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CityLink Orange (abbreviated OR) is a
bus route A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a motor vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but fewer than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used i ...
operated by the
Maryland Transit Administration The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is a state-operated mass transit administration in Maryland, and is part of the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT). The MTA operates a comprehensive transit system throughout the Washington†...
in
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
and its suburbs. The line currently runs from the
Wal-Mart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...
parking lot in
Catonsville, Maryland Catonsville () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland. The population was 44,701 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 US Census. The community is a streetcar suburb of Baltimore along the cit ...
east through downtown Baltimore to the Fox Ridge community in
Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
, serving the corridors of
Edmondson Avenue U.S. Route 40 (US 40) in the U.S. state of Maryland runs from Garrett County, Maryland, Garrett County in Western Maryland to Cecil County, Maryland, Cecil County in the state's northeastern corner. With a total length of , it is the longest ...
on the west side and Eastern Avenue on the east, and the communities of Edmondson Village, Allendale,
Rosemont Rosemont may refer to: People Rosemont is a surname. Notable people with this surname include: * David A. Rosemont, American television producer * Franklin Rosemont (1943–2009), American poet, artist, historian * Norman Rosemont (1924–2018), ...
,
Patterson Park Patterson Park is an urban park in Southeast Baltimore, Maryland, United States, adjacent to the neighborhoods of Canton, Highlandtown, Patterson Park, and Butchers Hill. It is bordered by East Baltimore Street, Eastern Avenue, South Pa ...
, and Eastpoint, and is one of the most heavily used bus routes operated by the MTA. The bus route is the successor to the 14 Ellicott City, 23 Back and Middle Rivers, and East Fayette Street
streetcar line A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include segment ...
s.


History

Route 23 began its service as an electrified rail and streetcar line between Middle River and downtown Baltimore in 1897 along much of the same route as today. The streetcar operated until 1942, until the line was converted into a rubber-tire bus service. During these years, Route 23 did not serve the west side of town at all. The western portion of today's route was primarily served by the no. 14 streetcar (no relationship to today's Route 14 that operates between Baltimore and
Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
). Service was also provided through Essex and Middle River on the Back River Trolley. In 1942, the no. 23 streetcar service was discontinued. It was then replaced by Bus Route P, which operated until 1950. The no. 23 designation returned to Eastern Avenue on January 22, 1950. But westside service on this line did not begin until 1954, when Route 23 absorbed part of the route of the former Route 14, which had operated between Ellicott City and downtown Baltimore. Route 23 was extended west to Catonsville along the
US 40 U.S. Route 40 or U.S. Highway 40 (US 40), also known as the Main Street of America (a nickname shared with U.S. Route 66), is a major east–west United States Highway traveling across the United States from the Mountain States to the Mid- ...
and the Edmondson Avenue corridor, serving Edmondson Village. At that time, the full route of Route 23 ran from Edmondson Village to Middle River. Over the years, a series of selected trips on each side of Route 23 were added. The communities served by these branches were: ;West side *
Social Security Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance ...
(service was discontinued during first phase of the GBBI, and is available on Route 40) *
US-40 U.S. Route 40 or U.S. Highway 40 (US 40), also known as the Main Street of America (a nickname shared with U.S. Route 66), is a major east–west United States Highway traveling across the United States from the Mountain States to the Mid- ...
and
Rolling Road Maryland Route 166 (MD 166) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from Interstate 195 (I-195) in Arbutus north to MD 144 in Catonsville. MD 166 consists of two sections: a short freeway section that serve ...
(main western terminus - now the parking lot of Catonsville Wal-Mart, formerly the
Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a mail-order business and later a department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001; its common nickname was "Monkey Wards". ...
shopping center, though at times, the layover was on Geipe Road on the other side of Rolling Road) *Wildwood Parkway (currently served by selected trips) ;East side * Bayview Medical Center (currently served on all trips) * Fox Ridge (current eastern terminus on all trips) * Hawthorne (discontinued during first phase of GBBI) * Oliver Beach (replaced by Route 160) *Pulaski Industrial Park (replaced by Route 24 during first phase of GBBI) * Victory Villa (served by Route 24 since 1993, exclusively by Route 24 after first phase of GBBI, and currently by Route 4) *Wilson Point (discontinued during first phase of GBBI) The Hawthorne, Wilson Point, and Victory Villa services were incorporations of the defunct Rosedale Passenger Lines, which provided shuttle services to Route 23. Over the years, Route 23 was heavily criticized. Riders complained of overcrowded buses, that the route was slow and unreliable, and that service to certain communities was sparsely provided. MTA was able to address some of these concerns. During the 1990s, additional trips were added on certain heavily used branches. In addition, Oliver Beach service, which operated to the farthest point from downtown, was moved to the express Route 160 for faster service, and selected Route 160 trips operated from Fox Ridge. In 1993, Route 24 was also modified to provide additional midday and weekend service to Victory Villa, from which riders could transfer to Route 23 to travel downtown. In 2005, as part of the
Greater Baltimore Bus Initiative The Greater Baltimore Bus Initiative (GBBI) (pronounced ''GIBBY'') was a sweeping overhaul planned by the Maryland Transit Administration under the administration of then-Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich and his transportation secretary Robert Fla ...
, a comprehensive overhaul for the region's transit system, Route 23 faced numerous changes. Initially, it was planned that the line would operate from Catonsville to Fox Ridge on all trips, with all other branches eliminated or replaced by other lines. Riders on the Middle River and Victory Villa branches were directed to transfer to/from Route 24, and all other riders were expected to walk to Eastern or Edmondson Avenues. However, after public outcry, the Wildwood branch was retained. The line also saw routing changes in the downtown area, and in East Baltimore. The route downtown was shifted from Saratoga Street to Fayette and Baltimore Streets, depending on the direction of travel, and in East Baltimore, service was shifted from Grundy/ Haven Streets to Bayview Boulevard in order to serve
Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center (abbreviated JHBMC or Bayview; formerly Francis Scott Key Medical Center and Baltimore City Hospital) is the teaching hospital trauma center, neonatal intensive care unit, geriatrics center, and is home to the ...
. In addition, the line's frequency was cut virtually in half at most times. Rush hour service, which had operated every 7–8 minutes, was reduced to one bus every 15 minutes. Midday service, which had operated every 10–12 minutes, was reduced to one bus every 15 minutes. Saturday service was reduced from 15 to 30 minutes, and Sunday service from 30 minutes to hourly. The cost savings generated from the reduction in service was used to operate a new, limited-stop service known as Route 40 (now ''"QuickBus"''). The line, which overlaps on much of the route, but serves the
Security Boulevard Maryland Route 122 (MD 122) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Security Boulevard, the state highway runs from Rolling Road east to the Baltimore city line within the western Baltimore County suburb of Woodlawn. MD 12 ...
corridor rather than Catonsville, provides limited-stop service for faster travel. MTA believed that operating such a service would absorb much of Route 23's ridership while improving bus service over the corridor. The overhaul of Route 23, which took effect on October 23, 2005, was not met pleasantly by riders. Many complained about the reduction in service while Route 40 did not stop near their streets, and did not meet their needs in any way. Also, some complained about routing changes. Most notably, businesses along Saratoga Street in downtown Baltimore reported a massive loss in customers who waited for buses near their shops. MTA responded to complaints about the Saratoga Street losses. On February 26, 2006, the no. 23 was once again modified to serve the small businesses on Saratoga Street while retaining part of its new route on the Fayette/Baltimore Street corridor.


East of Middle River

Currently, Route 23 does not provide any service east of Back River Neck Road, but the line did in the past. Today, riders wishing to travel to points along the Eastern Boulevard corridor east of Back River Neck Road must transfer to another line. Service is available in this area on several other routes. Route 4 operates along Eastern between North Point Boulevard and Martin Boulevard. Regular service from Middle River to Whispering Woods is provided on Route 24. Route 160 provides four express trips daily to/from Oliver Beach.


In popular culture

Detective
Jimmy McNulty James McNulty is a fictional character and the protagonist of the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Dominic West. McNulty is an Irish-American detective in the Baltimore Police Department. While talented in his profession, McNulty's conceited ...
rides the 23 Edmondson Village bus to a crime scene in season 5 episode 2 of ''
The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime fiction, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created and primarily written by the American author and former police reporter David Simon for the cable network HBO. The series premiered o ...
''.


References

{{MTA Maryland Maryland Transit Administration bus routes Transportation at Johns Hopkins Hospital 1950 establishments in Maryland