Passenger trains will run again between Newburyport and Boston

Commuter rail passengers in Newburyport and Rowley will be able to board trains to Boston for the first time in more than 20 years on Monday.

After years of studies, debates and delays, the 8.7-mile, rail restoration project is just about complete, and regular service about to resume.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority finally started construction about two years ago on the spur, which connects Newburyport to the current Ipswich train station.

Supporters say the return of the trains will give people an easier way to get to work, improve the economy in the region and generate more tourism in Newburyport.

Hundreds of passengers are expected to board the trains that will leave from new stops off Parker Street in Newburyport and Railroad Avenue in Rowley.

There will be five rush-hour trips and 12 round trips in all.

"This is going to be a real great project," said state Sen. James Jajuga, who is among scores of local and state officials who will cut the ribbon for the project on Friday. "It's going to be a huge boost."

Commuters should find a refreshing amount of parking at the new lots: 238 spaces in Rowley and 838 in Newburyport.

Parking will cost $1 a day and a one-way ticket to Boston will be $4 from Newburyport. The trip to Boston lasts about an hour.

The $55 million branch will be among the prettiest rides in the state's commuter-rail system. Reaching speeds up to 70 mph, the purple trains cut through expansive marshland, a horse farm, the Parker and Rowley Rivers and wildlife management areas for Kent's Island and Mill Creek.

It was 1976 when the last commuter trains arrived in Newburyport and Rowley. The extension was built from scratch along the exact route of the old track. Back then, passenger trains pulled into downtown Newburyport at a station between Washington and Winter streets.

The opening of the new service is a relief for a lot of harried commuters. Commuter-rail parking in Ipswich has been very tight; Ipswich was also too far away to be practical for many people in farther flung communities like Amesbury and Salisbury.

Highways are often choked and it could get even worse with the construction of the new central artery in Boston.

According to the MBTA, the trains will be used by passengers from as far away as southeastern New Hampshire, Groveland and Georgetown.

Passengers will wait on elevated platforms with modern public-address systems and electronic signs.

Next May, a new, $2.1 million depot in Newburyport is scheduled to be finished - it's currently under construction near the tracks off the Parker Street lot.

There are still a few kinks that need to be worked out. The new service will be used primarily by commuters, but business and political leaders are also hoping it will bring more tourists to the region.

Jajuga and other officials are pushing for Sunday service. They see the train as a way to turn Newburyport into a weekend destination like Manchester and Rockport, which do have Sunday commuter rail.

The MBTA, which is offering five round trips to Boston on Saturdays, has started a promotional campaign that bills the extension as "Commuter Rail By the Sea."

Agency officials said they are mindful of the community's desire for Sunday service and they are currently looking hard at the option.

Officials are also still working on details of a shuttle bus for passengers to get to Newburyport's downtown, Plum Island and other sites.

They likewise are planning a one-mile biking and walking path that would link the Newburyport station to the city's downtown.

Dan Ring writes for the Boston bureau of Ottaway News Service.