History of MTA Maryland

The Maryland Transit Administration was originally known as the Baltimore Metropolitan Transit Authority, then the Maryland Mass Transit Administration before it changed to its current name in October 2001. The MTA took over the operations of the old Baltimore Transit Company on April 30, 1970.

A former no. 8 streetcar, the predecessor to bus Route 8, at the Baltimore Streetcar Museum. This vehicle is now used to give rides to visitors.

An 1896 open car in operation at the Baltimore Streetcar Museum

Many routes of the agency's current bus lines are based on the original streetcars operated by the Baltimore Transit Company and its parent companies between the 1890s and 1960s. All of these routes were ultimately converted to rubber tire bus operations, and many were consolidated, extended into newly developed areas, or otherwise reconfigured to keep up with the ridership demands of the times. Additional routes and extensions were added in later years to serve newly developed communities and to feed into Metro and Light Rail stations.

With the growth in popularity of the private automobile during the 20th century, streetcar and bus ridership declined, and the needs for public transportation changed. Mass transit in Baltimore and other cities shifted from a corporate operation to a tax-subsidized, state-run service. The amount of service provided was greatly reduced. Some areas once served by streetcars are now served minimally by buses or not at all.

The demise of the Baltimore streetcar took place between the years of 1947 and 1963, as operators found buses to be low maintenance and more cost-efficient. With its rails demolished, Baltimore was no longer a streetcar city. As transit needs and trends changed, rail transit did return to the city, with the Metro Subway opening in 1983 and the Light Rail in 1992.

The track gauge was 5 ft 4 ¹⁄₂ in (1,638 mm). This track gauge is now confined to the Baltimore Streetcar Museum.

Parent companies

The following bus companies operated many of the services later provided by the Maryland Transit Administration:

Baltimore Transit Company

The Baltimore Transit Company (BTCO) was a privately owned public transit operator that provided streetcar and bus service in Baltimore from 1935. The company was purchased in 1948 by National City Lines and the streetcar system was then run down in favour of buses, a process repeated in many places, which became known as the Great American Streetcar Scandal. The last streetcar ran in 1963. BTCO was absorbed by what is now the Maryland Transit Administration in 1970. The BTC oversaw the elimination of streetcar service in favor of bus service in 1963 when the last streetcar routes, the number 8 providing service from Catonsville to Towson and the number 15 (Overlea to Walbrook Junction) were eliminated.

In the midst of the Civil Rights Movement, the BTCO fired a white bus driver who claimed to be the Grand Wizard of the Baltimore Ku Klux Klan. A labor arbitrator ruled in favor of BTCO in this firing, which was in part spurred by other white drivers threatening to strike if the man was not dismissed.

Old Court Bus Lines

Old Court Bus Lines was a service that provided van transport in northwest Baltimore County. Its lines served places including Stevenson and Villa Julie College. These services have been provided by MTA since 1973, though much of them have been cut back or modified. Bus Route 60 serves Stevenson University, which used to be known as Villa Julie.

Rosedale Passenger Lines

Operated service in eastern Baltimore County. Most of its services later became a part of Bus Route 23. The only one still provided by MTA is service to Victory Villa, on Route 4.

Dundalk Bus Lines

Dundalk Bus Lines provided service in various parts of southeast Baltimore County between 1940 and 1972. MTA serves some of these areas with Bus Route 4.

McMahon Services

Operated in northeast Baltimore County. The only route incorporated by MTA was Route 19A, which later became known as Route 105. Discontinued in 2005.

Job Express Transit

Operated several routes during the 1960s. Most notably, Route H became known as the #7 Rosewood Express serving Rosewood Center for more than 30 years. The #7 Rosewood Express service ultimately became Route 102 in 2000, and was absorbed by Route M-17 in 2005. Route M-17, along with this service, was eliminated in 2009.

Auxiliary Bus Lines

Operated some of the routes around the city, such as what is now Route 51.

