Porsche Romania
Phone: +40 21 203 28 88
Web: www.porscheromania.ro
Brands: Porsche, Audi, Volkswagen, Bentley, Seat, Skoda

Tiriac Auto
Phone: +40 374 141 414
Web: www.tiriacauto.ro
Brands: Mercedes, Jaguar, Mitsubishi, Range Rover, Hyundai, Land Rover, Ford

Dacia & Renault
There are several car dealers that sell Dacia and Renault cars. The two ones listed below are the best known.

Meridian
West: 319-329 Iuliu Maniu Blvd.;
Phone: +40 21 334 33 33

South:  58-60 Turnu Magurele St.;
Phone: +40 21 334 44 33
Web: www.automeridian.ro

Auto Cobalcescu
Address: 311 Splaiul Unirii
Phone: +40 374 102 371
Web: www.autocobalcescu.ro
It sells Dacia, Renault, Nissan cars as well as used vehicles.

Auto Italia
Phone: +40 21 444 33 34
Web: www.autoitalia.ro
Brands: Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Abarth, Lancia, Maserati, Infiniti, Jeep

Forza Rossa – Ferrari
Phone: +40 21 313 92 96,
+40 21 310 87 31
Web: www.ferrarishop.ro
The car dealer also has a store on 1-5 Calea Victoriei for Ferrari-branded products

Because there are insufficient parking places, cars are parked everywhere including on pavements, at pedestrian crossings, at bus stops, on corners and where ‘No Parking’ signs are clearly posted! To make things worse, there is a lot of confusion about towing. Since new regulations were recently announced, a lot more cars are being towed. To help you (and us) make some sense of the whole issue, we called the police directly; below you will find what we learned.

There are several fees you will have to pay for a violation: the lifting, towing and storage fees (listed below by sector) are different in each sector! But in addition to these fees, the police will fine you for the violation and will give you penalty points on your licence: Personal violation fee: RON 216 (or RON 108 if paid within 24 hours) + 3 Penalty Points.
You will need several documents to retrieve your vehicle: the vehicle registration, personal identification (passport, visa card, or national ID), and the driver’s license of the person responsible for the violation.

Sector 1
Auto Impound
Address: 31-43, Aleea Matelotilor
Phone: +40 21 9540
Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00-22:00;
Sunday 8:00-14:00

For violations in Sector 1, here are the fines: Lifting fee: RON 200 + VAT; Transport fee: RON 200 + VAT; Storage fee for vehicles less than 3.5 metric tons: RON 300 + VAT; Storage fee for vehicles more than 3.5 metric tons: RON 400 + VAT. The lifting, transport and storage of vehicles happens 24/7. After a period of 30 days, unclaimed vehicles will be declared abandoned and therefore property of the sector, and are likely to be sold for revenue.

Sector 2
Auto Impound
Address: 2, Fabricii St.
Phone: +40 21 310 45 90
Schedule: None Given
At the gate you will have to present your identification (residency permit, passport, national ID) and they will take down your data. Then you can enter the storage house, and retrieve your vehicle. The fines are as follow:  Lifting fee: RON 130 + VAT; Transport fee: RON 130 + VAT; Storage fee: RON 180 + VAT

Sector 3
Auto Impound
Address: 2-6, Dudesti St., Pantelimon
Phone: +40 21 9543
The fines are as follows:
Lifting fee: RON 200 + VAT; Transport fee: RON 150 + VAT; Storage fee: RON 150 + VAT

Sectors 4 and 5
No information available

Sector 6
Auto Impound
Address: 14-16, Drumul Manastirea Văratec
Phone: +40 21 9546
The fines are as follow: Lifting fee: RON 150 + VAT; Transport fee: RON 150 + VAT; Storage fee: RON 200 + VAT per day

Always call the police in your sector if your car is missing; if it has not been towed, it was probably stolen!

You can find the numbers for Police Stations in each sector in the Emergency Telephone Numbers Section.

