Bowie State is a regional rail station on the Northeast Corridor, located adjacent to the campus of Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland. It is served by the MARC Penn Line commuter rail service.HistoryThe Baltimore and Potomac Railroad (B&P) opened its main line in 1872, with a station at Bowie but not at Jericho Park. The B&P was merged into the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) in 1902. The PRR opened Jericho Park station, located at the modern station site, to serve the Maryland Normal and Industrial School (the predecessor to Bowie State College) around 1911.The PRR folded into Penn Central in 1968. Conrail took over the ex-PRR Baltimore-Washington service, soon subsidized by the Maryland Department of Transportation, from Penn Central at its creation on April 1, 1976. Conrail operated service to the station until June 26, 1981. It was closed as the Jericho Park Road grade crossing was eliminated by the Laurel-Bowie Road overpass.Bowie State station was opened on February 27, 1989 as a replacement for the Bowie station, 1.1miles to the south. Bowie State provided parking lots - not possible to construct at Bowie - and better road access to surrounding suburban areas. This was one of the first major station projects undertaken under the MARC branding.
