Online Mapping Services

When updating content, linking to maps and directions can be helpful to the user experience. Especially now that 60 percent of our users access our website using a mobile device. If you prefer to link a Baltimore County webpage to an online mapping service, you may use Google Maps or Baltimore County's GIS ESRI resources.

Any links to, or use of Google Maps must comply with Google's terms and conditions. You also must adhere to the following policies adopted by Baltimore County. As a reminder, when using Google Maps, you are linking to an alternate website not associated with Baltimore County and we have no control over the maps or their content.

LINKING TO MAPS AND DIRECTIONS

  • Maps and directions should be provided as standard links to external resources, such as Google Maps or Baltimore County's GIS ESRI resources.1
  • To reduce user frustration, convert embedded maps on pages into lists of addresses of locations that are linked to external mapping resources.2
  • Instead of providing a separate link to directions, make the address a clickable link.3

MULTIPLE RELATED ADDRESSES

  • When multiple addresses are provided in a list, consider linking to a single map containing the addresses.4

ACCESSIBILITY OF MAPS

  •  ESRI maps are only partially accessible to screen readers.5 Therefore, we should provide the data for each ESRI map we link to on our website.6
  • Google Maps is preferred because the service is almost fully accessible, especially for screen readers.7

CITATIONS

  1. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/store-finders-and-locators/
  2. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/mobile-maps-locations/
  3. https://ux.stackexchange.com/questions/80490/best-practices-for-a-map-on-a-contact-page
  4. https://www.techrepublic.com/article/link-the-business-address-on-your-website-to-a-google-map/
  5. https://www.esri.com/content/dam/esrisites/en-us/media/legal/vpats/arcgis-enterprise-1071-vpat.pdf
  6. http://web-accessibility.carnegiemuseums.org/content/maps/
  7. https://support.google.com/maps/answer/6396990