Getting Around Brest
Brest's public transport is run under the name Bibus, the network for Brest Métropole. It is operated by RATP Dev through its subsidiary RD Brest. For a visitor, the practical upshot is that a single network covers trams, buses, a cable car, and even an inclined lift, so you rarely need to think about more than one operator or one ticket type.
What Modes Exist
Bibus operates trams, buses, a cable car, transport on demand (TAD), long-term and self-service electric bike hire, park-and-ride facilities, bike parks, and an inclined lift. The network is being expanded: two projects are adding track and new stations serving strategic locations such as the rail station, universities, schools, and hospitals, and connecting outlying districts to the city centre. That expansion consists of tram line B and BRT bus line D.
Note that Brest has no metro. The backbone of the network is the tram, supplemented by buses and the cable car.
Tickets and Passes
The simplest way to pay is with a KorriGo card — a personal, free smart card onto which you load tickets (single, day, 10-trip) and subscriptions. To create one, visit the Bibus shop with proof of identity and an ID photo (if you cannot come in person); for an annual or Liberté pass subscription you also need paper bank account details (RIB).
If you would rather not bother with a card, tickets can be bought from bus drivers, from ticket machines in tram stations, through the bibus.fr e-boutique, via the Bibus mobile application, at the Bibus shop, at "B" stations, and at the Brest Tourist Office and the Plougastel-Daoulas Tourist Office. The tourist offices also sell single tickets combined with a preferential Océanopolis ticket, day tickets, 3-day passes, return cable car tickets, 10-trip tickets, and season ticket renewals.
Fares as at 1 September 2023:
- Single ticket: €1.70, valid for one hour across the whole network
- Day ticket: €4.50, valid all day network-wide
- 3-day consecutive pass: €10
- 10-trip tickets available
- Return cable car ticket: €2.20
- Free for children under 6; reduced fare for children aged 6–7
- Season tickets: Fréquence, Tempo, Tango, Rytmo
There is a useful weekend and public holiday deal: on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, one to four people can travel on a single €4.50 ticket, with unlimited parking included.
The Cable Car
Brest's cable car is described as France's first urban cable car. It links the Capucins district (Ateliers station) to the bottom of rue de Siam (Jean Moulin station), with departures every ten minutes. Operating hours are Monday 11:00–00:30; Tuesday to Thursday 07:30–00:30; Friday and Saturday 07:30–01:00; and Sundays and public holidays 09:00–23:00.
All Bibus tickets are valid on bus, tram and cable car, so you can use your ordinary ticket. There is also a special cable car ticket at €2.20 for a day's return journey.
Walkability
The cable car's route is a good hint about the shape of the centre: it connects the Capucins district with the bottom of rue de Siam, one of the main axes of the city. Combined with the tram and the inclined lift, this makes the central area quite manageable on foot, with mechanical help for the changes in level.
Reaching the City from the Airport
Brest-Bretagne Airport is served by bus line 20, which runs from Porte de Gouesnou tramway station to the airport. Timetables are arranged to connect with the tramway serving the entire city centre, so the airport trip is a simple bus-plus-tram combination. A single ticket costs €1.70, is valid for one hour after first validation, and is valid on the tramway, bus, cable car and bicycle network.