Bus 148: the “airport worker bus” to Ursynów
Every 15–30 minutes, Bus 148 leaves Terminal A and heads into Ursynów and Tarcho side streets instead of the city centre. Locals on r/warsaw literally call it the “airport worker bus,” and that’s the right mental model: this is for staff and residents along the route, not for first‑time visitors trying to reach Old Town or Śródmieście.
The stop sits right outside the arrivals hall at Terminal A, signed as line 148 toward Ursynów/Tarcho. You ride with a standard ZTM ticket in the 1st zone, so think roughly $1–2 depending on whether you buy a 20‑minute, 75‑minute, or longer pass from the yellow ticket machines by the stop or inside the terminal.
End‑to‑end, the run takes around 30–50 minutes depending on traffic and which segment you ride. It snakes through residential streets and hits a long list of stops, which is why some reviews say it “takes forever” compared with the airport train or bus 175 toward the centre.
Service runs through the daytime and early evening, with headways of 15–30 minutes. Off‑peak, locals note that 148 often feels quieter than lines 175 or 188 because it skips touristy streets and mostly serves blocks in southern districts like Ursynów instead of the usual visitor hotel corridors.
Expect a regular low‑floor city bus with space for a couple of suitcases and a stroller area near the middle doors. That said, Ursynów residents on Reddit say that with heavy luggage they still pick the airport train plus metro to stations like Imielin or Ursynów, even if that adds one transfer, because standing on a slow, stop‑heavy 148 with big bags gets old fast.
What regulars do:
- Use 148 for point‑to‑point hops between WAW and specific streets in Ursynów or Tarcho.
- Pair it with another bus or metro for short “last‑mile” links, keeping rides under 30 minutes.
- Buy a 75‑minute ZTM ticket (about $1–2) to cover airport plus onward transfers in one go.
Watch out for: if you’re on a clock, that 30–50 minute estimate can stretch with rush‑hour traffic and all the back‑street stops, so for a tight schedule pick the SKM train instead.
Simple rule: only take Bus 148 from Terminal A if your bed or office is in Ursynów or along its exact route; otherwise, spend the same $1–2 on the train or a more direct bus.