Baltimore Skyline

In the long term planning, the MTA wants to extend the Light Rail (dubbed the Yellow Line) passed BWI all the way to Columbia, connecting the BWI Rail Station and Dorsey MARC station along the way. I honestly do not think extending the route to Columbia is the best choice. Instead how about extending just to Dorsey. The spur from BWI Business District to the international terminal should be abandoned and This ROW used for a people mover that would connect the parking garages, long term parking, and the terminal with the light rail station.  Adding infill stations along the route the current route would allow for better access to more communities. The station platforms at Texas are already there; a new park-and-ride station can be added here pretty easily. Walk-up stations should be considered at Ruxton along Bellona Avenue and Remington/Hampden at Wyman Park Drive  to access neighborhoods that are currently bypassed. This last station could provide better access to Druid ...

2002 Baltimore Rail Plan The 2002 Baltimore Rail Plan, besides planning for brand new routes, also envisioned expansion and reimagining of current routes. One of which was the Camden Line. The 2002 plan proposed expanding service to include local, more frequent service between Dorsey and Camden Station, in addition to the current commuter service to Union Station. While the plan did not go into very much detail it did include infill stations, and presumably "light rail" style frequencies. As things go, this never made it past the drawing board as the Red Line got the priority and maybe the Green Line extension next. This doesn't mean we shouldn't think about how to better use the Camden Line. In fact, with the infrastructure already there it really is a good option to provide better transit service to Baltimore. So let's say there is both funding and the full cooperation of CSX, with that in mind let me propose that we do exactly what the 2002 plan recommen...

(photo credit, The Baltimore Sun ) The first of 26 new MARC MPXpress diesel locomotives (officially an MP36PH-3C) made its debut at a press conference today at Camden Station. They are supposed to go online in the next couple of weeks on the Penn Line with the last of the 26 arriving by 2010. These will start replacing some of the oldest locomotives in the MARC fleet, which as of late have been plagued with breakdowns and other maintenance problems. The new guys are sleek, smooth, more powerful, and more reliable. However, at least one of the old brutes will be donated to the B&O Railroad Museum, so posterity can still see them.

(flickr photo by J.H. Gray ) Fresh off of its victory over SUV earlier this month, Bus took on Train yesterday near the Riverdale Station on the Camden Line. In a competition that some critics have called "unfair" and "cheap", two Metro buses went up against Train. Bus had been cocky since its easy defeat of SUV, but Train had the confidence that it was the superior champion. In its previous bouts Train has easily defeated penny, brick, car, and SUV. Possibly even the occasional damsel-in-distress tied to the tracks by a sinister villain, if not the hero saved her in the nick of time, but I digress. When Train met Bus at Riverdale Station yesterday, Bus decided to leave its rear end on the tracks as bait. Train, not fooled, easily knocked Bus off the tracks and into its Bus accomplice. Dazed, Train came out victorious. Both Buses were towed away in defeat. Edge: Train, even 2 on 1.

( flickr photo by blast-o- rama ) Note from MTA Maryland: Attention MARC Riders: Construction has begun on the replacement of the southbound platform of the Laurel MARC station. The work will be done in stages, so portions of the platform will need to be shut down throughout the duration of the project. Effective immediately, the boarding area will be limited to the platform area adjacent to the station building while work progresses on the other end of the platform. Construction of the entire project is expected to be completed by this Fall. I haven't seen the Laurel stop in a long time, but I've seen pictures, and I'm glad this is the first station that will be getting an upgrade. It currently has a wooden deck which will replaced with a concrete deck. Improved lighting and a new shelter will be added as well. In other transit stimulus news, the parking expansion at the West Baltimore stop on the Penn Line is also underway. This is the first phase in what will eventua...

Unfortunate news coming out of MTA for Maryland Commuters, because of the budget cuts and souring economy, MTA is going to be making some cuts of their own starting in January. The MTA plan to cut 6 Commuter Bus routes and a few trains on the MARC Penn and Brunswick lines are coming at a time where mass transit is seeing one of the largest spikes in its usage. Last January the MTA announced that they would add four later MARC trips, to take advantage of later riders. Now, a year later, two of them, the 447 to DC and the 448 to Baltimore, are planning on being cut. In August, Gov. O'Malley announced that he wanted to expand the Commuter Bus service to encourage more rides because of high gas prices, now it seems that this will be taking a step back. The MTA had already planned to initiate weekend service on the MARC Penn Line, but this, too, seems like more of a dream than a reality at this time. It's really disappointing that service is being cut when gas prices are still high,...