Visiting Sandia California

By Air

All three major airports in the San Francisco Bay Area provide access to Sandia/California. Oakland International Airport is theAll three major airports in the San Francisco Bay Area provide access to Sandia California. Oakland International Airport is the closest airport to Sandia, followed by San Jose International Airport and then San Francisco International Airport. Traffic on Interstate 580 — used when traveling to Sandia from either Oakland or San Francisco — can be quite heavy, so be sure to allow for extra time when driving during rush hour.

By car

For best results in your mapping app, enter “1 Thunderbird Lane, Livermore, CA” as the address for Sandia California.

Rental cars

Sandia’s contracted rental car provider is National / Enterprise. Currently, Sandia does not have on-site rental cars available at the Sandia Livermore site and there is no provision for drop-off of one way rental cars of any brand on the Sandia Livermore site. 

If you choose to travel by rental car from Oakland or other airports we recommend a round trip rental car reservation, returning the vehicle to the same place you picked it up. This avoids very high one-way trip charges. If you choose a one-way rental, National’s nearest drop-off point is at 2111 Research Drive, Livermore, CA 94550, 0.93 miles from the Lab. The nearest drop-off for Enterprise cars is 3569 1 ^st St. Livermore, CA 94551, 2.9 miles from the Lab. We recommend Uber, Lyft or taxi for the remaining distance to the Lab.

By public transportation

Public transportation to Sandia is available from the San Francisco and Oakland airports via the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) and Wheels bus system.

Several modes of public transportation are available to the Vasco Road entrance. However, if you do not already have an authorized Sandia issued badge, you will need to make arrangements for private transportation to the Visitor Badge Office located off of Greenville Road entrance, as the bus route does not currently have a stop here.

From the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station:

1. Take Wheels 20X (BART to Vasco Road) or Wheels 10R (Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, E. BART to the LLNL/Sandia Transit Hub at the corner of East Avenue and Vasco Road.
2. If you have an authorized badge, walk to the East Avenue Security Post, and show your badge to the protective force officer.
3. If you do not have an authorized badge, you will need to make arrangements for private transportation to the Visitor Badge Office located off of Greenville Road and East Avenue.

From the Vasco Road station of the Altamont Commuter Express:

1. Take Wheels 20X (BART to Vasco Road) to the LLNL/Sandia Transit Hub at the corner of East Avenue and Vasco Road.
2. If you have an authorized badge, walk to the East Avenue Security Post, and show your badge to the protective force officer. You can then proceed on foot to your destination. Sandia is on the right side of the street.
3. If you do not have an authorized badge, you will need to make arrangements for private transportation to the Visitor Badge Office located off of Greenville Road and East Avenue.

Access to Sandia’s California site is limited to those with authorized badges. If you do not have an authorized badge, be sure to make arrangements with your Sandia point of contact ahead of time so that you can pick up a visitor badge at Sandia’s Visitor Badge Office (Greenville and East Avenue) before entering the site.

Visitors to Sandia California should also note the following:

• Sandia California does not offer public tours and generally limits site visits to individuals with an explicit business purpose.
• U.S. citizens must make arrangements at least 3 days prior to visiting. Foreign nationals must make arrangements 4-6 weeks prior to visiting.
• To apply for a visitor badge, U.S. citizens must provide the following: social security number, birth date, citizenship, home address and phone number, and business address and phone number. Because of additional access requirements, foreign nationals should make arrangements as soon as possible.
• To receive a visitor badge, visitors must present a valid picture ID (driver’s license or passport) at Sandia’s Visitor Badge Office (Post 17).
• You must wear your badge at all times while on-site at Sandia. Badges should be worn above the waist (prominently displayed) on your outer clothing at all times while you are on Sandia premises. Your badge should not be worn off Sandia premises or used for personal identification.
• Visitor badges must be returned to Sandia at the end of your visit. You can give your badge to your host or bring it to a Sandia badge office. Visitors leaving after hours can drop their badge in the drop box outside the Sandia badge office or at the unmanned guard post as you exit toward Greenville Road.
• Visit the Sandia Security site for information on prohibit items.

Download the printable visitor emergency guide.

Contact information

In case of an emergency on-site, call the Central Alarm Station:

• Dial 911 from a Sandia desk phone
• Dial 925-294-2222 from a cellular phone

Government resources

• Information regarding Alameda County emergency alerts: https://www.acgov.org/ready/connect.htm
• Information regarding wildfires: https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents