The dream of creating a state park along an abandoned rail line running from Montclair to Jersey City will become a reality after Gov. Phil Murphy’s announcement last week that the state has purchased the property and allocated $20 million to jump-start the project. 

At last week’s press conference in Newark, officials and advocates used superlatives such as “transformative” for what is being called simply “The Greenway” — a 9-mile, 135-acre linear park that Murphy said will rival Manhattan’s High Line and be the “crown jewel of the state park system.” 

The Greenway represents the largest investment in conservation infrastructure in the state’s history, said Ed Potosnak of the League of Conservation Voters.

Speakers cited a host of benefits from the rails-to-trails park: space for health and recreation in one of the country’s most densely populated areas; economic opportunities; healthier commuting options; environmental benefits like reduced greenhouse gases and added stormwater absorption; and beautifying an area that has become a hazard.