings will also be identified with a capital letter placed on the entrance of the pier. This letter will also appear on the maps along the ACTV quais, and will associate the vaporetto lines with the landings that  serve them. The letters will also appear on the LED signage indicating departures and times.

 

With any luck and a little patience, this new system should benefit both locals and travelers, who normally have little time to get up to speed on vaporetto usage.

For more information, see the ACTV site (in Italian).

(By the way: the Vap Map has already been updated with the new lines and routes. Be sure to get yours before your arrival in Venice!)

Venice Transit News: Aerobus & Rialto Landing

Venice ACTV revises fares, revitalizes buses and adds a convenient combo land-boat entrance fare to the city. 

The ACTV Venice city bus °5 has always traveled between the airport and Piazzale Roma. Although recent changes mean this route is no longer included in the Venice Travel Pass, additional service improvements still make the Aerobus a convenient transfer option. They’ve upgraded the buses, increased their size (it’s a double) and also augmented the number of trips the Aerobuses make daily.

If you have baggage, the standard fare for the #5 Aerobus transfer between Piazzale Roma and the airport is now €5, compared to the normal bus fare of 2,50. More conveniently, you can now buy one €10 ticket that includes the Aerobus and the vaporetto ticket — the only requirement is that you have Marco Polo Airport as departure or arrival point. So:

€5: one-way Aerobus Venice Marco Polo <-> P.Roma.
€9: round-trip
€10 bus+boat: includes land bus transfer and one 90 min. vaporetto ticket (normally 6,50). Tickets are good to or from the airport.
• If you buy the a Travel Card pass, you can add the Aerobus ticket to it for €3.
• If you don’t have baggage you ride for the normal fare.

Remember that Aerobus °5 is no longer included in Venice Travel Card passes (unless you have no luggage); tickets must now be purchased separately, at machines or ticket counters. You may purchase the discount travel card with a one-way or round trip Aerobus ticket in advance purchase at VeniceConnected.com.

You do not need a CartaVenezia iMob pass for this fare. According to the press release, holders can purchase an Aerobus ticket for €3, although the ACTV and ticketing machines specify the €1,20 fare.

Rialto Line 2 boarding separates subscription and non-subscription iMob card holders.

In an attempt to better control the heavy flow of passengers at the Line 2 Rialto vaporetto stop, the ACTV has just announced they will separate boarding for CartaVenezia and non-CartaVenezia ticket holders, in effect daily from 4pm – 8:30 pm during the summer season for boats heading in either direction.

There will be one line for those with a CartaVenezia subscription, and another for those with magnetic paper travel cards. The first line will also accomodate those with mobility issues, wheelchairs, etc.

At other times of the day and the end of the summer season there will be a single boarding area only.

 

Car or no car, consider the Ferryboat.

When traveling between Lido and Venice proper, you’d normally choose one of many vaporetto options: Line 1 for Sant’Elena, Giardini, the Riva and Grand Canal, Lines 41/2, 51/2 that encircle the city, or even Line 62 to Piazzale Roma via the Giudecca Canal.

There’s another alternative that occurs to too few people, but sometimes is just the ticket, especially to avoid jam-packed boats at the end of an event or day at the beach.

ferry_boat

ACTV Line 17 is not a vaporetto, but a traghetto, also known as the Ferryboat. It’s a good deal larger because it’s able to transport motor vehicles between Lido and the main car park at Tronchetto (unlike Venice, Lido has roads, and cars). You don’t have to have a car to board, though; and although its form is not what we might classify as attractive, if Lido or Tronchetto is your destination (or even your transfer point), the Ferry-boat can be a valid, even preferable option.

Come mai? And why might that be?

  • First, because it’s non-stop. If returning from Lido, you’ll board at San Nicolò (a few hundred meters north of S.M. Elisabetta, also reachable by bus) and arrive at Tronchetto.
  • Second, because there’s a second level, the upper deck offers an immensely gratifying view of the lagoon,  the Riva, San Giorgio Maggiore, and the Giudecca Canal, even (or perhaps especially) at sunset or after dark.
  • Third, there’s even a bar, so you could enjoy a panino and a caffè, a prosecco, or even a Spritz, should you be so inclined.
  • Finally, because passage is included in your ACTV vaporetto transit pass. Of course, if you have a car or bike or kayak or some other mobile thing, you can take it along with you…but it’s not a requisite.

The passage is thirty-five minutes, and from Tronchetto you can pick up Line 2 and continue on your normal vaporetto way (or vice-versa, of course).

It’s the little things…yes?

vap_icon.png

For more info on Line 17 and every other vaporetto line in town, get your print, fold, and go copy of The Vap Map vaporetto guide. It’s the handiest way to make sure you never miss the boat.

“Indispensible.”

Spring ACTV vaporetto schedule updates

The following is a summary of the principal adjustments in the ACTV vaporetto schedule, in effect as of April 1, 2009.

LINE 2:
Connection with Vallaresso until 8:30 p.m.; with the doubling of the number of trips between Rialto and Valleresso.

LINE 5 direct to Murano from San Zaccaria: from 10.14 until 12.14, and from 13.14 until 16.54, a boat departs every 20 minutes.

Line LN – Laguna Nord, the north lagoon line

  • From F.Nove to Treporti and from S.Zaccaria MVE to P.Sabbioni, boats depart every half-hour, with an hourly connection from P.Sabbioni to Burano and vice-versa.
  • There is an additional departure from F.Nove for Burano at 8:10.

There is a new Line 15 that runs from direct between Venezia and P.Sabbioni during rush hour.

Line 11
There is now a regular stop at Pellestrina Caroman for ten pairs of courses.

The Fusina line hours have been extended to about 8,30 p.m.

For a two handy schedule documents, download the current ACTV Vaporetto Timetables from the Illustrata Press portable Vap Map web site.