Former bus routes

Route	Major Streets	Places Served	Years of operation	Replaced by	Notes
2 Fox Ridge to Overlea	Rossville Boulevard Kenwood Avenue	Golden Ring Mall Franklin Square Hospital Essex Community College Rosedale	1972–1977	Route 55
2 Catonsville to City Hall	Rolling Road Frederick Road Pratt Street Lombard Street	Yale Heights B&O Railroad Museum	1982–2005	Route 10	Combined with Route 10 as part of GBBI to provide single-seat crosstown service
6 Wagner's Point to Roland Park East Monument	Hanover Street St. Paul Street Roland Avenue Monument Street	Curtis Bay Federal Hill Charles Village Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins Hospital	1948–1977	Routes 61, 62, 63 (now Route 64), and 64	Was split into four routes. Service today is provided in the Roland Park area by Route 61 (peak hours only), in East Baltimore on Route 35, and south of downtown on Route 64.
6 Eastpoint to Ft. Howard	North Point Road	North Point Edgemere	1997–1998	not replaced	Previously, Ft. Howard had been served by other routes including the #26 Streetcar, Bus Route 9, and the current Bus Route 4. Route 4 service was eliminated in 1993 and replaced by a private contractor. Route 6 restored MTA service there in 1997, but was eliminated a year later.
6 Edmondson Village to Cedonia	Baltimore Street Federal Street Sinclair Lane Cedonia Avenue	Downtown Baltimore Johns Hopkins Hospital	2008-2010	Routes 30, 46	West side service replaced with a new Route 30, which also serves part of the route of current Route 10. Eastside service replaced with Route 46 Quickbus.
9 Catonsville to Ellicott City	Frederick Road	Oella	1955–1957	not replaced at time	Route 150 provides service between Baltimore and Ellicott City during peak hours
9 Sparrows Point to Ft. Howard	North Point Road	Edgemere	1971–1973	Routes 4, 10 (service not provided now)
12 Westview/ Essex to Downtown	U.S. Route 40 Interstate 95	Catonsville Essex	1972–1991	Routes 150, 160	Route 12 was the designation for express routes from both the western and eastern suburbs. The route was redesignated in 1991.
12 North Linthicum Light Rail Stop to Parkway Center	Nursery Road Hammonds Ferry Road Camp Meade Road Aviation Boulevard Dorsey Road	Linthicum BWI Airport BWI Amtrak	1993–1996	Route 17	Route 12 was formed in 1993 as a replacement for Route 230, which was eliminated in conjunction with the opening of the south end of the Light Rail. It also served a part of Route 17, which had been rerouted at the time. In 1996, Routes 12 and 17 were combined, with portions of both routes eliminated and not replaced.
15A Kingsville, Perry Hall or White Marsh to Downtown Baltimore	Overlea	Belair Road	1973–1991	Route 43 (now Route 15)	Was redesignated as Route 43 in 1991. Route 43 Kingsville service was merged into Route 15 in 1992. Route 43 White Marsh service was merged into Route 66 at the same time, but Route 66 was eliminated in 1993, and White Marsh service became a part of Route 15. Service between Overlea and White Marsh Mall/White Marsh Town Center is now provided by Route 58.
16 Odenton/Ft. Meade/BWI Airport to Downtown	Aviation Boulevard Dorsey Road	BWI Airport BWI Amtrak		Route 230 (now Route 17 and other agencies)
16 North Linthicum Light Rail Stop to Ft. Meade	Baltimore-Washington Parkway	express service	1993–1995	Private carrier (now other agencies)	Connect-a-ride Route K provides service to Ft. Meade from Arundel Mills
18 Hereford/Warren Road Timonium Park-and-Ride to Downtown	York Road Interstate 83	Cockeysville Timonium	1973–1992	Light Rail	Express trips were discontinued in 1992 along with the opening of the Light Rail. The Route 18 designation was used as a Timonium-Hunt Valley shuttle starting on that day, but it was later discontinued.
