Taking the Bus, Train & Metro

What You Should Know About: Public Transport
The public transportation in Copenhagen is very reliable, punctual, and it takes you everywhere. In Copenhagen the trains, Metro and buses (including waterbuses) can be accessed with the same ticket. All you need to know is how many zones you will pass on your journey.

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To and from the Airport

 * It takes less than 15 minutes to go from Copenhagen Airport to the city centre by train or metro. Both metro and train run from terminal 3. If you want to go to Copenhagen Central Station or Hellerup station, the regional train (the grey one) is your best option. If you want to go to central stations like Kongens Nytorv or Nørreport, you should get on the metro you can then get a connecting train to wherever you need to go.


 * The bus line 5C will take you directly to Copenhagen Central Station, City Hall Square, Nørreport and other stations. By bus it takes about 30-35 minutes from the airport to the Central Station.

Metro

 * The metro is in service all day and all night, every day of the week. There are 2-4 minutes between each train during rush hour, and 3-6 minutes outside rush hour and during the weekends. Friday and Saturday night (after 01:00) trains arrive with a 7-15 minutes interval and a 20 minutes interval after midnight on weekdays (Sunday to Thursday).


 * When using the public transportation in Copenhagen, all members of the family must have a valid ticket. There is ongoing ticket control, if you and your family are travelling without a valid ticket or with an insufficient number of tickets, you can all be individually fined.  The fines range from 350kr for under 16 to 750kr for over 16 year olds.

Trains

 * The S-trains run between 05:00 in the morning and 00:30 at night. Line A, B, C and E run every 10 minutes, and line H and Bx run every 20 minutes.


 * On Friday and Saturday the trains run once an hour between 01:00 and 05:00. However, line F runs every half hour during these hours.

Buses

 * The A-buses are the primary buses in central Copenhagen. They drive every 3-7 minutes during rush hour (which is between 07:00-09:00 in the morning and 15:30-17:30 in the afternoon) and usually about every 10 minutes before and after rush hour. The A-buses serve at all hours.


 * Night buses are in service between 01:00 and 05:00 in the night. You can recognise the bus stops by the grey colour of the bus stop signs. The night buses are all N buses, for an example 85N.


 * DOT is the joint customer service and ticket provider for buses, trains and metro in Denmark. They have a fantastic website and app.


 * The app is rejseplanen and is available on both apple and android.


 * The website and app have a journey planner, you can input your starting destination and final destination, and this will then advise you of the best and quickest possible route to take.  It will tell you if you need to change trains or switch to the metro or bus, it is available in English, German and Danish. It does provide information on delays but isn’t always the fastest at updating, the facebook page expats in Copenhagen users are very good at posting if there are any delays etc. on the transport system. You can also follow DSB on twitter and they post if there are any delays.


 * In Denmark the easy way to travel is by using a rejsekort, if you are familiar with the London transport oyster system it is very similar to it.

What is rejsekort?
Rejsekort is an electronic ticketing system for travelling by bus, train and metro. Rejsekort unites the different transport operators, travel zones, ticketing systems and discount schemes into a common system, which makes it easier for passengers to use public transport services in Denmark.

At every train and metro stations you will find card reader machines on the platform with check Ind and Check Ud and on buses it will be by the doors. You have to check in when you start your journey and when you change between different means of transport en route to your destination – and you have to check out at the end of your journey.

What a card reader looks like:

How to Check Out

 * To check in or out, hold your rejsekort over the Blue Point on the check-in/out card reader. When your check-in/out is registered on the chip on your rejsekort, the card reader emits a positive "bing" tone and an OK message will appear on the display screen. The price of the journey and the balance on your rejsekort account appear on the display screen. You have now successfully checked in/out and your journey is started or completed.


 * If you check out and then check in again in the same travel zone within 30 minutes, rejsekort converts the two separate journeys into one. This means that you avoid paying the minimum two-zone fare applicable for each separate journey.


 * Payment is made automatically when you check out. The display screen on the card reader displays the price of your journey and the new balance on your rejsekort account.


 * If you forget to check out but remember before the time limit you may still be in time to do so. Go on the rejsekort website www.rejsekort.dk on the dropdown menu you can find what to do if you forget to check out. There you can input your rejsekort number where you started your journey and where it ended. You cannot call Customer Services to check out.


 * If you do not manage to check out within the time limit, your prepayment will be forfeited – regardless how far you have travelled. By default, the prepayment is the sum you will pay for your journey. If you forget to check out, the journey will not be included in the calculation of discount.


 * If you fail to check out repeatedly over a 12-month period, Rejsekort A/S is entitled to freeze your card following two written warning letters. If your card is frozen, you will be blacklisted and you will not be permitted to purchase a Rejsekort Personal or Rejsekort Flex for a period of 12 months.


