Petition for Waiver of Compliance, 5535-5536 [2020-01670]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 20 / Thursday, January 30, 2020 / Notices Background I. Legal Basis FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315 to grant exemptions from certain parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). FMCSA is required to publish notice of exemption requests in the Federal Register (49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(6)(A)). This notice seeks public comment on the request posted to the docket referenced above; the Agency takes no position on its merits. FMCSA will review the request and all comments submitted to the docket before deciding whether to grant or deny the exemption. khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES II. Robert Bosch LLC and Mekra Lang North America LLC Application for Exemption Section 393.80(a) of the FMCSRs requires that each bus, truck, and trucktractor be equipped with two rear-vision mirrors, one at each side. The mirrors must be positioned to reflect to the driver a view of the highway to the rear and the area along both sides of the CMV. Section 393.80(a) cross-references the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s standard for mirrors on motor vehicles (49 CFR 571.111, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard [FMVSS] No. 111). Paragraph S7.1 of FMVSS No. 111 provides requirements for mirrors on multipurpose passenger vehicles and trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) greater than 4,536 kg and less than 11,340 kg and each bus, other than a school bus, with a GVWR of more than 4,536 kg. Paragraph S8.1 provides requirements for mirrors on multipurpose passenger vehicles and trucks with a GVWR of 11,340 kg or more. Robert Bosch LLC and Mekra Lang North America LLC have applied for an exemption from 393.80(a) to allow motor carriers to operate CMVs equipped with the company’s CV Digital Mirror System installed as an alternative to the two rear-vision mirrors required by the FMCSRs. A copy of the application is included in the docket referenced at the beginning of this notice. III. Request for Comments In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(6), FMCSA requests public comment from all interested persons on the application for an exemption from 49 CFR 393.80(a). All comments received before the close of business on the comment closing date indicated at the beginning of this notice will be considered and will be available for examination in the docket at the location listed under the ADDRESSES section of this notice. Comments VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:56 Jan 29, 2020 Jkt 250001 received after the comment closing date will be filed in the public docket and will be considered to the extent practicable. In addition to late comments. FMCSA will also continue to file, in the public docket, relevant information that becomes available after the comment closing date. Interested persons should continue to examine the public docket for new material. Issued on: January 27, 2020. Larry W. Minor, Associate Administrator for Policy. [FR Doc. 2020–01763 Filed 1–29–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Railroad Administration [Docket Number FRA–2020–0009] Petition for Waiver of Compliance Under part 211 of title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), this provides the public notice that on January 13, 2020, the Metropolitan Council’s Metro Transit Division (Metro Transit), petitioned the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for a waiver of compliance from certain provisions of the Federal railroad safety regulations contained at 49 CFR parts 214, 219, 220, 229, 235, and 236. FRA assigned the petition Docket Number FRA–2020– 0009. Metro Transit operates two rail fixed guideway transit systems in Minnesota—the METRO Blue and Green light rail transit (LRT) Lines. Currently, the Green Line is 11 miles in length with 18 stations between Target Field Station in downtown Minneapolis, and Union Depot Station in downtown St. Paul, sharing 5 stations in downtown Minneapolis with the Blue Line. The Green Line LRT Extension Project, also known as Southwest Light Rail Transit Line (SWLRT), will add approximately 14.5 miles of standard-gage light rail double-track with 16 new passenger stations within Hennepin County, Minnesota, to the existing Green Line LRT operations. The SWLRT project will extend the existing Green Line from the Target Field/Interchange Station near the central business district of downtown Minneapolis through the communities of St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Minnetonka, and Eden Prairie, passing near Edina. The SWLRT line will terminate at the Southwest Station in Eden Prairie. Construction of the SWLRT Project began in 2019 with the projected opening for revenue service operations in 2023. PO 00000 Frm 00169 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 5535 SWLRT