Public Transport in Chinese 公共交通
gōnggòng jiāotōng
Public transport in Chinese is 公共交通 (gōng gòng jiāo tōng).
Also searched for as: public transportation, bus, subway, bus stop.
What do you use? 15 essential public transport words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
公共交通 (gōng gòng jiāo tōng) means public transport, and these are the bus and metro words you need to get around a Chinese city. In speech a bus is usually 公交车 (gōng jiāo chē) rather than the longer 公共汽车 (gōng gòng qì chē), and you'll use 换乘 (huàn chéng) when you need to change lines on the 地铁 (dì tiě), metro.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 公共汽车 | gōng gòng qì chē | bus |
| 公交车 | gōng jiāo chē | bus |
| 地铁 | dì tiě | metro; underground |
| 车站 | chē zhàn | station; stop |
| 站 | zhàn | stop; station |
| 票 | piào | ticket |
| 交通卡 | jiāo tōng kǎ | travel card |
| 上车 | shàng chē | to get on |
| 下车 | xià chē | to get off |
| 换乘 | huàn chéng | to change (lines) |
| 线 | xiàn | line |
| 乘客 | chéng kè | passenger |
| 座位 | zuò wèi | seat |
| 出口 | chū kǒu | exit |
| 入口 | rù kǒu | entrance |
Usage tips
- Metro lines are numbered with 号线 (hào xiàn), so Line 2 is 二号线 (èr hào xiàn); here 二 (èr) is used, not 两 (liǎng).
- To ask whether a seat is free, say 这儿有人吗 (zhèr yǒu rén ma), literally 'is there someone here?'.
- In Singapore and Malaysia you'll often hear 巴士 (bā shì) for bus, and in Taiwan the metro is usually called 捷运 (jié yùn).
Common mistakes
- Using 进 (jìn) or 出 (chū) for getting on and off; Chinese says 上车 (shàng chē) and 下车 (xià chē).
- Mixing up 出口 (chū kǒu), exit, and 入口 (rù kǒu), entrance; 入 (rù) looks a lot like 人 (rén), person, so read station signs carefully.
Mini dialogue
- A请问，去机场坐几号线？Qǐng wèn, qù jī chǎng zuò jǐ hào xiàn?Excuse me, which line goes to the airport?
- B先坐二号线，在人民广场换乘四号线。Xiān zuò èr hào xiàn, zài Rén mín Guǎng chǎng huàn chéng sì hào xiàn.Take Line 2 first, then change to Line 4 at People's Square.
- A我的交通卡没钱了，在哪儿充值？Wǒ de jiāo tōng kǎ méi qián le, zài nǎr chōng zhí?My travel card's run out of credit. Where can I top it up?
- B入口旁边有机器。Rù kǒu páng biān yǒu jī qì.There's a machine next to the entrance.
Example sentences
- 我坐公共汽车去学校。I go to school by bus.
- 公交车来了，快上车！The bus is here, get on quickly!
- 坐地铁比打车快。Taking the metro is quicker than getting a taxi.
- 车站离我家不远。The stop isn't far from my house.
- 下一站是人民广场。The next stop is People's Square.
- 一张票多少钱？How much is one ticket?
- 我的交通卡没钱了。My travel card has run out of credit.
- 请大家排队上车。Please queue to get on.
- 我在下一站下车。I'm getting off at the next stop.
- 我们要在这站换乘二号线。We need to change to Line 2 at this station.
- 坐四号线可以到机场。You can get to the airport on Line 4.
- 车上的乘客不多。There aren't many passengers on board.
- 这个座位有人吗？Is this seat taken?
- 请问，B出口在哪儿？Excuse me, where's Exit B?
- 地铁入口在马路对面。The metro entrance is across the road.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Public transport speaking island has 8 everyday questions about public transport to prepare your own answers to.