Last week was my first week of in-person classes at the University of Maryland College Park. That’s right. I have taken the plunge after a year of career exploration and am now pursuing my Masters in Community Planning at the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation.
And like any stubborn urbanist, I am trying to commute from my South Baltimore neighborhood to College Park using only public transit.
So the question I pose to you now is:
How much time and how many transfers would I need to reach a 4pm class that is on a campus approximately 30-miles away and serviced by major metropolitan transit systems?
Even three hours may not be enough.
On paper, I have access to multiple modes of transportation:
- Several North-South bus lines stop a few blocks from my house
- The light rail is just a 15-minute walk to reach
- A commuter MARC-Camden train stops at College Park but only if you catch it before 8:05am or after 3:40pm
On most days for my evening classes, I am left with taking the MARC-Penn train to New Carrollton and then waiting for another 45-minute bus (P31) to campus. The challenge, as I have quickly learned on my last two attempts, is making it all the way uptown to Baltimore Penn Station just to be able to get out of the city.
Having options is a privilege, but…
Reliability has fallen through the rusted tracks.
On my first commuting attempt: a double-parked car in the single-lane of traffic right near Mount Vernon’s underground conduit repair work kept downtown traffic at a standstill. That day, I had to race over piles of snow/ice and through Penn Station to board with maybe a minute to spare.
On my second attempt…well, allow me to share verbatim my recap text* I sent to family as I panted (dry-heaved) on the MARC train:
Sunken cost fallacy looms over me during intra-city travels…or travails.
I am constantly re-assessing whether waiting for a bus that was supposed to arrive 15-minutes prior to turn the corner is better than running to try to catch another mode. While I have the privilege of a relatively flexible schedule for padding excessive time for commuting, I know my system is not sustainable.
The breakdown is coming.
This is why I am writing to my state representatives to fully fund MTA’s BMORE Bus Plan.
Reach out to me with your own Maryland commuting story to commiserate but more importantly to get to work on advocating for reliable and integrated public transit options–critical for reaching our full educational and professional potential.
*Transcription of Images:
Thursday 1:33 PM
Have to recap my ludicrous journey:
- Left home at 12:30 to catch a 1:35 Marc train from Penn.
- Waited for a bus down my block because it was due to arrive in 2 and never came after 5.
- Walked to light rail and almost reached the door before it took off.
- Walked back to Charles to catch another bus.
- None were coming. It was now 1ish.
- Called an uber. Driver would not arrive until 1:15
- Caught the cherry circulator to Pratt.
- Walked/ran all way to the mt. Vernon hoping another bus would come.
- I reached the bottom of the hill to the monument
- Then like deus ex machina, a Hopkins shuttle driver swooped me up so that I wouldn’t have to run up the hill.
- Made it to Penn station at 1:25.
L. Rose Creative 
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