Romanian law requires the driver of any vehicle involved in an accident to stop immediately at the scene of the accident. Your first responsibility in the event of an accident with an occupied car or property is to find out if anyone is hurt. If someone is injured, call 112 straight away to get an ambulance or doctor as soon as possible. You are required to provide the injured person all reasonable assistance, including attempting to obtain transportation to a doctor or hospital. However, you should not attempt to provide treatment for injuries yourself unless you are specifically trained to do so.
As of 2009, it is no longer mandatory to call the police for minor accidents! There is now a ‘friendly option’ available, called ‘Constatare Amiabila’ or ‘Friendly resolution’. You can still call the police if you would like, but it is no longer a must.
Usually your insurance company will issue a form that you can use for this procedure. Fill in the form, and describe how the accident happened. You do not need to declare fault: responsibility for the accident is negotiated by both parties’ insurance companies. Your insurance company will instruct you on the next steps (getting your car fixed, etc.).
If the accident resulted in only material damages, you must present yourself within 24 hours to the Accident at Avars Research Bureau Centres in order to set up the findings documents and to obtain repair permits. All parties involved in the accident must go to the Centre in the sector where the accident took place; 112 will be able to provide this information. If one or more of the cars cannot be moved to a Centre, the involved parties must call 112 and wait for police assistance.
It is also important to mention here that Romania has a ‘zero tolerance’ policy with regard to drinking alcohol and driving. Unlike some other countries, not even one drink is acceptable if driving and they will take your license on the spot, and even send you to jail.
Taxi section for reliable companies if you go out on on the town!

Avars Bureau Centres

Sector 1
Address: 355-357, Calea Grivitei
Phone: +40 21 323 30 30

Sector 2
Address: 450, Sos.Pantelimon (Marcus)
Phone: +40 21 323 30 30

Sector 3
Address: 242, Calea Vitan
Phone: +40 21 304 51 89

Sector 4
Address: 311, Splaiul Unirii , (Cobalcescu)
Phone: +40 374 102 361

Sector 5
Address: 311, Splaiul Unirii , (Cobalcescu)
Phone: +40 374 102 361

Sector 6
Address: 594, Iuliu Maniu Blvd.,
Phone: +40 21 323 30 30

The city’s municipal road network is centered around a series of high-capacity boulevards (3 to 4 lanes on each way), which generally radiate out from the city centre to the outskirts and are arranged in geographical axes (principally North-South, East-West and Northwest-Southeast).
The main (and most congested!) boulevards are Calea Victoriei, Stefan cel Mare, Str. Buzesti, Bulevardul Unirii, and Mihai Bravu Boulevard, which is the longest in Bucharest and forms a sort of semicircle around the northeastern part of the old sector.

The city also has two ring-roads, one inside ring (Mihai Bravu is part of it) and one outside ring, which are mainly used for cars that bypass the city as well as trucks, which aren’t allowed in the city centre.

Aside from the main roads, the city also has a number of secondary roads, which connect the main boulevards. In the historical city centre, particularly the Lipscani area, many streets are cobbled and are classified as pedestrian zones.

The traffic in Bucharest has improved after the opening of the 1.9 – km Basarab flyover, which was inaugurated in the summer of 2011, after five years of works. It connects the West of the city to the Northern area.

This can be a complex process even for Romanians, and registering a foreign vehicle is even harder. For this reason, we recommend that you contact this company to assist you:

AGS – International Moving & Storage
Address: 256, Basarabia Blvd., Sector 3
Phone: +40 21 345 06 66
E-mail: sales1-bucharest@agsmovers.com
Web: www.agsmovers.com
Contact person: Charles Baudart

Elena Grecu Individual Law Office
Address: 1, Piata Pache Protopopescu , et. 2 ap. 6
Phone: +40 21 210 05 76,
+40 745 007 311
E-mail: elena.grecu@avocatii-tai.ro
Web: www.avocatii-tai.ro

The Romanian state railways company, CFR (National Society of the Romanian Railways) (phone: +40 21-307 79 01; website: www.infofer.ro), provides reliable and often scenic means of transport to destinations outside Bucharest. You can buy tickets in advance for all trains at the CFR offices (on 10-14 Domnita Anastasia St., +40 21-313 26 44). Visitors departing within 24 hours, however, must buy their tickets at the relevant train station, where queues can be long. Prices are reasonable and first-class tickets are recommended, as the extra comfort is worth the cost. Tickets are checked at the platform entrance, or on the train. However, you should be aware that the homepage or even the information desks sometimes are not reliable. As an alternative, you can visit www.bahn.de (German railway company), where you will find European-wide train connections that are available in English. If you find a connection there that is not shown on www.infofer.ro you can visit also the main railway website which is www.cfr.ro, or just go to the desk officer and tell him you want your preferred train.

