Travel information
The following links give some detailed information about how to
get to Bath and the second one in particular tells you how to get to Bath
from the London airports, from Bristol airport and from Central London:
The following comments expand on what can be found on the above
pages.
Planes, Trains (and Buses)
- If you are going to arrive into Heathrow airport late (after 9pm)
on Saturday 1st August (arrival day, week 1), transport to Bath may
be difficult. If this is the case, please let Gunnar Traustasson
(gt223
bath.ac.uk) know
your arrival time and mobile phone number so that we can investigate
possible transport arrangements.
- In any case, if you will arrive by plane and would consider
sharing transport with other registrants, please let Gunnar know
your arrival time and mobile phone number.
- Getting a Heathrow based taxi to Bath is not
advised, because it will cost a very large amount of money. Instead,
if you order a Bath taxi to pick you up, they should charge about
150 pounds. The biggest Bath firm is Abbey Taxis (+44 1225
444444). An efficient small company is First Partner Cars (+44
7767786491).
- Travel by train should be much cheaper for individual
travellers. It is also possible to travel by National Express
coaches to Bath (from airports or from London). These are
cheaper than trains, but are slower. You can purchase National
Express tickets at Bus Stations (e.g., Heathrow Bus Station).
- As long as you don't arrive at Heathrow too late in the evening,
the best way to get to Bath is by train. You can purchase rail tickets
which include a "rail air" bus trip to Reading Railway
Station, from which you catch a fast train to Bath (the train starts
at Paddington Station in London). Bath Railway station is
called Bath Spa. From Gatwick Airport you can
either travel by train to London Victoria railway station, and then
use the tube (the London Underground = metro) to Paddington, and
then a train to Bath Spa. Rail tickets are cheaper if you purchase
them in advance, and very cheap if you can specify exactly which
train on which you will travel (the so called "advance"
fares). See http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk
for timetables and purchasing rail tickets. You buy them with a
credit card and you get a magic number. When you arrive in England,
you put the same credit card and type the magic number into a train
ticket machine, and it should spit out your ticket. If you want to
look at the detailed timetable of the "rail air" bus
service from Heathrow to Reading,
see http://www.railair.com/.
- The University is situated some distance from Bath Spa railway
station and it is a long walk uphill. When you arrive the best
option to get to the campus is to either get a taxi or to use a
bus. The Orange 18 or 418 bus runs regularly to the university
(every 15-20 minutes or so). People arriving late in the evening
will need to rely on taxis. For the bus timetable on Saturdays
see:
... and Automobiles
- If you are driving to the conference, please contact Gunnar
(see above) to
request a parking permit now and we will include it in your welcome
pack.
Arrival
If you come by train, note that the railway station is
called `Bath Spa'. Adjacent to the railway station is the
bus station.
You have two choices as to how to get to the University
of Bath (NOT `Bath Spa University', that is a different institution).
- Expensive: Taxi from the railway station (perhaps 8 pounds).
- Cheap: Bus 18/418 from the Bus Station. The university is the
terminus of this bus. You can purchase return tickets if you
plan to come back on the same day.
When you arrive on campus, there is a large parade (walking area).
Look for building 1W (maths). There will be signs. Enter. After
5 metres there will be steps on your left. Go up one level.
Gents toilet in front of you. Turn left. The
office is 3.24. Turn left (or right), and the office will
be on your right (or left).
The conference office will be open from 9:30am to 10:00pm on Sat
1st August and on Sunday 9th August (the second `arrival day').
If you arrive outside of these hours, go to the library, and ask
for help from the Security Staff. They will be able to let
you in to your room.
Similar arrangements will pertain on the middle Sunday of
the conference. An announcement about that will follow.
You should also read the information in the
Accommodation and Food section about
food shop access on arrival day and the first day of lectures (Sun 2nd).
Maps
The following maps may be of use: