Route 54 (MTA Maryland)

Route 54
Overview
System	Maryland Transit Administration
Garage	Northwest
Status	active
Began service	2008
Predecessors	Routes M-3 and M-8
Route
Locale	Baltimore City Baltimore County
Communities served	Rockdale Milford Mill Sudbrook Park Fallstaff Glen Pimlico Park Heights Mondawmin
Landmarks served	Northwest Hospital Milford Mill Academy Pimlico Race Course Druid Hill Park Mondawmin Mall
Other routes	1, 5, 7, 13, 16, 21, 22, 27, 33, 44, 51, 52, 53, 58, 59, 60, 77, 91, 99
Service
Level	Daily
Frequency	Every 15 minutes Every 10 minutes (peak)
Weekend frequency	Every 15 minutes
Operates	24 Hours a Day

Route 54 is a bus route that operates in Baltimore and its suburbs, serving the corridors of Park Heights Avenue, Milford Mill Road, and Liberty Road. All trips operate from the Penn-North Metro Subway Station in Baltimore City to the Milford Mill Metro Subway Station in Pikesville. From there, about 50% of trips continue to Randallstown. The route, which started operating on August 24, 2008, is a combination of the most recent versions of the former routes M-3 and M-8, which had been operating since 1984 and 1987 respectively. Prior to these dates, the routes had been served by other buses and streetcars.

Prior to its use in 2008, the no. 54 designation had been used for bus service along Liberty and Milford Mill Roads from 1948 to 1955. With this exception, other designations were used for service along all portions of the current route.

In 1916, the no. 5 streetcar started operating along the Park Heights Avenue corridor. This route originally operated to Emory Grove in Reisterstown, but later would be shortened in several steps and gradually replaced by various buses. It was truncated to Pikesville in 1932, Manhattan Avenue (near Northern Parkway) in 1938, and ultimately saw its end as a streetcar in 1948.

Route E became the first bus to operate to Randallstown in 1922, and continued to operate under this designation until it was redesignated as Route 54 in 1948.

In 1948, the no. 5 streetcar was converted into a bus operation. The line was identified as the no. 5/7 line from 1948 to 1959, and was then split into two separate lines, identified as the no. 5 and 7. From this day until 1984, Route 5 provided service at all times along Park Heights Avenue from Slade Avenue to downtown Baltimore and beyond. Route 5 continued to provide service on Park Heights Avenue when the Metro was not operating until 2001, when full-time Sunday Metro service was introduced on Route M-3.

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Wikipedia