Bucharest Main Train Station

Gara de Nord
Address: 2, Garii de Nord Blvd.
Phone: +40 21 9521

Bucharest’s main station, Gara de Nord, is located three miles from downtown Bucharest and is a major rail centre with daily connections to and from cities throughout Europe and Romania. Facilities in the station include ATM machines, fast-food restaurants, bars, newspaper stands, shops, a tourist agency, pharmacy, supermarket, florist, hair salon, 24-hour luggage storage office and a waiting room for first-class ticket holders. Gara de Nord Station has two halls where same-day tickets can be purchased. For all advance tickets (more than 24 hours before departure) and information, go to the central Agenţie de Voiaj CFR office (10-14 Domniţa Anastasia St., Monday-Friday from 7:30 am to 7:30 pm and Saturday from 9 am to 1:30 pm). A seat reservation is compulsory if you are traveling with an Inter-Rail or Eurail pass. If you book a night train in a sleeping wagon, you have to purchase the tickets in the main hall on the left hand side facing the exit.

To get to town you can take a taxi but make sure that official registration plate is on every side in the middle part of the car. Never take a cab whose driver tries to convince you to take his cab! Always check the rates on the doors of the cars! An efficient solution is to take the metro: you are just one stop away from Piata Victoriei, and the metro station is accessible directly  the train station.

There are numerous taxi companies in Bucharest, and they seem to be adding more to the list all the time. While offers vary, prices generally fall into the same range. You should know that the majority of the taxi drivers do not speak English, but they do try to help you most of the time. If you cannott pronounce the address correctly, it is helpful to write it down on a piece of paper to show the driver. Always make sure that the driver turns on the taximeter so you Do notdo not have any unpleasant surprises when reaching your destination. And, you should always ask for the receipt, which can be stamped if you need it for work-related expenses.

Always read the prices posted on the doors of the taxis, so you know exactly what you are getting into, literally! This is important since some companies apply the same tariff in and out of the city, but others charge a higher price for extra-urban trips. The extra-urban tariff is used after passing the Baneasa Airport area, from which point it is considered you have exited the city limits. Because of the traffic, it is very difficult to find a taxi during rush hours (midday and early morning). Another reason is the fact that not many taxi drivers work during this time, most of them choosing to work at night.

Grant Taxi
Phone: +40 21 9433
This company is used especially by hotels in Bucharest, like Howard Johnson Plaza, Marriot Hotel, Rin Grand Hotel etc. for their international guests, as the company has more luxurious cars, such as Mercedes Benz limousines. For its services they require a slightly higher fare than other companies, drivers usually speak or understand English and they accept credit cards and offer receipts with tax deductible stamps. You can also order them to your desired destination in advance, which is a service that is not offered by the other cab companies.

Fly Taxi
Phone: +40 21 9446
E-mail: office@taxifly.ro
Although the company also has a city headquarters it is mostly used for “trips” back and forth to Henri Coanda. If you have a lot of luggage, you should not be disappointed.

Meridian Taxi
Phone: +40 21 9444,
+40 21 9888
Web: www.meridiantaxi.ro/comenzi.php
You can also order cabs online.

Speed Taxi
Phone: +40 21 9477,
+40 21 9488

Taxi Occident
Phone: +40 21 9413

Taxi Pelicanul
Phone: +40 21 9665

Taxi 2000
Phone: +40 21 9494

An easy way to get around Bucharest is taking the Bucharest underground (Metro). Metrorex manages the network, and the system operates between 05:00 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. daily.
The metro network consists of five lines: M1, M2, M3, M4, and M5. The most frequently used line is the north-south M2 line, and the M5 is the newest; it connects M1 with the closest town on the belt road surrounding the capital city, and runs east-west.

Tickets/Fees

There are a few types of tickets:

• 2-trip-ticket price: RON 4;

• 10-trip-ticket price: RON 10;

• Full day ticket price: RON 6;

• Weekly ticket: RON 15 (unlimited trips);

• Monthly ticket price: RON 35 (62 trips);

• Monthly ticket: RON 50 (unlimited trips)

You can purchase tickets at all metro stations. Metro stations are very easy to find because all of them are marked on the street with the M-sign followed by the word METROU (meaning underground ) and the name of the station.
Subway stations are usually located near the RATB stations (the street-level transportation stations).

