While many people’s first idea for intercity transportation might might be the plane or train, the bus also serves as an important connection. But in Maryland, the level of service is not ideal, with one or two trips a day or peak-only service designed to ferry people to DC or Baltimore.

Many states, like Colorado, Washington, Ohio, Oregon, and Virginia, provide intercity bus networks to connect communities across long distances. What could such a system look like in Maryland? Introducing: “MARC Bus,” my proposal for a statewide intercity bus service.

Currently, some of the places where MARC Bus would stop do see some form of passenger transportation service. Many of the stops in the counties surrounding DC are serviced by MTA Maryland’s Commuter Bus, while other stops see service from rail carriers such as Amtrak or MARC or intercity bus providers, like Greyhound or Peter Pan. Further-out communities, such as Salisbury or Cumberland, see service from more locally based providers such as BayRunner. However, the service provided can be limited, usually by frequency, span of service, cost, or some combination of the three.

Introducing the network

The initial impetus for this idea came in the wake of MTA Maryland looking at drastic cuts for their commuter bus service. Their network is fairly expansive, reaching all the way to places such as Hagerstown, Charlotte Hall, and Havre de Grace, but suffers from being optimized for peak commutes; almost all service is focused on getting people to DC or Baltimore in the morning and the reverse in the evening. Only one route, the 201, is designed for regional connectivity, and is the only route with off-peak and weekend service.

Because of the source of inspiration, I borrowed the Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC) acronym from the state’s commuter rail system since this proposed new intercity network serves a similar purpose. Routes are split into five categories, based on a combination of where the route goes and the primary destinations it serves:

• Central Maryland (CM): These routes would have a lot of their service in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, and Howard counties. The main service trunk, the BWI to Baltimore corridor, is located here, with service provided by the CM1/2/3. Additionally, Annapolis and Columbia serve as secondary hubs, with transfers to other CM routes and ES routes.
• Eastern Shore (ES): Along with some CM routes, these routes would cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, providing service to Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Somerset, Talbot, Wicomico, and Worcester counties. Service is also provided to Chincoteague, Virginia.
• Northeast (NE): While only one route specifically has an NE designation, the NE & CM2 combine to provide service to Baltimore, Harford, and Cecil Counties, with NE also making connections with SEPTA in Newark, Del. and Wilmington, Del.
• Southern Maryland (SM): These routes would connect Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s Counties with DC and Baltimore, with a timed transfer in Upper Marlboro to allow riders from further out to reach BWI and Baltimore.
• Western Maryland (WM): These routes would connect Frederick, Washington, Allegany, and Garrett Counties with the rest of Maryland, with transfers in Hagerstown and Frederick for service to West Virginia and other MARC Bus routes with more local stops.

How would it function?

MARC Bus is meant to function as an interregional/intercity express coach bus service. While larger coach bus networks might only provide one or two trips a day, especially to and from locations that don’t generate high numbers of passengers, this network focuses more on availability and reliability, offering a minimum of five to seven trips per day, and often more depending on your origin and destination. Additionally, this service doesn’t supplant, only supplement, existing modes of transportation (e.g. if you still take the MARC train from Frederick in the mornings, that wouldn’t disappear).

Routes were chosen based on a variety of factors, aiming to mitigate existing trips that were infrequent, peak-dependent and/or expensive (BWI to Salisbury on the BayRunner is $89 when booked one week out). Proposed routes also fill in gaps in the system where transit doesn’t exist; for example, many of the stops along the CM3 (BWI-Martinsburg).

Because of the extensive commuter bus system, a lot of the stops are based on locations where infrastructure already exists. For example, the stops at Annapolis, Burtonsville, and Waldorf are already Park-and-Rides served by MTA Maryland buses. Additionally, many stops are made where connections to Metro or MARC can be made, such as Rockville, Laurel, Suitland, Frederick, and more.

One key feature of the system is a timed transfer between routes at multiple stops. A timed transfer is an operation where transit vehicles from different routes arrive at a set location at the same time and/or hold for other routes in order to facilitate transfers with minimal-to-no wait time. This eases the time penalty for what might otherwise be longer or impossible journeys, such as Charlotte Hall to Frederick. This setup is proposed at Havre de Grace, Frederick, Upper Marlboro, Annapolis, and DC. In some places with a large number of frequent routes, like between BWI and Baltimore, this system wouldn’t be necessary. The average passenger will more than likely have an average wait of 30 minutes or less, especially if traveling to a destination served by multiple routes, such as Annapolis or Frederick.

MARC Bus doesn’t focus on peak travel; instead, trips are spread throughout the day and run in both directions to maximize connectivity, especially since all routes tend to serve at least two main hubs. While service is still provided during peak times, especially on some of the more frequent routes such as the CM2 (Washington-Perryville) or NE (Baltimore-Wilmington), the aim is to provide a consistent opportunity to utilize the service, since everyone is not a 9-to-5 office worker and the reasons for travel are plenty.

This is a fantasy, but could it become real?

Obviously, a system like this couldn’t be stood up overnight, and even with unlimited funding, it would be unlikely to happen all at once. The biggest advantage for a system like this is the physical infrastructure: the roads and expressways already exist, and many of the stops are in places already set up or currently served by buses. On the other hand, the biggest obstacles are sustainability and profitability. At this scale, this service would likely be a net loss, as places like Thurmont and Chestertown are not likely to see hundreds of riders a day. However, since public transit should function more like a utility, this isn’t the worst; the aim is to provide consistent, reliable, lifeline service to areas that otherwise might not receive it.

The most obvious source of funding is the state government. However, the Maryland budget — and transportation budget in particular — are facing a funding crisis. While the worst has been averted, without reform and new sources of revenue, this isn’t guaranteed to be a stable source of funding.

Because this network would serve multiple areas that the USDOT counts as rural, another potential source of funding could be FTA-provided Section 5311/Formula Grants for Rural Areas. In particular, by connecting to the national intercity bus network and partnering with intercity bus carriers, they can be reimbursed for operating costs, a model used by other networks such as Colorado’s Bustang and the Virginia Breeze.

Ultimately, this is just a vision of what could be. What service would you like to see Maryland have?