Route 55 (MTA Maryland)
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LocalLink 36 is a bus route 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 Towson to Fox Ridge, serving Parkville, Overlea, Rosedale, and
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 ...
, and the Essex campus of the Community College of Baltimore County (formerly Essex Community College).


History

Route 36 started operating in 1973 as Route 55 between Overlea and Towson, with branches via Joppa Road and Taylor Avenue, and to Hunt Valley. A year later, as the Route 9 was introduced, the Hunt Valley service on this line was truncated to Towson. In 1977, Route 55 was combined with Route 2, which had operated limited service between Overlea and Fox Ridge. For the next 20 years, the line operated from the Towson area to Franklin Square Hospital, with selected trips, mostly during rush hour, continuing to Fox Ridge. Express trips to the Essex area from Towson were also introduced, but were eliminated in 1992. In 1997, all trips were extended to Fox Ridge. In 1998, two daily trips which operated via Taylor Avenue through Parkville were discontinued. In 2005, as part of the Greater Baltimore Bus Initiative, it was proposed that Route 55 would operated every 30 minutes versus the previous 40, and Sunday service would be introduced. No routing changes were planned initially to Route 55. But this plan was later delayed due to public outcry over changes to other routes. In 2006, under a revision, MTA made plans for Route 55 to loop at the Towson Courthouse rather than GBMC, and for service on the remainder of the route to be provided on other lines. This plan was not implemented immediately. But on October 8, 2006, Sunday service was introduced, reflecting this new routing. On February 17, 2008, these changes were implemented seven days a week,MTA February 2008 schedule changes despite public outcry over transfers that would be required to reach
Towson University Towson University (TU or Towson) is a public university in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1866 as Maryland's first training school for teachers, Towson University is a part of the University System of Maryland. Since its foundin ...
and area hospitals. On June 18, 2017, BaltimoreLink renamed Route 55 to LocalLink 36.


References

{{MTA Maryland bus Maryland Transit Administration bus routes 1973 establishments in Maryland