LYNN - Work on a Blue Line rapid transit extension through Lynn is slated to start in 2017, Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey said Wednesday in advance of a major unveiling today of statewide transportation plans by her and Gov. Mitt Romney.

"The Blue Line is predominantly featured as one of the 10 priority projects around the commonwealth," Healey said.

The tentative start date for the Blue Line is significant because it represents the first time state officials have officially committed to the project and have pinned down such a date.

"We're officially on the radar," Edward M. Grant, consultant to the Lynn Business Partnership, a major Blue Line proponent, said Wednesday. Grant noted that previous start estimates for the Blue Line have ranged between 2012 and 2022. "This puts us right in the middle."

Healey said the Blue Line schedule could be moved up if earlier scheduled projects, including those in Fitchburg and Fall River/New Bedford, run into permitting or federal funding problems.

"The good news is that the timeline is not set in stone. Some projects scheduled before Lynn could have more trouble getting started," Healey said, which could move up the Blue Line timetable. " Lynn is ahead of the curve and my message to local officials and the state delegation is that they have to keep it up."

Under the so-called "Long Range Transportation Plan," state commitment to fund the project would shift from the debt-ridden Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to the state transportation bond.

State and federal officials led by U.S. Rep. John Tierney and state Sen. Thomas M. McGee have secured bond and federal funding commitments for the rapid transit project.

State bond money would provide $314 million, or half the cost of the project, with rest of the money coming from the federal government. The Blue Line plans call for extending rapid transit from the Blue Line in Revere to Lynn alongside the existing commuter rail line.

Kerry said the announcement of the project's start date gives Blue Line supporters ample time to solidify North Shore support for the Blue Line and propose projects, including housing near the proposed route that could enhance the project's appeal.