18 Timonium Light Rail Stop to Hunt Valley Mall	York Road	Cockeysville	1992-1993	Route 9	Route nearly duplicated Route 9
18 Cromwell Light Rail Stop to Old Mill	Oakwood Road Elvaton Road Old Mill Road	Glen Burnie	1993–1996	not replaced	In 1995, service after 7 pm was discontinued. In 1996, line was completely discontinued due to low ridership.
24 Pimlico Park and Ride			1974–1984	Metro Subway
24 Brooklyn to Curtis Bay		Patapsco Avenue	1986–1987	Route 22 (now Route 16)
26 Sparrows Point to Highlandtown	Eastern Avenue Dundalk Avenue	1958–1959	Route 10 (no Sparrows Point service)	This route has recently been resurrected to serve between Downtown Baltimore and Dundalk Marine Terminal, including the new Amazon Distribution Facility on Holabird Avenue.
26 Providence Road Park-and-Ride to Downtown Baltimore	express service	Towson	1976–1993	Shuttle to Light Rail	Was an express service that operated through Towson, then downtown via I=-83. In 1992, along with the Light Rail opening, the number of trips were cut in half. In 1993, all express service was discontinued. A shuttle was formed in response to protests to total elimination.
26 Providence Road Park-and-Ride to Lutherville Light Rail Stop	Fairmount Avenue Seminary Avenue Ridgely Road	Towson Town Center Hampton	1993–1995	not replaced
27 Washington Boulevard line	Washington Boulevard	Pigtown	1957–1959	Route 11	Merged into Route 11. Service is provided by Route 36.
28 Randallstown to Cherry Hill/Baltimore Highlands	Liberty Road/Liberty Heights Avenue Eutaw Street/Place	Mondawmin Reservoir Hill Bolton Hill	1947–2001	Routes 5 27 29 91 M-1 M-6	In 1984, service west of Mondawmin was replaced with "M-lines" during Metro's hours. In 1993, service south of the Cherry Hill Light Rail Stop was replaced with Routes 29 and 30 (which has since been replaced by Route 51). In 1996, all Monday-Saturday service was discontinued. Route 5 was modified to replace service in Reservoir Hill, Route 27 was extended to Cherry Hill, and service elsewhere on the route was provided already by other existing lines. In 2001, the remaining service on Sunday was discontinued when M-lines started to operate on Sundays.
29 Roland Park to Downtown Baltimore	Roland Avenue University Parkway St. Paul Street	Charles Village Johns Hopkins University	1947–1959	Route 6 (now 61)
29 Timonium Park-and-Ride to Downtown Baltimore	I-83	express service	1983–1988	Route 18 (now Light Rail)
30 Clement and Charles to Charles St. & North Avenue	Fremont Avenue	Bolton Hill Ridgely's Delight	1950–1993	not replaced	In 1992, service on this route was cut in half. When discontinued in 1993, no replacement service on route was provided, but other buses operate near entire route.
30 Cherry Hill Light Rail Stop to Patapsco Light Rail Stop	Hollins Ferry Road	Mt. Winans Baltimore Highlands	1993–2001	Route 51	Merged into Route 51
Route 30	City Hall (EB) Bayview Medical Center (EB) Edmondson Village (WB)	Bush Street (1) Eastern (2)	Old Frederick Road Fayette/Baltimore Streets Pratt/Lombard Streets Eastern Avenue	Edmondson Village Bon Secours Hospital Baltimore Arena Inner Harbor National Aquarium Little Italy Fells Point Patterson Park Highlandtown		Baltimore/Fayette Streets-Eastern Avenue Line
31 Halethorpe to Penn Station	Wilkens Avenue	UMBC St. Agnes Hospital	1987–2005	Routes 35 and 77	Service between UMBC and downtown merged into Route 35 in 2005 as part of GBBI. Service between UMBC and Halethorpe replaced by Route 77.
32 Randallstown to Downtown Baltimore	Milford Mill Howard Park	Liberty Heights Avenue	1955–1959	Route 28	Routes 52 and 54 provide service on Liberty Road/Heights Avenue
