Plan for stretching Blue Line to Lynn gets state boost

Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. of Lynn said an extension of the Blue Line "would be a great boon for the whole North Shore." (ZARA TSANEV for the BOSTON GLOBE/file 2006)

The decades-old vision of extending the MBTA Blue Line to Lynn got a fresh boost when the Patrick administration recently proposed state planning money for the project.

The Blue Line extension is among three rail and mass transit projects authorized to receive a combined $100 million in planning funds in Governor Deval Patrick's $2.9 billion transportation bond bill filed Nov. 29.

Bringing the Blue Line north to Lynn from its current terminus at Wonderland Station in Revere has been a dream of Lynn political and business leaders for many years, and one they have actively pushed since 1993. The city sees rapid transit service as a key to its economic revival.

Mayor Edward J. "Chip" Clancy Jr. of Lynn called the funding authorization for the project in the governor's bill "great news," noting it would help match the federal funding that has already been provided for the project's planning costs.

"It would be a great boon for the whole North Shore," said Clancy, who fought for the Blue Line extension during his years as a state senator. "This is our way to connect with the outside world."

The funding proposal comes as state officials work to complete a draft environmental impact report on five alternatives to address public transit in the Lynn area, including two that call for extending the Blue Line.

That draft is targeted for completion next spring, according to Erik Abell, a spokesman for the Executive Office of Transportation and Public Works.

State Senator Thomas M. McGee, a Lynn Democrat, called the inclusion of the project in the transportation bond bill "a big step forward" and a positive sign.

"Things are happening. I'm still very optimistic," he said. "We need locally and regionally to continue to make this our priority as we try and build a good transportation network for the 21st century. There's good recognition of that in our area of the North Shore and . . . I think people are recognizing that beyond the region."

In an e-mail, Abell said that once the draft environmental statement is issued, there will be further review of the various alternatives. While there is not a specific authorization amount for the Blue Line plan in the bond bill, he said, "We felt it was important to include the project within the overall authorization to continue the planning that is already underway for the extension."

To date, US Representative John F. Tierney, a Salem Democrat, has secured $5.25 million in federal money for the project, with another $2 million included in a new pending federal transportation bill. In a telephone interview Tuesday, Tierney said the proposed state funding would be helpful in securing future federal support for the project.

"It's a match project," he said of a project that requires state funds to access federal dollars. "In order for the federal people to look seriously at this thing, they want to know the state is looking seriously at it, which means they've targeted money toward their match. That's why it's important."

"We've been talking to Governor Patrick since before he was governor" about the Blue Line project, Tierney added. "I think this shows he's coming through on the commitment he made to the community."

State lawmakers previously secured an authorization of $246.5 million in a 2004 state transportation bond bill to construct the Blue Line extension, with the condition that the state would receive a 50 percent match for whatever it spent. The state could only tap into that authorization, however, if the project moves into construction.

The options under review in the environmental impact report include extending the Blue Line to Lynn through the Point of Pines section of Revere, and extending it to Lynn along the existing commuter rail line.

A third alternative is to build a new commuter rail station near Wonderland and provide a way to transfer passengers between that stop and Wonderland station. The other two options are to expand service on the commuter rail and bus lines, and to do nothing.

Project boosters in Lynn say they will back whichever of the two Blue Line extension options proves most feasible.

"We think it's up to the transportation experts to determine which one makes the most sense," said Ted Grant, executive director of the Lynn Business Partnership, which has been a key supporter of the project.

But Mayor Thomas G. Ambrosino of Revere said his city "objects strenuously to going through Point of Pines and will do everything we can to oppose that alternative."

He said Revere would support extending the Blue Line along the existing commuter rail tracks as long as the city received a commuter rail stop at Wonderland.

Dennis DiZoglio, executive director of the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission, worked on the Blue Line project during his previous job as deputy general manager of planning and development at the MBTA.

"I think it's good news that the administration wants to use funds to advance the project further," he said, adding that the big test is whether they can come up with a project that is sufficiently cost-effective to be competitive in the bid for federal funds.

"It's been frustrating to wait so long," Clancy said of the years that have passed in pursuit of the Blue Line project. "I understand as well as anyone," he said, acknowledging that as a state senator, "it was something I did not accomplish."

"It's a hard sell for some reason in Boston," he said, adding, "Having said that, it would be gold for us."

Grant remains optimistic.

"Every step that has been taken the last several years has brought the project closer to fruition," he said. "This is a massive project and it's not going to happen overnight. The North Shore has made a sound argument and Governor Patrick clearly has listened . . . . The fact that the governor included the planning funding is extremely significant."