A subway station may have multiple entries all marked the same way. Once you enter the subway station, you must walk down the stairs to reach the validation machines that allow you the access the boarding platforms. To pass the validation-control machines it is necessary to buy a ticket card (shown in the left) inside the station at the counters with “Casa” signs.
You can either get the old carton cards that are still on sale, or if you have a plastic card for the street-level transportation, you can add metro trips to you card.

Then, just insert the card into the device with the red arrow on the card facing downwards – or just validate by placing it in front of the orange machines. The machine will give you the card back and the word “LIBER” will be displayed on the screen.
Then, just push the protection bar with your hand to enter to the boarding platforms and you are good to go!
The subscriptions can be validated only once in the same subway station (and can only be used by one person).

A 15-trip ticket can be used by more than one person and validated multiple times in the same station. It expires after 6 months.
If the staff at the ticket counters does not speak English, you can show them this brochure and the type of the card you want to buy.
“O cartela de doua călătorii” (2-trip-ticket), “o cartela de zece călătorii” (10-trip-ticket), “abonament pentru o zi” (this type of card allows you an unlimited number of trips for one day), “abonament pentru o luna” (this type of card allows you an unlimited number of trips for one month, starting on the day of the first validation). You can fill in your Activ plastic card – if you have one – with the number of desired trips or with a monthly subscription for the metro and all street level means of transport.

Once on the platform, you will see hanging signs showing the previous stations and the next stations. The name of the station where you are at is marked differently: usually in red and usually with arrows showing the direction of the train.
At the end of the platform on the right and the left sides are clocks that show how many minutes have passed since the last subway left the station.
Quite strange, but an interesting system. When it reads 00:00, then more than 10 minutes have passed. Remember that you can change the different lines for free, if you do not leave the platforms and exit on the street.

Driving in Bucharest is not the easiest task, although we heard of more hectic driving styles in other countries. The biggest problem in the city is the volume of traffic. The number of cars in Bucharest has constantly increased, but most roads have stayed the same. Some of the streets are also bad, so expect potholes. The municipality has been working on resurfacing many of them.
The rush hours – mornings and end of work day -  are sometimes impossible, while some routes are clogged with traffic all day (Splaiul Independentei, Calea Victoriei, Piata Unirii, B-dul Balcescu, B-dul Magheru, Piata Romana and Piata Victoriei).

Sometimes drivers do not respect traffic lights, nor do they see anything wrong with driving off road or parking on the pavement! The biggest challenge, apart from getting used to these in the first place, will be to stop yourself from doing the same after a while!
As a rule, we suggest that you avoid going from south to north during rush hour (mornings and afternoons). However, on weekends and the July – August summer period, the traffic is a little bit less congested.

Expect to hear a lot of honking while driving, especially during traffic jams. (You can also hear honking in the case of a funeral, this is the tradition).

Road Tax
If you are moving to Romania with your own car, or are even just driving through, you have to pay the Romanian road tax, which is called ‘Rovinieta’. The authorities will be able to check electronically whether you bought the Rovinieta or not, as cameras have been installed at city exits.
The tax can be paid for a period of one day, seven days (EUR 3), thirty days (EUR 7) and one year (EUR 28), and can be paid in lei at current exchange rates. Petrom, Rompetrol, Mol, and OMV petrol stations sell the Rovinieta, as well as all customs stations. Do not leave this purchase until you reach the  last petrol station before leaving the city, as sometimes their system does not work and you will have to find another place to buy it. Be sure to keep your receipt as you may be asked to show it to the authorities that organize road checks. Traffic police will not ask for your Rovinieta, as it is not in their jurisdiction, but if they are accompanied with the Road Authority (ARR), they can fine you if you do not present your Rovinieta.

Winter tires
It is mandatory for drivers to equip their car with winter tyres from 1st November every year. You are supposed to have these tyres at all times on your car, even if it does not snow. But you will be in more trouble if you get caught in the snow and your car is not equipped with winter tyres on. Expect queuing at car repairing and tyre shops in the last days of October, as everybody will rush there to change their tyres.