Storm damage disrupts light rail service across Baltimore City and County
Baltimore Orioles fans attending Sunday's game at Camden Yards were impacted after a fallen tree shut down portions of the light rail tracks.
Service was disrupted between six stops in Baltimore County and Baltimore City, caused by Saturday's strong storm. A tree fell and damaged the overhead powerlines, which caused headaches for baseball fans trying to get to and from the downtown ballpark.
MTA provided shuttle service to riders who were trying to use the light rail to get to and from the game.
Some light rail riders said the track shutdown was confusing because it added another unexpected step.
MTA said the storms damaged the overhead power lines between North Avenue and Lutherville. A tree took out the wiring and was lying on the track.
MTA has not said when it estimates service to be up and running.
Navigating to the ballpark
Two fans traveling from Cockeysville said they didn't know the system was down until they were forced to get off one stop later.
"When we got to Lutherville, and the train stopped, we were like, now what do we do?" said Karen Collier. "So it was just a bit confusing, but the shuttle wasn't bad once we found the bus. It actually got us here about the same time that the train would have."
Fans said the shuttle service was easy to use and took them from Lutherville to Camden Yards in the same amount of time. MTA indicated the shuttle service will only take riders between the Lutherville and North Avenue stops.
"We got on at Timonium, and we found out we were getting off at the next stop, and a bus was going to take us to North Avenue. However, the bus brought us all the way down, so it was smooth sailing," said Jeanne Hensler, from Parkville.
Others traveling within Baltimore City called the disruption inconvenient, but drove to the North Avenue station to catch the train, noting it is the easiest way to get to the park.
"I usually get on around the Lake Roland or the Mount Washington exit. I wasn't able to do that. I had to drive down to North Avenue. It's been a little bit of an inconvenience because it's not a big parking lot," said Matt Trigger, from Hampden.
Shuttle services will also be used on Monday for people commuting. According to the American Transportation Association, 15,400 riders used the Baltimore Light Rail system daily in 2024.