You can’t miss the cozy white bus on the side of the road. A machine blasts soap bubbles and the bus is painted with colorful designs of paint easels, books and gaming consoles.

Step inside and you’ll find a cozy nook decked with books, DVDs, a theremin, computers, a flat-screen TV and PlayStation 5.

This is a 21st-century mobile library, where people can learn new technology, explore their creativity and enjoy a free, cathartic escape, said Conni Strittmatter, a youth and family engagement manager for the Baltimore County Public Library system.

The vehicle, unveiled in late October, is part of the library system’s push to introduce science and technology, along with traditional library offerings, such as books, to immigrant-heavy and underserved areas of the county where libraries are scarce and hard to access.

The $723,000 bus, which was largely funded by philanthropic donations, is meant to mimic the offerings of the system’s 19 branches and draw in the county residents who do not have a library card.

The bus so far has been deployed once or twice a month at 10 stops across Baltimore County, such as in Lansdowne, Edgemere and Reisterstown. The library system reports the new bus has seen a 200% increase in circulation and 400% increase in visitors in recent weeks compared to its older mobile libraries, which mainly offer books.

These new visitors have particularly enjoyed the manga and graphic novels, as well as the Spanish books and DVDs, Strittmatter said.

According to the library system’s fiscal 2023 annual report, 2.45 million people had visited county libraries that year and 3.5 million had visited the virtual branch.

The mobile library has been an advertising tool of sorts for the public library system, Strittmatter said.

“What’s really cool about this one is that it shows all the things that the library offers that people don’t think about,” she said.

Some of those who have visited the bus were previously unaware they had free access to Baltimore County public libraries without having to opt into any program. And many didn’t know the libraries offered free video games and other tech access.

Now, she said, “we have a lot of teens coming into our brick-and-mortar libraries to play video games after school. … It’s something that a lot of teens are able to talk about and share with each other.”

The mobile library’s ability to reach underserved areas through technology and video game access is particularly important as those items gain cultural and everyday relevance, Strittmatter said. Since the beginning of the pandemic, computer and software access has become critical as school curricula has shifted online.

“They are tools that a lot of these people — a lot of these kids — are going to have to use as they get older,” she said. “Tech is an important touchpoint but it’s cost prohibitive. They could fall behind if they don’t have access.”

In the coming weeks, the bus will visit apartment and townhouse communities at Chartleytowne, Watermill, The Lakes, Towson Crossing, Riverview, Kenilworth and Edgemere from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

“Come!” Strittmatter said. “It’s recreation. It’s wind-down time after school. … It’s a social environment to be able to play these games together.”