 * If you have forgotten your rejsekort and haven’t purchased a ticket, you can text 1415 enter the station you are starting from, how many zones and V for an adult e.g. Gentofte 2 zones V. you will then received a verification text, you must reply Ja to this and you then have a valid ticket that you can show any inspector and it will be accepted.

How to reload

 * You can pay money directly into your rejsekort account. If you have a Rejsekort Personal or Rejsekort Flex account, you can set up a reload agreement. Once your card gets to a certain amount it will automatically top up, you do this via the website and have a valid credit card attached to it.  This agreement makes sure there is always credit on your rejsekort account so you are free to travel at any time.


 * You must use your rejsekort within 30 days of topping it up, if you don’t the reloaded amount will not be credited to your rejsekort.


 * If you top up your rejsekort online be aware there may be a delay of up to 4 hours before it is transferred to your card for trains and metro use and up to 24 hours for buses.

Where to reload

 * All types of rejsekort can be topped up at a Rejsekort ATM. Our ATMs are located on metro and DSB stations in areas where you can use rejsekort. You can use your payment card to top up at any Rejsekort ATM. You can use cash or a payment card to top up any type of rejsekort at designated points of sale in the areas where you can use rejsekort.

Adding Passengers

 * You can add extra passengers to your rejsekort, a dog or a bicycle with you when you travel on your Rejsekort if you use Check in Extra. At least one of the card readers will at every station will allow you to do this, it will be a card reader extra. You press the + button on the top of the reader, it will then ask you to hold your card the reader you the use the symbols on the reader and the +/- symbols to adjust to your needs.


 * When travelling by bus you must notify the bus driver that you wish to add extra passengers.

Fare inspections

 * The transport operators carry out Rejsekort fare inspections using specially designed hand-held devices. The individual transport operators' travel regulations are available on their respective web sites.


 * Your Rejsekort may be inspected by bus, train and metro staff carrying a hand-held terminal. Among other things, the inspector can see whether and where you checked in. After the inspection, the inspector attaches an inspection mark to your Rejsekort signifying that the inspection has been made.

Don't forget

 * Don’t forget to check in every time you begin (or continue) a journey with a rejsekort. If you have not checked in, you are travelling without a valid travel document. If you meet an inspector en route to your destination, you will be fined for fare evasion. The same applies if you travel on a Rejsekort with an incorrect customer type (unless, of course, you travel on a more costly customer type, e.g. a child travelling on a Rejsekort with customer type set to Adult).


 * Don't forget that, if you have to change to another means of transport en route to your destination, you must check in every time you change, e.g. from bus to train, from train to metro or from one train to another.


 * If an inspector suspects that your Rejsekort card is being misused, the transport operators reserve the right to freeze the card with immediate effect.

Ferry

 * All ferries (havnebusserne) in Copenhagen are in zone 2. You can sail from Nyhavn via the Black Diamond to the Fisketorvet in 2 zones.


 * Havnebusserne have six stops: Det Kongelige Bibliotek (Den Sorte Diamant) – Knippelsbro – Nyhavn – Holmen Syd – Holmen Nord – Nordre Toldbod. The ferry operates weekdays from 7:00 – 20:00, and on weekend 10:00 – 20:00.

Travelling with a bike
Copenhagen is a city well equipped for cyclists, the bike paths are everywhere.

Bikes on the Metro

 * Bicycles can be taken on the metro for an extra 13 kr. You need to pay for the bike with its own ticket. You can’t take your bike on the metro during peak rush hour, which is Monday to Friday 07:00 – 09:00 and 15:30 – 17:00.

Bikes on the Train

 * Bicycles can be taken on s-tog lines for free but you can’t take bikes through Nørreport station during peak hours (Monday to Friday 07:00 – 08:30 and 15:30 – 17:00). To take your bike on a train, you need to put it on the first or last carriage, so-called “flex carriages” that have space for bikes and strollers.


 * These carriages are clearly marked with large graphics of bicycles on the outside, on the station platform you may also find a bike symbol to indicate that the bike carriage will stop there.


 * To take a bike on a regional train, you must buy a supplementary ticket.

Bikes on the Bus
===   Good to Know ===
 * You can bring a bike on a bus in Copenhagen but each bus is limited to two bikes even if the space isn’t taken up by prams and other people and it’s up to the discretion of the bus driver. Generally, people do not travel with their bikes on buses in Copenhagen.
 * Danish public transport operates without turnstiles. But be warned: ticket collectors roam the system regularly and are not lenient towards tourists.


 * Kids under 12 travel for free if they’re with an adult.


 * Kids under 16 can purchase child fares.


 * Small dogs and other pets travel for free; large dogs (ones that don’t fit in handheld carriers) need a child fare.


 * Baby prams are free on all forms of transport.