32 Hillen Road Park-and-Ride to Downtown Baltimore	Waverly Charles Village	Perring Parkway Hillen Road 33rd Street St. Paul Street Calvert Street	1979–1982	not replaced; Route 3 operates nearby
33		Milton Street	1950–1954	Route 13
34 North & Washington to Canton/Highlandtown	Fells Point	Wolfe Street Eastern Avenue	1950–1975	Routes 10 and 13
35 Lorraine to Walbrook Junction	Windsor Hills	Forest Park Avenue	1954–1966	Route 15
35 UMBC to Catonsville Community College		Wilkens Avenue Rolling Road	1966	College operated shuttles	Route 77 provides service between UMBC and CCBC Catonsville
35 Garrison Boulevard to Morgan State University	Arington Roland Park Homeland	Coldspring Lane	1968–1969	Route 33
37 Randallstown to Cherry Hill	Milford Mill Lochearn Howard Park Mondawmin Reservoir Hill Bolton Hill Westport	Liberty Heights Avenue Eutaw Street Russell Street	1947–1974	Route 28 (now Routes 54, 52, 5, 91, and 27)	No. 37 designation was specifically reserved for trips on the route of bus no. 28 going to Cherry Hill
38 Sparrows Point to Ft. Howard			1951–1952	Dundalk Bus Lines	(service not provided now)
40 Pikesville to Glyndon	Owings Mills Reisterstown	Reisterstown Road	1948–1951	Route M	Routes 56 and 59 operate along this route
43 Kingsville/White Marsh to Downtown Baltimore	Overlea	Belair Road	1990–1992	Route 15
44X Springlake Way & Bellona Avenue to Overlea	Hamilton	Northern Parkway	1970–1990	Route 66	Route 58 now serves this area, and Route 55 covers the portion of this line between McLean Boulevard and Overlea.
45 Baynesille to Waverly		Loch Raven Boulevard	1949–1956	Route 3
46 Clipper Mill to Hampden		Union Avenue	1949–1970	Route 22 (now Route 98)
47 Cheswolde to Downtown		Cross Country Boulevard	1950–1989	not replaced	Riders directed to take bus to Metro. Route 58 serves area and connects to Metro and Light Rail.
52 Lansdowne to Morrell Park		Washington Boulevard Hammonds Ferry Road	1948–1957	Route 27	Now served by Route 36
53 Parkville to Carney		Harford Road	1948–1956	Route 19
54 Randallstown to Gwynn Oak Junction	Milford Mill Lochearn Sudbrook Park	Liberty Road Milford Mill Road	1948–1955	Route 32	Served by routes 52 and new Route 54 (unrelated)
55		North Point Road	1948–1952	Dundalk Bus Lines (now Route 4)
56 Murray Hill to Bedford Square	Homeland Roland Park	Charles Street	1948–1953	Route 11
57 Old York Rd. & 33rd St. to Harford Rd.	Waverly	Gorsuch Avenue	1947–1975	not replaced (close to Route 22 and other routes)
58 Brighton to Greenspring Manor	Fallstaff	Cross Country Boulevard	1948–1975	Route 44 (now new Route 58)
58 Reisterstown Road Plaza to Mt. Washington	Pikesville	Smith Avenue	1976–1978	not immediately replaced (served now by current Route 58 and Route 60)
58A Reisterstown Road Plaza to Greenwood	Pikesville Villa Julie College	Stevenson Road Greenspring Valley Road	1973–1975	Route 5 (later Metro connection routes; service to Stevenson University (formerly Villa Julie) is now provided by Route 60; service on Stevenson Road is not provided.)
59 Ponca & Holabird to Colgate Warehouses			1948–1953	not replaced
61 Pier 6 Parking Lot to Preston Street Parking Lot	Downtown Baltimore	Howard Street Saratoga Street	1946–1949	not replaced
62 Hollander Ridge to Inner Harbor	Armistead Gardens Johns Hopkins Hospital	Pulaski Highway Madison/Monument	1977–2000	Route 35
63 Curtis Bay to Davison Chemical		Pennington Avenue	1948–1951	Route 6 (now Route 64; no service to Davison Chemical since 1993)
63 Riviera Beach to Downtown (1977–1993) Patapsco Light Rail Stop (1993–1996)		Ft. Smallwood Road Pennington Avenue	1977–1996	Route 64
