Land Transportation in the U. S. Virgin Islands

What an experience it was the first time I left the St. Thomas airport en route to my hotel. Apparently, they drive on the other side of the street there, and in American cars! It took me a while to figure out why they do that. It really has nothing to do with their being former European settlements, but instead it has to do with their former position as a major trading center. The horses and donkey rode on the left, and when cars were introduced, the government never changed the side to fit with the majority of other countries.

The age requirement for renting a car is supposed to be 25, but most rental agencies rent to drivers over 21 for an extra charge. You can drive a vehicle in the U.S. Virgin Islands for up to 90 days on a valid drivers license. When planning your budget for a rental car, don't forget to factor in additional costs such as gasoline. St. Croix has the least expensive gasoline out of the 3 islands because the refinery is there. St. John has the most expensive. In fact, of all the time I've been to St. John, I have never ever seen a gas station there. But I'm sure there is at least one somewhere. St. Thomas and St. John's gas prices are actually more expensive than the States because the refined oil to gas from St. Croix actually gets shipped to Puerto Rico, rather than directly to St. Thomas or St. John, adding a considerable middle-man additional cost.

Locals are usually courteous and patient, and serious accidents are very rare. In fact, I often hear about head-on collisions when I'm there, with traffic backed up to who-knows-where. And every time it's been an American tourist forgetting the U. S. Virgin Islands driving law, and drives on the right side instead!

Don't forget to wear you seat belts, too. It may be the law, but when you get your first ride with one of those crazy taxi drivers, you'll soon learn it's actually more of a necessity! Although most of the islands aren't crowded, it's usually hard to find a parking space in town.

In the U. S. Virgin Islands, taxis are more than just a way of getting you where you want to go. They are often an expression of the driver's personality. Or an interesting design or picture painted right on the side of the taxi! Now, before I go any further, let me clarify that I have never seen one of those New York-style taxis with which we are all familiar. Many of them are vans, (some don't have air conditioning?) but the most exciting ones are instead the native-owned ones. They are very proud of them, and you will see many of them painted in high gloss racing down the streets. But, they don't look like a taxi or a car. They look most like a pick-up truck, sometimes with a canvas top, no wall one one side, and rows of padded seats, with only a small narrow step to actually climb up. And there aren't any seat belts, so hang on! Locals are used to the crazily steep winding roads, and blind turns. So they can go considerably faster than most state-side people prefer!

You can even arrange an island tour with a taxi driver who will be easily able to point out any number of tourist-friendly, and local-preferred destinations.

Also, unlike the States, the U. S. Virgin Islands taxi system does not use meters, and charges by the person. Yes, that makes it considerably more expensive, however most taxis are members of the V. I. Taxi Administration and have pre-set rates. Of course, you could always try to convince them to give you a special discount.

Another common taxi event is that most taxi drivers prefer taking groups of people, rather than just one or two people. It does save on the cost per person, in that case.

Children under 6 pay 1/2 price. The first piece of luggage is free, but any more requires more money. And, if you have someone do a radio call for a taxi, or a trip after midnight, you will have to pay extra as well.

Bicycles and mopeds are available for rent, but I don't know who takes them. I have yet to see more than 1 motorcycle on my vacations in the islands.

Bus travel in the U. S. Virgin Islands varies greatly in the Caribbean. Only the larger islands really have much anything for bus services. Air-conditioned Vitran buses on St. Croix charge $1 per trip, although seniors pay only 55 cents. Buses run from 5:30 a.m. until 9:00 p.m. every day except Sunday, when there aren't any buses. They travel between Christiansted and Frederiksted and most stops are serviced once every 2 hours. Of course, this is the Caribbean, so don't set your watch by the buses. They are more often late!

St. John buses run between Cruz Bay, where the ferry docks are, and Salt Pond Bay , therefore covering most of the island. Buses run between Cruz Bay at 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. before the normal schedule, when the stop is 25 minutes past every hour until 7:25 p.m. Again, the buses are few and far between, so no rushing is possible.

On St. Thomas, both city (75 cents) and county ($1) buses run from 5:30 a.m. until 7:00 p.m., servicing the area between town and Red Hook, where the ferry docks are, once an hour. Most stops are made at least every 30 minutes.

And, to complicate matters even more, there is such a thing as a "dollar ride," which is now a two-dollar ride. It says taxi, and looks like a taxi, but the locals know better. You can easily tell which are, because they will likely have a number of people crammed into them. Especially if you're out of the town, you can wave a dollar bill at a passing taxi, and if it stops, then you know. If it doesn't, you'll know then also. Unfortunately, these "rides" do not visit the west end, or the entire South/Caribbean side of the island between the cruise ship dock and Red Hook.

No matter how you decide to get around the wonderful islands, make sure you pay less attention to the steep hills and treacherous driving, and more attention to the amazing scenery along the hillsides!

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