MTA Maryland Route 5
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Route 5 is a bus route operated by the Maryland Transit Administration in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It currently runs from Cedonia in northeast Baltimore to the Mondawmin Metro Subway Station. The line has two alternating routes in East Baltimore: one via the area of Johns Hopkins Hospital, and one via a one-way pair of streets a few blocks north.
The current bus route is the successor to the 5 Druid Hill Avenue, 27 Federal Street, and Preston Street streetcar lines.
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[edit] History
Route 5 started operating in 1916 using the Route 5 designation, but its route had been electrified since 1892 using other numerical designations. When the actual no. 5 line route started, it operated from Emory Grove (near Reisterstown), through Pikesville, then down Park Heights Avenue through the Park Heights community and past Pimlico Race Course. Other branches operated down Belvedere Avenue to Gwynn Oak.
The line traveled through Reservoir Hill as it currently does, before continuing downtown. Its route downtown was modified frequently during the coming years. The Reservoir Hill section was later eliminated, but it returned in 1996 when the Route 28 bus to that area was discontinued.
In 1921, the line was extended to Patterson Park after being combined with other lines.
In 1932, the route of the Route 5 streetcar was shortened to Pikesville, and service between Pikesville and Reisterstown was provided by buses. The first bus line to provide service to Reisterstown was Route M (no relationship to current M-lines along this route), followed by Route 7. The Route M-9 currently operates along Reisterstown Road between Pikesville and Reisterstown.
In 1938, Route 5 was shortened again to Manhattan Avenue (currently near the intersection of Park Heights Avenue and Northern Parkway).
In 1948, the streetcar operation of Route 5 came to an end, and the service was replaced by buses. A new Route 5/7 bus would operate along its route, and would continue to Glyndon. In 1959, the line would be separated into two separate routes, each with these designations. The Route 5 bus would serve the Park Heights Avenue corridor, and Route 7 Reisterstown Road.
In 1973, a new set of branches was added to the line that served the communities of Stevenson, Caves Road, and Greenwood via Villa Julie College.
[edit] The Baltimore Metro
In 1983, in conjunction with the opening of the first phase of the Baltimore Metro Subway, Route 5 would be shortened to Mondawmin during Metro's hours of operation. A new Route M-3 would operate along Park Heights Avenue to Slade Avenue. Route 5 continued to travel to Slade Avenue during hours when Metro was not operating.
In 1996, Route 5 was modified to operate via Reservoir Hill, a part of its former route, on weekdays and Saturdays, after Route 28, which served this area, was eliminated except on Sundays.
In 2001, when Sunday Metro Connection service was introduced, all Route 5 service to Slade Avenue was discontinued, and Sunday service was routed via Reservoir Hill.
In 2005, it was proposed that the Reservoir Hill deviation would be provided by a different line, and all trips would operate via Johns Hopkins Hospital. Community opposition resulted in all these plans being put on hold.
It was proposed late in 2007, that a new Route 6 would supplement service on the eastern portion of this route during peak hour, but the route of Route 5 would not change.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Route 5 schedulePDF (1.17 MiB)