65 Patapsco Light Rail Stop to Wagner's Point		Patapsco Avenue Frankfurst Avenue	2003–2005	not replaced
66 Bellona and Springlake to Overlea	Hamilton	Northern Parkway	1991–1993	Routes 36, 55 and current Route 58
67 Howardsville Station to Pleasant Street	Sudbrook Park Pikesville	Reisterstown Road	1956–1968	not replaced (Metro Subway serves route)
68 Walbrook Junction to Windsor Hills	Forest Park Dickeyville Historic District	Forest Park Avenue	2003–2007	Route 15	Provided local service to Windsor Hills while Forest Park Avenue bridge over Gwynns Falls was being replaced
70 Fallsway Park-and-Ride shuttle	Downtown Baltimore		1990–1992	not replaced
71 Charles Center Metro Subway Station to Johns Hopkins Metro Subway Station			1988–1995	Metro Subway extended to Hopkins in 1995
73 Penn Station to Downtown Baltimore	MARC shuttle		1991	not replaced
76 Towson shuttle			1985–1990	not replaced
86 various locations to Social Security	various routes		1960–2005	not replaced; riders directed to use other lines
87 North & Milton to Social Security	West Baltimore	North Avenue Edmondson Avenue	1985–1990	not replaced; riders directed to use other lines
102 Rosewood Center to Fremont Avenue	Rosewood Lane Reisterstown Road Park Heights Avenue Pennsylvania Avenue Fremont Avenue	Owings Mills Pikesville Park Heights	2001–2005	Route M-17 (now completely defunct)
M-1 Mondawmin Metro Subway Station to Milford Mill	Baltimore City Community College Howard Park Gwynn Oak Lochearn	Liberty Heights Avenue/Liberty Road	1984–2009	Redesignated Route 52; no routing changes made
M-2 Mondawmin Metro Subway Station to Old Court Metro Subway Station	Park Heights Reisterstown Road Plaza Pikesville	Reisterstown Road Old Court Road	1984–2009	Redesignated Route 53; no routing changes made
M-3 Penn-North Metro Subway Station to Milford Mill Metro Subway Station	Park Heights Pimlico Race Course Druid Hill Park Mondawmin	Park Heights Avenue Slade Avenue	1984–2009	Route 54	Originally started at Mondawmin Station
M-5 Rogers Avenue Metro Subway Station to Towson	Cheswolde Mt. Washington Ruxton	Glen Avenue Greenspring Avenue Smith Avenue Falls Road Ruxton Road Bellona Avenue Joppa Road	1987–1992	Route M-10 (now provided by Route 58 between Reisterstown Plaza Station and Mt. Washington)
M-6 Rogers Avenue Metro Subway Station to Security Square Mall	Howard Park Woodlawn Social Security Administration	Gwynn Oak Avenue Woodlawn Drive	1987–2009	Redesignated Route 57; no routing changes made
M-8 Rogers Avenue Metro Subway Station to Randallstown	Milford Mill Northwest Hospital	Milford Mill Road Liberty Road	1987–2009	Route 54
M-9 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Glyndon	Pikesville Garrison Owings Mills	Reisterstown Road Painters Mill Road	1987–2008	Routes 56 and 59
M-10 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Villa Julie College	Cheswolde Fallstaff Ranchleigh Mt. Washington Greenspring Station	Clarks Lane Glen Avenue Greenspring Avenue Smith Avenue Falls Road	1987–2008	Routes 58 and 60
M-12 Milford Mill Metro Subway Station to Greenwood/Caves Road	Stevenson Villa Julie College	Stevenson Road Greenspring Valley Road Park Heights Avenue	1987–2005	Service to Villa Julie replaced by Route M-10 (now Route 60). Service to other parts of line not replaced.
M-13 Milford Mill Metro Subway Station to Milford Mill/Bellemore Farms		Milford Mill Road Scotts Level Road	1987–1988	Route M-1
M-15 Randallstown to Pikesville/Owings Mills		Liberty Road Old Court Road Reisterstown Road	1987–1992	Route M-9, other existing routes
M-16 Owings Mills Metro Subway Station to Reisterstown		Reisterstown Road	1987–1997	Route M-9 (now Route 56)
