The symposium will be held at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, U.S.A.
Directions to the Buildings on Campus
The directions can be found here.
The conference sessions will be held in room PUP 105 in the Public Policy
Building (PUP), also known as Lecture Hall 9.
The Public Policy building is labeled by number 28 in the C-2 area of the campus map in PDF form at http://www.umbc.edu/AboutUMBC/campusmap/04-05map.pdf. This building is UMBC's newest academic building, located immediately next to the Physics and The Commons buildings. To access the Public Policy building, we suggest to use Commons Drive off of our campus loop (Hilltop Circle). To park, use The Commons Garage (the only multi-level parking structure on that road). If you arrive by taxi cab, have the driver drop you off at the traffic loop at the end of Commons Drive.
Let us describe how to get to get to Commons Drive under the assumption
that you are already on the access road to our campus loop from interstate
I-95, i.e., you know how to get to UMBC's campus in general; for directions
how to get there in more detail, please see the extensive driving directions
below.
As you approach the campus on UMBC Boulevard (from the left edge of the map at http://www.umbc.edu/AboutUMBC/campusmap/04-05map.pdf), you will see all campus buildings straight ahead. Make a right onto our loop road around the campus, called Hilltop Circle. Pass one road to your left (Administration Drive) and make a left at the next one, which is Commons Drive (due in the middle of the campus map). The parking structure will be on your left, and the traffic loop will be at the end. The Commons building is straight ahead, while the Public Policy building is to your right, behind the Physics building (number 26).
During the weekend, you can park at the parking meters of the visitor parking area on the ground floor of the parking structure without paying or in the student spaces of the upper levels of the structure. You can also park on any (legal) space on the side of Commons Drive (or other roads); notice that there is no legal parking in the traffic loop at the end of Commons Drive. Again, parking meters and restrictions to students are not enforced during the weekend; you do not have to feed the meters during the weekend.
Accommodation
We recommend the Holiday Inn BWI International Airport, 890 Elkridge Landing Rd., Linthicum, MD 21090. The hotel has a webpage at www.hi-bwi.com and its phone numbers are (410) 859-8400 or 1-800-810-0271. Ask for the UMBC rates. The rates are $137 for weekdays (Sunday to Thursday, July 22-24) and $89 for weekends (Friday and Saturday, July 25-26).
The hotel offers a courtesy shuttle to and from the Baltimore Washington International (BWI) airport terminal; call the hotel on a courtesy phone from the baggage claim area if necessary.
Arriving by Plane
There are three airports in the Baltimore-Washington area: the Baltimore Washington International (BWI) airport, the Washington Dulles International Airport, and the Ronald Reagon Washington National Airport.
If delegates come from the Washington Dulles airport or the Reagon National
airport, they can take a shuttle from The Airport Shuttle, Inc. (http://www.theairportshuttle.com/).
A discounted price has been negotiated with this company.
The discounted price is $5 off the internet price from the above website, i.e., $83 from and to the Washington Dulles airport for the first person and $15 for each additional person and $78 from the Reagon National airport for the first person and $15 for each additional person).
Arriving by Train
Amtrak serves two train stations in the Baltimore area; you want the
Baltimore BWI Airport Rail Station, which is South of the city of Baltimore
close to BWI Airport. (The other station is Baltimore Penn Station in
the center of the city of Baltimore, which is not close to UMBC.) To get
directly to campus from there, we suggest to use a taxi cab, which will
cost about $16 plus tip. To get closest to the conference venue and to
avoid possible confusion of the driver, we suggest to use the Directions
to the Buildings on Campus above. To get to the hotel from the train station,
use the free shuttle to the airport terminal and then the hotel's courtesy
shuttle from the baggage claim area; see the hotel information above.
Driving Directions
DRIVING DIRECTIONS TO THE UMBC MAIN CAMPUS: The UMBC main campus is located Southwest of the city of Baltimore, and, more precisely, in the Southwest corner of the intersection of the major North-South Interstate I-95 and the Baltimore beltway I-695 (i.e., their intersection South of the city of Baltimore, not their intersection North of the city). Therefore, you will find signs pointing to UMBC also on this beltway. But the entrance to campus and the conference venue is easier to navigate from I-95, therefore I suggest to proceed to I-95, wherever you are coming from.
If coming from the North of Baltimore along I-95: Use the Fort McHenry
Tunnel on I-95 to underpass the Baltmore harbor. Do not use I-895 Harbor
Tunnel Throughway, which will re-join I-95 too far South to reach UMBC!
