HAVERHILL — Within five years, commuters should be able to board a train for Boston in Plaistow, N.H., said state Sen. Steven Baddour.
The state is close to spending $10 million to extend the commuter rail line from Haverhill to Plaistow, N.H., said Baddour, D-Methuen.
A state transportation bond bill includes the money for the project, which has been discussed since March. Baddour said he expects the money to receive approval from all legislative groups that review it, as well as Gov. Deval Patrick.
The state of New Hampshire is also involved in the plan and is considering providing a "significant" amount of money for the project, which would provide enough cash to get it done, Baddour said. He did not have an exact figure on the New Hampshire money. The two states and the MBTA are reviewing potential sites for the station just north of Haverhill and negotiating other details, he said.
Baddour said he hopes the station will be built in the next few years.
"I think it's something that could be done within less than 10 years," he said, "more in the five-year time frame."
The station would allow the MBTA to move its so-called layover station, where trains idle in the early-morning hours, away from the Bradford commuter station where for years neighbors have complained about noise and fumes from trains. The commuter station would remain in Bradford, while the layover station would be moved to the new Plaistow commuter stop, Baddour said, giving Bradford neighbors relief.
He said helping the neighbors was the prime motivator toward pushing for the Plaistow station with the layover station.
Haverhill is the northernmost stop on the rail line to Boston. Haverhill has two busy commuter rail stations — one in Bradford and the other downtown. Southern New Hampshire commuters drive to the Haverhill stations in the morning to get the train, adding to parking congestion that city merchants and residents complain about.
Plaistow officials have said they are disappointed that since the subject of a commuter rail station was brought up four months ago, there have been no further talks.
James Jajuga, president of the Greater Haverhill Chamber of Commerce, met with Plaistow selectmen in March to discuss the option. He offered to arrange a meeting between officials from both states and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, but that meeting has yet to happen.
Jajuga said yesterday that he expects that many commuters from Southern New Hampshire will use the Plaistow station once it's built because of the high cost of gas and environmental concerns.
"It will eliminate some downtown traffic and parking problems in Haverhill," he said, as fewer New Hampshire residents will have to drive to Haverhill to catch the train.
Plaistow selectmen are trying to determine what they need to do to push the issue forward.
When U.S. Sen. John Sununu and Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter came to town last month for Old Home Day, selectmen asked them to support commuter rail in New Hampshire.
"We've got to try to get this thing some legs and move," Selectman Larry Gil said.
Baddour said despite the lack of public meetings, progress is being made toward the Plaistow station.
"There's been a lot of activity behind the scenes in negotiations," he said. "They're moving aggressively. I've seen plans. From the T's perspective, it makes sense."
Gil is also trying to get New Hampshire state representatives and planners to come to Plaistow to discuss options.
Tim Moore, chairman of the Planning Board and a member of the New Hampshire Rail Transit Authority, is scheduled to meet with selectmen tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. to discuss what could put commuter rail in motion in Plaistow.
Many of the obstacles that stand in the way of some train projects aren't a factor in getting trains from Haverhill into Plaistow. Capital costs would be limited and grant money already has been secured. The rail is in place and in use, as the Amtrak Downeaster runs through the center of town several times a day.
Almost more importantly, Plaistow owns land along the tracks for a station and has almost $1 million put away to build it.
With escalating gas prices, Gil said, getting a rail stop should be easy. But it's not.
"I just have a lot of empathy for folks who live in the area ... having to shell out $50, $60, $70, $80 a week in gas to get down there," he said. "Train service coming for Plaistow commuters would be a real, real plus."
Baddour said Massachusetts has done a cross-border rail project in the past, running a line into Rhode Island in a project that benefitted both states. He also said there is great commercial and residential development potential at the Plaistow site because there is a large tract of land around the spot where the train station would be built.
The Plaistow station discussion comes as other rail line activity develops at the Massachusett-New Hampshire border.
Commuter trains may run again on the old Lawrence-to-Manchester line, something that hasn't happened since 1953.
That's the expected recommendation of a two-year study due out next month aimed at reducing congestion on Interstate 93. The study will recommend extending rail service from Lawrence to Londonderry, N.H., to avoid the cost of tunneling under Manchester-Boston Regional Airport. There would also be stops along the way in Methuen and the New Hampshire communities of Salem, Windham and Derry.
The two-state study accompanies New Hampshire's plan to expand I-93 from two lanes to four between Salem and Manchester.
Train service is popular with area commuters, but some state officials say it's a costly — and unrealistic — option.
The route would require all new track. Since commuter trains stopped running in New Hampshire more than 50 years ago, the tracks have been taken up — and many of them converted to rail trails used by bicyclists and pedestrians.
The hefty price of laying track and keeping trains in service is something Rep. Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, says will keep this proposal from ever happening.
"A lot of people are under the impression that this rail is going to pay for itself," he said. "Some money is going to have to subsidize the tickets. If you have the tickets too high, no one is going to ride the thing."
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