M-17 Owings Mills Metro Subway Station to Owings Mills Town Center			1987–1992	Routes M-9 and M-16 (now Routes 56 and 59)
M-17 Owings Mills Metro Subway Station to Business Center at Owings Mills	Rosewood Center	Red Run Boulevard	1997–2009	59 replaced service on Red Run; no replacement for Rosewood service
P-1 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Reisterstown	Pikesville Owings Mills	Reisterstown Road	1984–1987	Routes M-9 and M-16 (now Routes 56 and 59)
P-2 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Caves Road	Stevenson	Stevenson Road Park Heights Avenue	1984–1987	Route M-12 (service not provided on this route)
P-3 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Greenwood	Stevenson Villa Julie College	Stevenson Road Greenspring Valley Road	1984–1987	Route M-12 (service to Villa Julie provided by Route 60). Service to other parts of line not provided now.)
P-4 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Owings Mills Mall	Pikesville	Reisterstown Road Painters Mill Road	1984–1987	Route M-9 (now Route 59)
P-5 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Halcyon Gate		Stevenson Road	1984–1987	Route M-12 (service not provided on this route)
P-6 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Bellemore Farms	Sudbrook Park	Milford Mill Road Scotts Level Road	1984–1987	Route M-13
P-7 Reisterstown Plaza Metro Subway Station to Ranchleigh	Fallstaff	Clarks Lane	1984–1987	Route M-10 (now Route 60)
R-2 Rogers Avenue Metro Subway Station to Mt. Washington	Cheswolde	Glen Avenue Greenspring Avenue Smith Avenue	1984–1987	Route M-5 (now Route 58)
R-3 Rogers Avenue Metro Subway Station to Social Security	Howard Park Gwynn Oak Woodlawn	Gwynn Oak Avenue	1984–1987	Route M-6
R-4 Rogers Avenue Metro Subway Station to Randallstown	Milford Mill Northwest Hospital	Liberty Road	1984–1987	Route M-8 (now Route 54)
A Charles Village to Downtown	Johns Hopkins University Penn Station	Charles Street	1915–1947	Route 11
B		Mt. Royal Avenue	1922–1947	Routes 28 and 37 (no buses operate on Mt. Royal Avenue; Route 91 operates closest of all parallel routes)
C	Waverly	The Alameda	1924–1943	not replaced (other buses operate nearby)
D	Rosemont	Bentalou Street	1923–1948	Route 51
E Randallstown to Gwynn Oak Avenue	Lochearn Howard Park	Liberty Road	1931–1948	Route 54
F	Patterson Park	Chester Street	1924–1950	Route 33 (now Route 13)
G	Butcher's Hill	Fayette Street	1925–1949	Route 17 (now provided by several routes, not including current Route 17)
H	North Point	North Point Road	1925–1948	Route 55 (now provided by Route 4)
I	Arlington Rosemont	Monroe Street Dolfield Road	1925–1948	Route 51
J Morrell Park to Lansdowne		Washington Boulevard	1927–1948	Route 52 (now provided by Route 36)
K	Mt. Winans	Hollins Ferry Road	1927–1947	Route 28 (now Route 51)
L		Reisterstown Road	1929–1948	Route 7 (now Route M-2)
M Pikesville to Glyndon	Owings Mills Reisterstown	Reisterstown Road	1932–1948	Route 5/7 (now Routes 56 and Route 59)
N		West Baltimore Street	1932–1948	Route 20
O		Charles Street	1931–1947	Route 11
P		Eastern Boulevard	1933–1950	Route 23
Q Halethorpe to Downtown		Wilkens Avenue	1935–1948	Route 12 (now Route 35)
R Parkville to Carney		Harford Road	1936–1948	Route 53 (now Route 19)
S Liberty Heights to Bank&Grundy	Druid Park Drive Erdman Avenue Edison Highway	Woodberry Waverly	1937–1947	Route 22
T Waverly to Northwood		Loch Raven Boulevard	1940–1947	Route 3
U Mannasota to Mayfield		Shuttle service	1940–1948	Route 50
V	Armistead Gardens		1941–1948	Route 6 (now Route 33)
W			1942–1945	Route J
X Curtis Bay to Davison Chemical		Hawkins Point Road	1946–1950	Route 63 (now Route 64)