Written by Luanna Azulay
UMBC is located near airports, train stations, and bus stops, and the University offers a free shuttle service. The shuttle is particularly beneficial for students who need to get to their off-campus apartment, the mall, the bus or train station, or the airport. It runs every hour from 7 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and more varied times from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on the weekends. Service to the Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI) is not available on the weekends, but students can take a taxi during off hours, which costs approximately $20, or the 77 bus to the Patapsco Light Rail Station, then take the light rail to the BWI stop.
Getting to Baltimore City is easy, too, because public transportation is available most hours of the day and is very affordable. However, be careful when taking the bus from the city late at night—either bring a friend along or catch a cab if you’re alone. Taxis are not readily found around campus, so if you need one, you have to call the Baltimore County cab companies, which can be very unreliable at times. Getting to Washington, DC is also possible. UMBC students can take the free BWI shuttle that goes to the Amtrak train station on weekdays. From there, they can take the affordable MARC train to DC, which only costs $7. On the weekends, students can take public transportation or a cab to BWI, and then take the B30 bus to the Greenbelt Metro station, which is part of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMTA).