Public transport is an essential aspect of planning any city, naturally the same is true for Cities: Skylines. For players, it is crucial to use this mechanic of the game when developing their cities. Luckily the game offers many different options when it comes to public transportation.
Each different kind of transport in Cities: Skylines comes with its unique advantages, as well as disadvantages. Depending on the city's terrain, location and attractions many different types of transport may be useful. It's best to mix and match and utilize many kinds of public transport in a successful city. However, certain modes of transport have proven more useful throughout the game.
14 Blimps
Blimps are a mode of transport made available in the Mass Transit DLC once the player reaches the Big Town milestone. They hold 35 passengers and are generally useful for education with the "educational blimps" policy which advertises education in the city without an extra cost.
Blimps are one of the least popular modes of transport in the game, with players experiencing problems with long queues due to the blimps' low capacity. This mode of transport can also cause problems with noise pollution, and they tend to be quite slow.
13 Trolley Buses
The trolleybuses in Cities: Skylines become available with the Sunset Harbor DLC. To obtain them the players need to attain the Busy Town milestone. They have a capacity of 30 passengers and can only run on a road with trolleybus wires.
Regular buses tend to be the preferable option for this type of transport as they are more versatile in terms of where they can go. However, these can be good when it comes to smaller routes, and they can look quite nice in certain areas.
12 Taxis
In the real world, Taxis are a very popular mode of transport for many people. In Cities: Skylines, this is not quite the case. Each Taxi can hold one passenger, they usually do 10 rounds per shift when there are enough people which takes the number up to 10 passengers.
They're an important mode of transport to have, because they provide tourists with easier access around the city, causing them to stay longer which generates more tax income. The downfall of taxis is that they function as normal cars and having too many of them can cause congestion within the city.
11 Helicopters
Helicopters are a fast form of air travel with a capacity of 20 passengers. The helicopter pads required for this type of transport are available in the Natural Disasters DLC, the player is also required to reach the Big Town milestone. Helicopters can be useful in getting over difficult terrains, making them ideal for mountainous maps.
Generally, they function somewhat like the blimps, with less noise pollution. They aren't high in capacity, so it's a good idea to keep them away from high-demand routes throughout the city to stop sims from queuing for the helicopters in large numbers.
10 Ferries
Ferries are an excellent choice of transport for water-based maps. With lines that are similar to bus routes and a capacity of 50 passengers. Ferries are a part of the Mass Transit DLC and are great for keeping traffic at bay as they travel through the water.
This mode of transport is used in quite specific ways, and can only exist on maps with rivers and coasts. They are quite slow which can be a disadvantage. Ferries are quite useful when combined with other methods of transport within the game.
9 Cruise Ships
One of the best methods of bringing tourists into the city is by cruise ships. With a capacity of 100 passengers, these ships are a great method of external travel to have. To unlock the cruise ship harbors players need to reach the Capital City size milestone.
The issue with harbors is that they create noise pollution. With the number of tourists coming into the city, players should ensure that strong links are established with other forms of public transport. This helps manage the traffic with all the extra people coming into the city.
8 Cable Cars
Cable Cars are a great method of public transport used to get over difficult terrains. This mode of transport is useful on mountainous maps where sims may need to travel from the base of a mountain to the top, and it also comes in handy with rivers.
Available in the Mass Transit DLC, with a capacity of 30 passengers, the cable cars are a wonderful choice in many cities. There is also the bonus of aesthetics with this type of transport, as it does tend to look quite nice in many places.
7 Buses
As in real life, buses are one of the most useful methods of public transport available in Cities: Skylines. Buses are the first mode of public transport to be unlocked in the game, which allows players to establish networks early on. They have a capacity of 30 passengers and become available after the Boom Town milestone.
Buses are a versatile system of public transport. With variations such as school buses and intercity buses. They help manage traffic, as well as having dedicated lanes to avoid being in traffic in busier areas. All of this makes them very useful.
6 Trains
Trains have an incredible capacity of 240 passengers. They are one of the most versatile methods of transport within the game, with the ability to be combined with other methods of transport to establish strong transport links. Many DLCs also allow the possibility of different stations.
Trains are a fast and efficient method of transport, due to their large capacity and the different types of stations. They quickly become one of the best methods of public transport within the game after being unlocked with the Small City milestone.
5 Airplanes
Airplanes become available with the Metropolis achievement, they have a capacity of 200 passengers and are useful for tourism. This is one of the modes of transport within Cities: Skylines which can be improved with DLC content, such as the international airport in the After Dark DLC.
The airports within the game can require a large amount of flat land to build, but it is certainly worth it. Good transport links also must be established around the airports, so that fewer sims use their cars and less traffic is produced when tourists come in.
4 Monorail
Monorails become available in the Mass Transit DLC. They are another fast method of public transport, albeit with a problem of noise pollution. With a capacity of 180 passengers and its own rail system which isn't affected by traffic, the monorail is highly advantageous.
Monorails are easy to implement within a city once they're unlocked by attaining the Small City milestone. This is because they are elevated and can go over many pre-existing roads.
3 Cycling Lanes
Encouraging cycling in a city is a great way to manage traffic. Cycling lanes are the way to go when doing so, as sims will prefer using a cycling lane over a sidewalk. Having fewer cars on the road is useful, and it can look lovely having these lanes around the city.
Some methods of encouraging cycling involve banning cycling on sidewalks and making use of the Encourage Biking policy. Cycle lanes become available in the After Dark DLC and sims tend to enjoy this method of transport once it has been established.
2 Metro
With its capacity of 150 passengers, the metro is a strong contender for the best method of local transport. It is a highly efficient, highly useful mode of public transport which becomes even better with the number of options available through DLC content.
The metro is easy to integrate, due to the fact it is almost entirely underground, and it is very useful on high-demand routes in order to transport many sims. This is also a great method of preventing traffic, due to its high capacity.
1 Trams
By far the best method of public transport in Cities: Skylines is the Trams, with their capacity of 90 passengers and highly versatile and customizable routes that the players can set. If used correctly this mode of transport can replace busy bus routes due to having three times the capacity.
Trams become available in the Snowfall DLC once the player has reached the Boom Town milestone. This highly useful method is a mode of transport that is cheaper than the metro, more versatile than many types of transport and a fantastic option for localized routes.
Cities: Skylines is currently available for the PC, Linux, MacOS, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.