MTA to Launch Weekend MARC Service

Maryland's MARC trains will finally have long-planned weekend service.

The Baltimore Sun reports the addition of weekend service on the MARC Penn Line comes as a result of the transportation law signed into law Thursday.

The weekend service, the Sun reports, could start as soon as this winter. Trains serving the Penn Line will make eight round trips between Penn Station in Baltimore and Union Station in Washington on Saturdays and Sundays, with some trains possibly going as far as Middle River.

A ticket from Baltimore to Washington on MARC currently costs $7, far less than a seat on Amtrak for the same route, though fares are set to rise $1 per trip under the transportation bill, according to The Sun.

"Finally! A way to get to Baltimore without having to fight for a decent spot in the long, snaking Northeast Regional queues, to say nothing of presumably cheaper ticket prices," a DCist writer proclaims.

State transportation officials have set aside $100 million for MARC improvements, according to the Baltimore Business Journal. The transportation bill, titled the Transportation Infrastructure Investment Act, will raise the gas tax by about four cents in July, then by steps over the next several years in order to raise money for infrastructure projects.

MARC has operated weekdays since the program's inception in the 1980s, with weekend expansion being under discussion since 2008, according to The Sun.

Not all are happy with the move, however. Del. Michael Smigiel Sr., a Cecil County Republican who fought the transportation bill, told the Sun the Maryland Transit Administration will "be operating at a loss, and they'll be expecting the rural areas to subsidize it."

What do you think about MARC's move? Will you use the weekend service? Tell us in the comments!

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