Your options for getting around Charlottesville on the state’s dollar are limited, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t useful.
Public transport in the city is organized under the Charlottesville Transit Service, and CTS buses serve the city itself and adjacent areas of Albemarle County. Buses run Monday through Saturday, 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. with 11 routes operating during the day, and about half of those operating at night. CTS bus stops are marked with an orange and yellow sunburst on a white background, and while the system has picked up a reputation for running behind schedule, getting a bus to where you need likely won’t be a problem.
But it’s likely that, as a tourist, most of the destinations you’ll be headed to will be in or around the Downtown Mall, the Corner (near UVA) or on the university campus itself. Luckily, CTS provides free trolley service Monday through Saturday, 6 a.m. to midnight, between these locations. You’ll probably recognize the green trolleys around town—they shuttle passengers between the university and downtown roughly every 10 to 15 minutes.

