knowledge Overview
The Frankfurt city bus network complements the VGF U-Bahn (9 lines) and tram (10 lines) and is fully integrated into the fare system of the Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV). It is divided into MetroBus lines (M32, M34, M36, M43, M46, M55, M60, M72), which also run every 30 minutes at night, one- to two-digit city bus lines (e.g. 28, 29, 30, 34, 36, 39, 43, 46, 54, 55, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 72, 77) and ExpressBus lines with an "X" prefix (e.g. X17, X61, X77). At night, rail-aligned night bus lines (N4, N5, N7, N8, N11, N12, N16, N18), which mirror the line numbers of the U-Bahn and tram lines, as well as RMV regional night lines, take over the service.
Operator
Frankfurt municipal transport company (VGF) is the city's municipal transport service provider and operates the U-Bahn and tram; in the bus sector it is responsible for infrastructure, customer and sales services. Since the Stadtwerke holding took over In-der-City-Bus GmbH (ICB) on 1 September 2014, the operational bus business has been in the hands of ICB; the task owner is traffiQ, the municipal company for local public transport.
History
The first public bus lines in Frankfurt were operated by the Frankfurter Omnibus-Gesellschaft (FOG) from 1863 with horse-drawn omnibuses, among others from Bockenheim to the Hanauer Bahnhof. In 1925 the first eight motorised omnibuses were put into municipal service, which since the city's takeover of the horse tram in 1898 has been carried by the municipal transport companies. Since the timetable change of 2010/2011, the VGF no longer offers its own bus operations; the operational bus business has since lain with In-der-City-Bus GmbH (ICB), which was acquired by the Stadtwerke holding in 2014.
Line classes
- MetroBus (M32–M72): main lines with 24-hour operation or a 30-minute night frequency
- StadtBus (two-digit numbers, e.g. 30, 36, 39, 61, 64, 72, 77): district and connecting lines, including airport lines 58, 61 and 62
- ExpressBus (X lines, e.g. X17, X61, X77): fast direct connections with few stops, among others to the airport and into the surrounding area
- Night bus (N4–N18 rail-aligned as well as RMV night lines, e.g. N61, N71, N96): night network starting from Konstablerwache or the Hauptbahnhof
Major hubs
- Konstablerwache (central hub of urban and night bus traffic)
- Hauptbahnhof with long-distance coach terminal (Stuttgarter Straße)
- Hauptwache
- Südbahnhof
- Frankfurt Airport Terminal 1 (bus bays for lines 58, 61, 62, X17)
Further information
network_lines: MetroBus M32–M72, StadtBus (e.g. 28–89), ExpressBus X17/X61/X77, NachtBus N4–N18; network_area: Frankfurt am Main (RMV); network_status: In operation