SCHEDULE CHANGES Monday, May 11th - Thursday, May 28th MARC Camden Line train no. 851 that normally stops in Riverdale at 9:04 a.m. will not operate Monday through Thursday due to CSX track work. 851 will operate on Fridays ONLY during this 3 week period. MARC Train 849 (7:20 AM from Camden), normally an express train that does not stop in Riverdale, will stop (approximately 8:10 a.m.)

from an MTA announcement of 5/7/09:

New MARC diesel to be named for Senator Mikulski

Governor O'Malley Announces New MARC Locomotives:

On Wednesday, May 6, Governor Martin O’Malley delivered on his commitment to improve service for MARC Train customers and unveiled one of 26 new MARC locomotives.

The new locomotives, to be gradually placed in service starting later this month, are more powerful, fuel efficient and environmentally-friendly than the units they will replace. At a cost of more than $100 million, the engines are a significant investment in more reliable service.

In recognition of her service to the citizens of Maryland and her support for public transportation, the first engine is named for Senator Barbara A. Mikulski.


MARC ridership hits all-time high in July: 33,000.




MARC performance has been lousy of late. Trains late, trains cancelled, MARC tracker not tracking certain trains, email alerts late and not comprehensive... MARC put out an official apology to its riders recently. The Baltimore Sun responded today (Sunday, July 27) in an editorial:

Fixing MARC Our view: There's no excuse for the commuter line's dismal service July 27, 2008 Maryland's rail commuters may appreciate a personal apology from the Maryland Transit Administration for delays and overcrowding on its MARC trains, but what they need is for the line to run on time and with enough cars that passengers don't feel packed in like cattle. MTA Administrator Paul J. Wiedefeld e-mailed commuters last week to express regret for recent service he called "far below what customers expect or deserve." He also outlined what went wrong - heat-stressed tracks and equipment, power outages and reliability problems with the fleet's locomotives. Still, he left commuters to wonder exactly what the MTA planned to do about it. To be fair, MARC's options are limited by the fact that it's not a completely independent actor. Though MARC owns its rolling stock, the trains are operated and maintained by Amtrak staff. Ditto for the tracks MARC trains use, which belong to Amtrak and CSX. When problems come up, MARC can only monitor the work it's hired Amtrak to perform. Is this any way to run a railroad? Apparently it's not that unusual. Amtrak has similar arrangements with commuter rail services around the country that are owned by regional transit authorities. This month, for example, the managing director of the commuter line in San Francisco wrote a similar apology to customers for many of the same shortcomings MARC riders are enduring. But with gas prices soaring and more people turning to mass transit as an alternative to driving, MARC trains are in demand. The MTA can't just throw its hands up and expect people to tough it out. Nor can Baltimore market itself to Washingtonians or to newcomers from soon-to-be-closed military bases in New Jersey and Virginia if it doesn't have reliable rail service. MARC says it's buying new locomotives this year that will cut delays and adding more cars to accommodate the increase in ridership. That's a start, and the sooner the better

As more news reports on increased mass transit ridership in Maryland, this from The Capital newspaper from Annapolis, I'm wondering where the outcry is for budget support for O'Malley's proposed improvements in MARC service. --Dwight

Ridership On MARC Lines Up 6% Reported by: Angelique Gonzalez Thursday, Jun 26, 2008 @08:02am EST BRUNSWICK, MD - Maryland's transit administration said ridership on MARC trains is up in our area. Officials said more than 32,000 people rode MARC trains last month. The MTA said that is a 6% increase over May 2007 and the fifth time since January that average daily ridership has exceeded 30,000. The Penn line was the most traveled, averaging more than 20,000 daily boardings. The Brunswick line also experienced an increase of about 8%. The Camden line recorded an 11% gain.

As the above article notes, ridership on all MARC lines, and especially our Camden Line that serves Riverdale, is up. No surprise. Another report from WBAL-TV in Baltimore reports that "Increased MARC Ridership Clogs Up Parking"! Although we have some new riders here at our station, we're a long way from clogging up the parking lot. Can anyone say $5 gas??

Residents Say Commuters Taking Their Spots

MARC Growth & Investment Plan - read about the plan as well as news articles and an editorial from the Sun and Post. MARC train schedule (Riverdale Park & College Park) MARC train schedule wallet version (Excel file) MARC train tracker site Did you know you can see exactly where your train is on MARCtracker.com? MTA/MARC website (for all route, schedule & fare information)

One of the many factors that weighed in on our decision to buy our home in Riverdale Park, was the convenience that the MARC service offered in terms of my getting to work, and leaving the car at home!

These stats about the DC Metro area come from the AAA and were published in today's Washington Post (9/4/07), Metro section, p. B2:

3.3 million vehicles in the area
Half of those -- 1.7 million -- are driven by people commuting to work alone every day!
900,000 people headed to school every day (schools and colleges)
700,000 people riding Metro (I believe that is "trips", not people)
446,000 people riding Metro's buses
70,000 people riding trains into Union Station (MARC, VRE, Amtrak)

Only 70,000?!? Wow. Obviously the MARC trains aren't convenient for everyone - but for a town like Riverdale Park, I have to think that the MARC is a very underutilized resource.

From our lovely MARC station in Town Center, it is a 10 minute ride to Union Station - for me it's then another 15 minutes by Metro to Farragut North. All told, half an hour or 35 minutes door to door, from my home on Riverdale Rd to my office in NW. I nominally pay $100 for a monthly MARC ticket and $2.70 per day (roundtrip, Union Station to Farragut North) on the Metro -- but due to Uncle Sam's penchant for providing perks to the middle class, I save a quarter of that by purchasing the tickets with pre-tax dollars through my employer. If I go to the office 20 days a month on average, that's effectively $3.60 per day for the MARC + $3.89 per day for Metro = $7.49 per day total -- and the car stays in the driveway. If I drove to work I'd pay more than that just for the parking downtown -- never mind the gas, wear and tear on the car, and increased insurance premium. And if I drove to the Metro, I'd save the $3.60 for the MARC everyday -- and use it to pay $3.50 for parking! (Plus it would cost me additional for the longer ride on Metro). [UPDATE: In 2008, Metro fares and especially Metro parking fees have gone up while MARC fares have remain unchanged: Advantage MARC! It definitely pays to walk or drive to the MARC station, use their free parking, and ride the train.]

I believe that in my one year of riding MARC to work, I was unable to get a seat just one time. And I can take my coffee on board and savor it all the way to Union Station if I want to (unlike Metro). And then there's the comraderie with all the other MARC regulars... All in all, I love my MARC!

All in all, by riding the MARC to work I find I'm saving time, I'm saving money, and I feel good knowing I'm helping the environment as well -- plus I actually enjoy and look forward to my commute, which was definitely not the case back when I used to drive to work every day.

--Dwight Holmes

MARC Growth & Investment Plan - read about the plan as well as news articles and an editorial from the Sun and Post.
--
originally posted in Riverdale Park Coffee House (blog only-BYOC)
http://rpcoffeehouse.blogspot.com/

MARC train schedule available here (for Riverdale Park & College Park)

MARC train schedule wallet version (Excel file)

MARC train tracker site Did you know you can see exactly where your train is on MARCtracker.com?

MTA/MARC website


Journalists writing about the MARC
Bar Car: Thousands of Baltimoreans Practically Live on the MARC Train—Some of Them Live It Up by Gadi Dechter,City Paper -- amusing article in which you learn the rail equivalent of the "mile-high club". Warning: This Is Not the Camden Line!