Greenbush at last

PUBLIC OFFICIALS love a ribbon-cutting, so they were out in force to mark the opening of the rail line to Greenbush on the South Shore yesterday. It's an important project, bringing the benefits of commuter rail to coastal communities that should never have had to endure the elimination of service in 1959. But at $512 million, it was too expensive, and unless the state finds new sources of transportation, it will probably be the last major expansion of T service for many years.

The officials on hand yesterday could be divided into three categories. Those who had much to do with completion of the project include Representative Frank Hynes of Marshfield and former legislator Joseph Sullivan of Braintree. Without their support - in Hynes's case for more than 20 years - the not-in-my-backyard crowd would have blocked the rail line. The South Shore Chamber of Commerce, represented by former officials Terry Fancher and Ronald Zooleck also did much to forge a pro-rail coalition.

Then there were the officials who had nothing to do with the approval of the project, but were there because they now hold power. Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray and Transportation Secretary Bernard Cohen fall into this category. Murray talked about further commuter rail expansion, but without new money, this is highly unlikely. Cohen is working on a transportation-finance plan, still in the fuzzy stage. Figuring out a plan and getting it through the Legislature will be a big test for the Patrick-Murray administration.

Representative Garrett Bradley of Hingham and Senator Robert Hedlund of Weymouth praised the rail extension, even though they had opposed it. In 2002, Hedlund, thinking he had killed it, called it a "corpse in a coffin." Governor Romney, to his credit, pushed the project through to near-completion, but delays forced by opponents added to the costs.

We on this page backed the project for years, and still believe the benefits of commuter rail should be spread throughout the suburbs of Boston. Since the Greenbush trains were going to run along an existing right of way, bought by the state in the 1960s, construction would have proceeded smoothly but for the opponents. Some of the changes they suggested, such as the short tunnel under Hingham Square, improved the final result. Yet the opponents' vehemence was out of proportion to the project's impact.

The opening yesterday was ceremonial; regular service begins today. It's a shame the ribbon-cutting wasn't a day earlier. Then Red Sox fans from the South Shore could have joined others who thronged South Station on their way to the Red Sox rally. East Weymouth, Hingham, Cohasset, Scituate, and Marshfield are now linked to a network that connects outlying areas to the economic, cultural, and entertainment heart of the region without the need for highways or cars.