Transportation in Lebanon varies greatly in quality from the ultra modern Beirut International Airport to poor road conditions in many parts of the country. The Lebanese civil war between 1975 and 1990 and the 2006 Lebanon War with Israel severely damaged the country's infrastructure.
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Beirut has frequent bus connections to other cities in Lebanon and major cities in Syria. The Lebanese Commuting Company, or LCC in short, is just one of a handful brands of public transportations all over Lebanon.[1] On the other hand, the publicly owned buses are managed by le Office des Chemins de Fer et des Transports en Commun (OCFTC), or the "Railway and Public Transportation Authority" in English.[2] Buses for northern destinations and Syria leave from Charles Helou Station.[3]
Buses are popular and inexpensive and can be stopped anywhere along the way simply by hailing. Never take a bus without verifying the destination with the driver. The fair is for LBP1000 ($0.6). There are Public Buses (are not regular) and Private Buses (are in general better organized than Public buses).
Apart from the international airport, the Port of Beirut is another port of entry. As a final destination, anyone can also reach Lebanon by ferry from Cyprus or by road from Damascus.[4]
Apart from buses, the latter are served by either service or taxis. Service is a lot cheaper than taxis however, to avoid misunderstanding, agreement over the pricing need to be made before setting off.[4]
Service-taxis are probably the most popular means of transportation in Lebanon and recognizable by their red plate and most of them are old white Mercedes. You can take a taxi just by hailing in the street. Watch out, there are no passengers, specify if you would like it as a “taxi” or as a “service-taxi”.
One has to specify one's destination and enter the taxi only if one's destination correspond to the itinerary of the Service-taxi. The driver stops to pick up additional passengers anywhere on the streets and drop them off generally in main squares and main streets. It remains advantageous with very low fares.
Ride To Service-Taxi Taxi
The driver must not pick up additional passengers. Most of these taxis are not equipped with meters, so negotiate the fare before embarking. The estimation of the fare is therefore often an approximate.
Pick up people who have pre-booked by phone. They don’t respond to hails in the street. They don’t have a meter so passengers should agree a price before starting a journey.
The Lebanese rail system is not currently in use, with services having ceased due to the country's political difficulties.
The main national airport is the Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport and is located in the southern suburbs.[5]}
http://www.beirutairport.gov.lb/home.html
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