Carry Me in Your Dreams (2009) 

Buses, trolley buses, trams - and "marshrutkas" 

There are two road transport systems. Let's start with the simplest and most relevant for visitors to Kyiv.

If you want to travel on a tram, bus or trolleybus there is a single ticket system.

To buy a ticket there are two options:

1. Find a ticket kiosk (see below) and give the lady 30 hrivnas (€1) and say the word "desyat" - which means 10. She should then give you a little booklet of 10 tickets.

2. The second option is to get on the vehicle and find a person in a brightly coloured sleeveless house coat, with the word контролор (or controller) written on the back. Give them any multiple of 3 hrivna for the desired number of tickets. The only exception to this rule is if you are on a public transport vehicle late at night (they generally stop working around 10.30pm), when you may have to buy the ticket off the tram driver directly.

Once you have your ticket you need to validate it. The Russian and Ukrainian word sounds similar to "compost". Some controllers like to compost the tickets for you, others let you do it yourself. The "composters" are placed up and down the walls of the buses and trams, or attached to the upright railings. The orange one above is typical, although others have a knob rather than a handle. Put your ticket in the slot and press. This will put holes unique to that particular bus into your ticket.

There are ticket inspectors, who occasionally get on and check tickets. If you don't have a ticket you will get a dressing down and a fine of €2.

There is another system. 

This is an organised but private structure of minibuses, called marshrutkas (literally marching-route buses). 

In this case you pay slightly more inside the city (up to 5 hrivna) directly to the driver. There are no tickets. 

They share the same stops as the public transport and slow down at each stop, but unless someone says "ostanovka", unlike public transport, the minibus will not automatically stop.

You really need to know where the bus is going to get on one in confidence. But if you are for a bit of random travel, and you would like to see how many Kyivites live, then the marshrutka is an interesting and important social experience.