will be constructed adjacent to freight rail service operated by Twin Cities & Western Railroad (TCWR) in the Kenilworth Corridor and a portion of the Bass Lake Spur, and adjacent to freight rail service operated by BNSF Railway (BNSF) in the Wayzata Subdivision. Typical track center spacing averages 25 feet or more throughout this shared corridor. SWLRT and TCWR will share use of five highway-rail grade crossings (HRGC) on the Kenilworth Corridor and Bass Lake Spur located at 21st Street South in Minneapolis, Beltline Boulevard and Wooddale Avenue in St. Louis Park, and 5th Avenue South and Blake Road North in Hopkins. There are no shared HRGCs on the BNSF Wayzata Subdivision. An intrusion detection system will be installed wherever typical spacing for track centers between SWLRT and freight tracks is less than 50 feet. On the Bass Lake Spur (Milepost (MP) 16.3/428.38 to MP 435.06), the Metropolitan Council has, on Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority’s behalf, contracted with third parties to perform freight rail operations maintenance, dispatching, and flagging services. The SWLRT track and signal system is wholly separate and distinct from any adjacent freight tracks and related equipment. Metro Transit will maintain its own track and signals in the SWLRT, and only Metro Transit Signal and Train Control employees will be working on signal and train control equipment at the five shared HRGCs. Specifically, Metro Transit seeks a waiver of compliance from certain provisions of FRA regulations applicable to the limited connections of the SWLRT to the general railroad system at five shared HRGCs, stating it has alternative procedures in place on its existing Green Line operations which are comparable from a substantive perspective to FRA safety regulations. Moreover, Metro Transit states the waivers would promote consistency in the standard operating procedures followed by Metro Transit in its Green Line LRT operations and provide an equivalent level of safety to the corresponding FRA regulations. A copy of the petition, as well as any written communications concerning the petition, is available for review online at www.regulations.gov and in person at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Docket Operations Facility, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, W12–140, Washington, DC 20590. The Docket Operations Facility is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays. E:\FR\FM\30JAN1.SGM 30JAN1 5536 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 20 / Thursday, January 30, 2020 / Notices Interested parties are invited to participate in these proceedings by submitting written views, data, or comments. FRA does not anticipate scheduling a public hearing in connection with these proceedings since the facts do not appear to warrant a hearing. If any interested parties desire an opportunity for oral comment and a public hearing, they should notify FRA, in writing, before the end of the comment period and specify the basis for their request. All communications concerning these proceedings should identify the appropriate docket number and may be submitted by any of the following methods: • Website: https:// www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. • Fax: 202–493–2251. • Mail: Docket Operations Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, W12–140, Washington, DC 20590. • Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Room W12–140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES Communications received by March 16, 2020 will be considered by FRA before final action is taken. Comments received after that date will be considered if practicable. Anyone can search the electronic form of any written communications and comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the document, if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). Under 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its processes. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL–14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at https:// www.transportation.gov/privacy. See also https://www.regulations.gov/ privacyNotice for the privacy notice of regulations.gov. Issued in Washington, DC. John Karl Alexy, Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, Chief Safety Officer. [FR Doc. 2020–01670 Filed 1–29–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910–06–P VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:56 Jan 29, 2020 Jkt 250001 DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Railroad Administration [Docket No. FRA–2019–0099] Program Approval: Norfolk Southern Railway Company Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of Transportation (DOT). ACTION: Notice of approval. AGENCY: FRA is issuing this notice to explain its rationale for approving a Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NS) petition for a Test Program designed to test track inspection technologies (i.e., an autonomous locomotive-mounted geometry measurement system and an automated optical system) and new operational approaches to track inspections and its rationale for granting a limited, temporary suspension of a substantive FRA rule that is necessary to facilitate the conduct of the Test Program. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: YuJiang Zhang, Staff Director, Track Division, Office of Railroad Safety, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, telephone (202) 493–6460 or email yujiang.zhang@ dot.gov; Aaron Moore, Attorney, Office of Chief Counsel, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, telephone (202) 493–7009 or email aaron.moore@dot.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On November 1, 2019, NS petitioned FRA under Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 211.51 to suspend certain requirements of FRA’s track safety regulations to conduct a program to test new track inspection technologies (i.e., an autonomous locomotive-mounted geometry measurement system and an automated optical system) and new operational approaches to track inspections. NS also submitted a written Test Program providing a description of the proposed tests and the geographic scope of the testing territory. The Test Program specifies that the tests will be conducted on approximately 1,042 miles of main and siding tracks of the former Norfolk & Western route from Norfolk, Virginia to Portsmouth, Ohio on NS’s Pocahontas Division. The Test Program is designed to test autonomous locomotive-mounted geometry measurement systems and gradually decreased manual visual inspections as an alternative to FRA’s inspection frequency requirements. NS SUMMARY: PO 00000 Frm 00170 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 indicates that it will continue to use other inspection technologies during the Test Program, including (1) Sperry rail flaw and joint bar inspections, and (2) Vehicle/Track Interaction, a locomotivebased ride quality inspection system. The Test Program will be carried out in three separate phases over the course of one year as detailed in Exhibit C of the Test Program (available for review at www.regulations.gov (docket number FRA–2019–0099)). After review and analysis of NS’s petition for a Test Program, subject to certain conditions designed to ensure safety, FRA approved NS’s Test Program and suspended the requirements of 49 CFR 213.233(b)(3) 1 and (c) as necessary to carry out the Test Program. A copy of FRA’s letter approving NS’s Test Program and granting the requested limited temporary suspension of 49 CFR 213.233(b)(3) and (c), as well as a complete copy of the Test Program, is available in docket number FRA–2019– 0099 at www.regulations.gov. FRA’s letter approving NS’s Test Program and granting the requested limited temporary suspension of certain regulations specifically details the conditions NS will need to undertake during the Test Program. As required by 49 CFR 211.51(c), FRA is providing this explanatory statement describing the Test Program. As explained more fully in its approval letter, FRA finds that the temporary, limited suspension of 49 CFR 213.233(b)(3) and (c) is necessary to the conduct of the approved Test Program, which is specifically designed to evaluate the effectiveness of new automated track inspection technologies and operational methods. Furthermore, FRA also finds that the scope and application of the granted suspension of 49 CFR 213.233(b)(3) and (c) as applied to the Test Program are limited to that necessary to conduct the Test Program. Finally, FRA’s approval letter outlines the conditions of the Test Program that will ensure standards sufficient to assure safety. Issued in Washington, DC, on January 27, 2020. John Karl Alexy, Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, Chief Safety Officer. [FR Doc. 2020–01667 Filed 1–29–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 1 The suspension of 49 CFR 213.233(b)(3) only applies to Phase 3 of the Test Program. E:\FR\FM\30JAN1.SGM 30JAN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 20 (Thursday, January 30, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5535-5536]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01670]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket Number FRA-2020-0009]


Petition for Waiver of Compliance

    Under part 211 of title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), this 
provides the public notice that on January 13, 2020, the Metropolitan 
Council's Metro Transit Division (Metro Transit), petitioned the 
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for a waiver of compliance from 
certain provisions of the Federal railroad safety regulations contained 
at 49 CFR parts 214, 219, 220, 229, 235, and 236. FRA assigned the 
petition Docket Number FRA-2020-0009.
    Metro Transit operates two rail fixed guideway transit systems in 
Minnesota--the METRO Blue and Green light rail transit (LRT) Lines. 