If coming from the Northwest of Baltimore along I-83: Proceed to the Baltimore
beltway I-695, which you will join due North of the city of Baltimore.
To drive around the West side of the city of Baltimore on the beltway,
join I-695 West (direction Glen Burnie). As you eventually turn the corner
on the Southwest side of Baltimore, you will see signs for UMBC, but I
suggest to ignore them and proceed to I-95. Take I-95 South (direction
Washington, D.C.) and follow the directions to campus below.
If coming from the West of Baltimore along I-70: Proceed to the Baltimore
beltway I-695 and take it South (direction Glen Burnie). As you turn the
corner on the Southwest side of Baltimore, you will see signs for UMBC,
but I suggest to ignore them and proceed to I-95. Take I-95 South (direction
Washington, D.C.) and follow the directions to campus below.
FROM I-95 TO UMBC MAIN CAMPUS: To get to the UMBC main campus from Interstate
I-95, use Exit 47B for Maryland Route MD-166 to Catonsville and follow
the signs for UMBC. The Exits 47A for I-195 to BWI Airport and 47B for
MD-166 to Catonsville and UMBC have one joint exit ramp that splits up
after leaving I-95. A little more information on this issue:
Southbound directions: If you are on I-95 heading Southbound, keep right
on the exit ramp to join MD-166; stay in the accelaration lane without
merging, because it becomes the exit lane for UMBC, marked by a sign.
Northbound directions: If you are on I-95 heading Northbound, keep left
on the exit ramp; then merge onto MD-166 from the left, change to the
right lane immediately, and use the exit on the right for UMBC, as indicated
by a sign.
(The above is described separately and in detail, because there are also
signs pointing to "UMBC Technology Ctr" on MD-166; do not follow
those signs, because you want the main campus.)
As you now approach the campus, you will see all campus buildings straight
ahead. For detailed directions to the conference venues from here on,
please see the Directions to the Buildings on Campus above.
FROM I-95 TO THE HOTEL: The Holiday Inn BWI is reached via the airport access freeway I-195 from the same exit as UMBC itself. The directions above explain already how to get to this exit and the arrangement of the exit ramps. To get to I-195, simply follow the other part of the ramps at the split, where the signs will point to BWI Aiport.
After about 4 miles on I-195 East, take Exit 1A for MD-170 North to Linthicum. After 0.6 miles, make a left at Elm Road, then an immediate left onto Elkridge Landing Road. The hotel is on the left after 1.1 miles. Watch for the green Holiday Inn sign; the driveway entrance is before the sign.
FROM THE UMBC MAIN CAMPUS TO THE HOTEL: If you parked in The Commons Garage on Commons Drive, exit the structure to the right down Commons Drive. Make a right onto our campus loop, Hilltop Road. Then make a left onto UMBC Blvd., following signs pointing to I-95 and/or I-195.
After underpassing a freeway, merge onto the two main travel lanes of I-195 East and underpass I-95 (do not enter I-95; do not stay in the merge lane, which becomes the exit lane for I-95 South). After about 4 miles on I-195 East, take Exit 1A for MD-170 North to Linthicum. After 0.6 miles, make a left at Elm Road, then an immediate left onto Elkridge Landing Road. The hotel is on the left after 1.1 miles. Watch for the green Holiday Inn sign; the driveway entrance is before the sign.
FROM THE HOTEL TO THE UMBC MAIN CAMPUS: This is the reverse of the above direction: From the parking lot of the Holiday Inn, turn right and follow Elkridge Landing Road for 1.1 miles. Make a right at Elm Road. Make another immediate right onto MD-170 South; stay in the entrance lane without merging, because it becomes the exit lane for I-195 West. After about 4 miles on I-195 and underpassing I-95, take the exit for the UMBC main campus to the right.
PDF copies of the parking permit and the UMBC map are here.
The Baltimore region
The Baltimore region is rich with tourist attractions, including Baltimore's famous Inner Harbor, the birthplace of the city and location of many attractions including, for instance, the National Aquarium, the U.S.S. Constellation, and various other museums. The Inner Harbor can be reached without car by taking the hotel's courtesy shuttle to the airport terminal and the Light Rail from there; about $1.60 and 20 minutes later you arrive at the Convention Center stop. Walk 5 minutes to the right along Pratt Street past the Convention Center until you see water on your right.
