Getting around traffic-clogged, sprawling Tehran is a true test of patience. While taxis are your best bet, they are pricier here than the rest of the country. A large local bus network will also take you almost anywhere you need to go, as long you can make sense of the routes and Persian line numbers. The true star of Tehran's transport system however, is the brand new metro.
By taxi
As with the rest of the country private and shared taxis are abound in Tehran, although you may find flagging down a shared taxi more difficult amid the traffic and chaos, while private taxis are more expensive than in the smaller cities. See the Get Around information on Iran for details on flagging a taxi. If you want to get around by shared taxi, your best bet is to hop from square to square, as drivers will be reluctant to pick you up if your shouted destination deviates too far from their route. In each square you will find certain places where the private taxis are lined up in a queue and drivers call for passengers to a destination. mostly happening during the times when the number of waiting taxis exceeds the number of passengers. In this case, they would wait until the car gets full of passengers mostly one people at front and 3 people at back, excluding the driver. Otherwise the people have to line up in a queue waiting for the taxis to come. This is the case during rush hours approximately 7AM-8AM and 5PM-8PM. All these depend upon finding their regular station in the square. You can also ask them to alight sooner than your destination wherever you like but you have to pay their total fee up to destination. The cost of such a ride from Azadi square to Vanak Square is around 10,000 rails 1000 Tomans for each person. Most drivers are very poor at English though.
Motorcycle taxis are a Tehran specialty and offer a way to weave quickly through the city's traffic-clogged streets. You'll see plenty of these drivers standing at the side of the road calling "motor" at all who pass by. Keep in mind motor taxi operators can seem even more suicidal than the average Tehran driver when driving. Agree on a price before you take off and expect to pay slightly less than chartering a private taxi.
Airport taxis can be difficult to find and even the most expensive hotels provide poor quality vehicles. Airport Seiro Safar Co. has a fleet of yellow-greenish cars Toyota Camry, Samand which are both new and comfortable. You can call or email them in advance of your trip to/from the airport and reduce the discomfort and inconvenience that the long trek out to the airport can cause. The fee is the same for any source/destination in Tehran to/from Imam Khoemini Aiport varies from 250,000-400,000 rials depending on the car; Samand the least expensive and Camry the most expensive). In order to prevent any request for more than the official fee, tell the driver that you need a receipt before getting on the car.
By Metro
Tehran's new metro system (http://www.tehranmetro.co...) is comprised of three lines that will whisk you quickly from one end of the city to the other without having to deal with the noise, pollution and chaos of Tehrani traffic. However, many residents decided to leave their cars and commute by metro, so expect huge crowds during rush hours.
There are four lines numbered strangely 1, 2, 4 and 5 but the two most useful are lines 1 north to south- currently from Qeytariyeh Station to Haram-e-Motahar Station and 2 east to west which connect at the central Imam Khomeini station. All stations have signs in both Persian and English. Trains run every 10 minutes or less on rush hours 15 minutes on Fridays and holidays from around 5:30AM-11PM every day.line1red line recently extended northward to Tajrish station and southward to Kahrizak station.line4yellow line recently extended eastward to Kolaahduz station and westward to Azadi Station.
Tickets are valid for 1 or 2 trips including change of lines and cost 3,500 or 5,500 rials respectively. There are ticket booths at every station. You can also buy a contactless fare card which is the best option if you are going to use metro a lot, or simply want to have less hassle by paying 20,000 rials for a card and use it on both metro and some city buses note that if you use this card, you usually pay less than any other tickets, since they charge for the longest trip on the network. There are two dedicated women-only carriages at one end of the train. Women can anyway choose to travel aboard the other carriages.
Brt (Bus Rapid Transportation)
The BRT buses are colored in red. BRTs has special lines and travels very quickly from Azadi square west of Tehran directly to the East Terminal-e-Shargh. Railway square South of Tehran directly to the North Tajrish square. Azadi square to free universitynorthwest. Azadi square to south Terminal and parkway bridgenorth of tehran to jomhuri square. Costs between 1,000-3,000 rials. In high-traffic hours 7AM-9AM & 4PM-8PM it is the best way to traveling . BRT has too many stations near main streets. Although you may not find an empty seat on the bus because of the crowds, people give their place to you if they know you are a tourist. The women's and men's seats and queues are separate.