Lesson 17 · German A1-2

Directions & Public Transport

Wegbeschreibung und öffentliche Verkehrsmittel

Once you're living in Germany, you'll ask for and give directions constantly, and you'll navigate buses, trains, and trams almost daily. Today reuses gehen and fahren from Lesson 16's Perfekt, now in the present tense for real-time navigation.

Today's win: ask for directions, understand basic directional instructions, and buy/validate a transport ticket.

Core transport nouns

der Busbusdie U-Bahnsubway
die Straßenbahntramder Bahnhoftrain station
die Haltestellestopdas Ticket / die Fahrkarteticket

Asking for directions

Wo ist der Bahnhof? (Where is the train station? - reusing Lesson 5's wo)
Wie komme ich zum Bahnhof? (How do I get to the train station?)
Ist das weit von hier? (Is that far from here?)

Understanding directions

geradeausstraight ahead
links / rechtsleft / right
an der Ampelat the traffic light
die zweite Straßethe second street
Gehen Sie geradeaus, dann links. (Go straight, then left.)

Note the imperative form Gehen Sie - drop "ich/Sie" from the front and keep the Sie-conjugation, a simple command pattern you'll hear constantly.

Taking transport

Ich fahre mit dem Bus. (I'm taking the bus.)
Fährt die U-Bahn zum Bahnhof? (Does the subway go to the station?)
Wann kommt der nächste Bus? (When does the next bus come?)
Try it out loud: ask how to get to your nearest train station, and describe the route back using geradeaus/links/rechts.

Quick recall check

1. "How do I get to the train station?" - Wie ______ ich zum Bahnhof?

Show answer
komme

2. What does "geradeaus" mean?

Show answer
straight ahead

3. What's the article for "Haltestelle" (stop)?

Show answer
die

4. "I'm taking the bus." - Ich ______ mit dem Bus.

Show answer
fahre

5. What's the German word for "left"?

Show answer
links

Primary source

Vocabulary cross-checked against the "Verkehr" (transport) topic in the official Goethe-Zertifikat A1 Wortliste.

Want to practice directions to a real place near you? Ask your teaching agent to build the dialogue.