Getting around in Kyrgyzstan

Modes of public transport within Kyrgyz cities include local buses / Marshrutka (minibus), taxi, or train. You can take a plane if you wish to travel between different Kyrgyz cities.

Bus / Marshrutka (minibus)

The local Bus / Marshrutka (i.e., minibus) is the most common and affordable way for you to travel within the city. In major cities like Bishkek and Osh, you can find a bus / Marshrutka stop by the main road. Bus tickets range from 8 som (day time) to 10 som (after 9pm). Marshrutka, on the other hand will reach to almost any corner of the city. With the marshrutka, if you see one coming alongside the road, you can wave one down to stop for you to embark. Despite there being designated stops, you can still ask the driver to stop whenever it is safe for you to disembark. Cost of Marshrutka range from 10 som (day time) to 12 som (after 9pm).
Some travelers may feel hesitate to take the local bus / minibus, especially when all the information written on the bus / minibus are in Russian or Kyrgyz. However, thanks to the development of new technology, there are apps available for you to download onto your mobile device that will help you to navigate your way through the city. For example, 2GIS is a very popular app that is widely used in Central Asia, you can find all the routes available to you from point to point within the city.
If you want to travel in between cities (or even to other countries like Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan), you can go to the main bus terminal located in every city. Below is a list of bus terminals for inter-city travel:

Local bus

Bishkek

Cholpon Ata

Karakol

Osh

Western Bus Station, Shymkent 1, Bishkek

Long Distance Bus Station, 96 Sovetskaya Street

Main Bus Station, Przhevalskiy Street 149, Karakol

New Bus Station: Outside the city; Southeast corner of Lenin Av and Osmonova Street

Old Bus Station: City center; A373 and Ak-Burinskaya Street

Taxi

In Kyrgyzstan, you can find taxis everywhere. However, many of them may not have the ‘TAXI’ sign displayed on their cars. Nevertheless, drivers shout out ‘Taxi, Taxi’ making them easily recognizable. Taking a taxi is not relatively expensive, especially if you have 4 people to occupy an entire taxi. The cost for 4 people to take a taxi works out to be almost the same than that of taking a minibus. However, as a foreigner, be prepared that the taxi driver asks for a higher price. It would be advisable for you to first check the price found in certain apps (e.g., 2GIS) so that you will know what is the going rate.
Apart from here are some formal taxi services in the big cities, for example, you can call “SMS Taxi” in Bishkek, in which they will charge you a reasonable price in accordance with the distance you have travelled.