Currently, the Green Line is 11 miles in length with 18 stations 
between Target Field Station in downtown Minneapolis, and Union Depot 
Station in downtown St. Paul, sharing 5 stations in downtown 
Minneapolis with the Blue Line. The Green Line LRT Extension Project, 
also known as Southwest Light Rail Transit Line (SWLRT), will add 
approximately 14.5 miles of standard-gage light rail double-track with 
16 new passenger stations within Hennepin County, Minnesota, to the 
existing Green Line LRT operations. The SWLRT project will extend the 
existing Green Line from the Target Field/Interchange Station near the 
central business district of downtown Minneapolis through the 
communities of St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Minnetonka, and Eden Prairie, 
passing near Edina. The SWLRT line will terminate at the Southwest 
Station in Eden Prairie. Construction of the SWLRT Project began in 
2019 with the projected opening for revenue service operations in 2023.
    SWLRT will be constructed adjacent to freight rail service operated 
by Twin Cities & Western Railroad (TCWR) in the Kenilworth Corridor and 
a portion of the Bass Lake Spur, and adjacent to freight rail service 
operated by BNSF Railway (BNSF) in the Wayzata Subdivision. Typical 
track center spacing averages 25 feet or more throughout this shared 
corridor. SWLRT and TCWR will share use of five highway-rail grade 
crossings (HRGC) on the Kenilworth Corridor and Bass Lake Spur located 
at 21st Street South in Minneapolis, Beltline Boulevard and Wooddale 
Avenue in St. Louis Park, and 5th Avenue South and Blake Road North in 
Hopkins. There are no shared HRGCs on the BNSF Wayzata Subdivision. An 
intrusion detection system will be installed wherever typical spacing 
for track centers between SWLRT and freight tracks is less than 50 
feet.
    On the Bass Lake Spur (Milepost (MP) 16.3/428.38 to MP 435.06), the 
Metropolitan Council has, on Hennepin County Regional Railroad 
Authority's behalf, contracted with third parties to perform freight 
rail operations maintenance, dispatching, and flagging services. The 
SWLRT track and signal system is wholly separate and distinct from any 
adjacent freight tracks and related equipment. Metro Transit will 
maintain its own track and signals in the SWLRT, and only Metro Transit 
Signal and Train Control employees will be working on signal and train 
control equipment at the five shared HRGCs.
    Specifically, Metro Transit seeks a waiver of compliance from 
certain provisions of FRA regulations applicable to the limited 
connections of the SWLRT to the general railroad system at five shared 
HRGCs, stating it has alternative procedures in place on its existing 
Green Line operations which are comparable from a substantive 
perspective to FRA safety regulations. Moreover, Metro Transit states 
the waivers would promote consistency in the standard operating 
procedures followed by Metro Transit in its Green Line LRT operations 
and provide an equivalent level of safety to the corresponding FRA 
regulations.
    A copy of the petition, as well as any written communications 
concerning the petition, is available for review online at 
www.regulations.gov and in person at the U.S. Department of 
Transportation's (DOT) Docket Operations Facility, 1200 New Jersey Ave. 
SE, W12-140, Washington, DC 20590. The Docket Operations Facility is 
open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
Holidays.

[[Page 5536]]

    Interested parties are invited to participate in these proceedings 
by submitting written views, data, or comments. FRA does not anticipate 
scheduling a public hearing in connection with these proceedings since 
the facts do not appear to warrant a hearing. If any interested parties 
desire an opportunity for oral comment and a public hearing, they 
should notify FRA, in writing, before the end of the comment period and 
specify the basis for their request.
    All communications concerning these proceedings should identify the 
appropriate docket number and may be submitted by any of the following 
methods:
     Website: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Operations Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    Communications received by March 16, 2020 will be considered by FRA 
before final action is taken. Comments received after that date will be 
considered if practicable.
    Anyone can search the electronic form of any written communications 
and comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the 
individual submitting the comment (or signing the document, if 
submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). 
Under 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to better 
inform its processes. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including 
any personal information the commenter provides, to 
www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of records notice (DOT/
ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at https://www.transportation.gov/privacy. See also https://www.regulations.gov/privacyNotice for the 
privacy notice of regulations.gov.

    Issued in Washington, DC.
John Karl Alexy,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, Chief Safety Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-01670 Filed 1-29-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-06-P
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