BY DAVE CHOATE

Back at the turn of the 20th century, New Hampshire had a bustling system of railroads with 24 access points from other states. Almost 100 years later, the only functional passenger train line in New Hampshire is the Amtrak line running from Boston to Portland, Maine.

Peter Griffin, of Windham, is the president of New Hampshire Railroad Revitalization Association, based in Weare, which aims to bring back the old days of busy engines.

“We have a group of people who remember the original rail system and the economic development it brought. In some ways, it’s something new for New Hampshire,” he said.

Griffin has been the president of the association for 10 years, when the president of the 15-year-old group stepped down. He estimated that the group currently numbers about 100 members, all of whom gather from across the state for monthly meetings.

The association’s current project is the building of a rail corridor that would extend from Boston to Manchester, similar to the current Amtrak line. Griffin said the measure has gained enough support from the public and lawmakers that he hopes the project will begin in earnest by 2010.

If that rail thrives, he said his group would like to see the revival of more historic lines, such as the ones which used to run through Goffstown, New Boston and Weare. A long line he envisions running from Boston to Montreal in roughly five hours could also be in the pipeline, he said.

With growing environmental concerns and gas prices rising, Griffin said more and more people seem to be warming to the idea of a new commuter rail system. He said the most difficult portion of the population to sell a new rail system to tends to be lawmakers, some of whom he said seem to be reluctant to spend money, “even for a good cause.”

In addition to the estimated 15 to 20 hours a week he spends in his capacity at NHRRA, Griffin said he volunteers his time with the Rockingham Regional Planning Commission, the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, the Transportation Committee of the New England Council, and the town of Windham as the town moderator. He also works his day job, as a control analyst at Fidelity in Merrimack.

“In all aspects of our lives, we are changing – except in transportation. We are mandated to get in our cars, but we can change that,” Griffin said.