Iran - Andrew Burke [346]
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IS THIS SEAT FREE?
Choosing where to sit on Iranian transport is fraught with difficulty. On city buses, even married couples must sit separately; men at the front of the bus, women at the back.
In contrast, on intercity buses and minibuses, seating is generally arranged so that women sit next to women and men next to men, unless they’re couples or family. A woman is not expected to sit next to an unrelated man even if there’s only one spare seat left on the bus, and people will move around until the gender mix is right.
If you decide to take a shared taxi you will find people hopping in and out of the front and back like yo-yos in an attempt to ensure that unrelated men and women don’t end up side by side. Despite this, often it’s impossible to arrange and you’ll end up sitting next to someone of the opposite sex without anyone getting too upset. On the Tehran Metro women have the option of the women’s only carriage or squeezing in with the men. And on sleeper trains you might find yourself in a mixed compartment if you don’t specify that you want a single-sex compartment.
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SHUTTLE (SHARED) TAXI
In most towns and cities, shared or shuttle taxis duplicate or even replace local bus services. They usually take up to five passengers: two in the front passenger seat and three in the back. Until recently shared taxis were always Paykans (see the boxed text), often coloured orange, or with a dash of orange somewhere. But these are slowly being replaced by smaller Kia Prides (or similar). Either way, after a while you will get used to using shuttle taxis, especially if you try them out somewhere other than Tehran first.
Shuttle taxis travel between major meydans (squares) and along main roads, so the key to using them is to learn the names of the meydans along your intended route. They sometimes make slight detours for passengers at no extra charge; for a longer detour, you may be charged IR500 or IR1000 extra. You’ll usually find them outside bus terminals, train stations, airports and near major meydans, or you can hail one on the street.
There is a certain art to finding a shuttle taxi going your way. Start by stepping onto the road far enough for the driver to hear you shout your destination, but close enough to the kerb to dash back in the face of hurtling traffic. If the driver has a spare seat, he will slow down for a nanosecond while you shout your one-word destination – usually the name of a meydan. If he’s going your way he’ll stop.
When you want to get out simply say kheili mamnun (thank you very much) or make any other obvious noise. Drivers appreciate exact change, so try and keep plenty of those filthy IR500 and IR1000 notes handy; you normally pay when you get out.
Fares, which are fixed by the government, range from about IR500 for the shortest trip to IR5000 for long trips in Tehran, depending on the distance and the city (Tehran’s fares are naturally the most expensive). Try and see what other passengers are paying before you hand over your money, though most drivers are straight enough.
If you get into an empty shuttle taxi, particularly in Esfahan and Tehran, it might be assumed you want to charter it privately. Similarly, if everyone else gets out the driver might decide you are now a private fare. Clarify what you want by saying dar baste (closed door) or nah dar baste (for details, see below).
PRIVATE TAXI
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NAH DAR BASTE!
If you hail an empty taxi the driver will probably think you want to hire it privately. He might ask you: ‘Dar baste?’, which literally means ‘Closed door?’, or perhaps ‘agence?’ If you want to share, then make your intentions clear by leaning in and telling him simply ‘Nah dar baste’, or ‘No closed door’. He’ll soon let you know if he’s interested or not.
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Any taxi without passengers, whether obviously a shared taxi or a more expensive private taxi (usually yellow), can be chartered to go anywhere in town; an act usually called ‘service’ or ‘agence