Petition for Waiver of Compliance, 53141-53142 [2021-20644]
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 183 / Friday, September 24, 2021 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket Number FRA–2010–0029]
National Railroad Passenger
Corporation’s Request To Amend Its
Positive Train Control Safety Plan and
Positive Train Control System
Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of availability and
request for comments.
AGENCY:
This document provides the
public with notice that the National
Railroad Passenger Corporation
(Amtrak) submitted a request for
amendment (RFA) to its FRA-approved
Positive Train Control Safety Plan
(PTCSP) on August 5, 2021. As this RFA
may involve a request for FRA’s
approval of proposed material
modifications to an FRA-certified
positive train control (PTC) system, FRA
is publishing this notice and inviting
public comment on the railroad’s RFA
to its PTCSP.
DATES: FRA will consider comments
received by October 14, 2021. FRA may
consider comments received after that
date to the extent practicable and
without delaying implementation of
valuable or necessary modifications to a
PTC system.
ADDRESSES:
Comments: Comments may be
submitted by going to https://
www.regulations.gov and following the
online instructions for submitting
comments.
Instructions: All submissions must
include the agency name and the
applicable docket number. The relevant
PTC docket number for this host
railroad is Docket No. FRA–2010–0029.
For convenience, all active PTC dockets
are hyperlinked on FRA’s website at
https://railroads.dot.gov/train-control/
ptc/ptc-annual-and-quarterly-reports.
All comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.regulations.gov; this includes any
personal information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Gabe Neal, Staff Director, Signal, Train
Control, and Crossings Division,
telephone: 816–516–7168, email:
Gabe.Neal@dot.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In general,
Title 49 United States Code (U.S.C.)
section 20157(h) requires FRA to certify
that a host railroad’s PTC system
complies with 49 CFR part 236, subpart
I, before the technology may be operated
in revenue service. Before making
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:50 Sep 23, 2021
Jkt 253001
certain changes to an FRA-certified PTC
system or the associated FRA-approved
PTCSP, a host railroad must submit, and
obtain FRA’s approval of, an RFA to its
PTCSP under Title 49 Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) Section 236.1021.
Under 49 CFR 236.1021(e), FRA’s
regulations provide that FRA will
publish a notice in the Federal Register
and invite public comment in
accordance with 49 CFR part 211, if an
RFA includes a request for approval of
a material modification of a signal and
train control system. Accordingly, this
notice informs the public that on August
5, 2021, Amtrak submitted an RFA to its
PTCSP for its Advanced Civil Speed
Enforcement System II (ACSES II) and
that RFA is available in Docket No.
FRA–2010–0029.
Interested parties are invited to
comment on Amtrak’s RFA to its PTCSP
by submitting written comments or data.
During FRA’s review of Amtrak’s RFA,
FRA will consider any comments or
data submitted within the timeline
specified in this notice and to the extent
practicable, without delaying
implementation of valuable or necessary
modifications to a PTC system. See 49
CFR 236.1021; see also 49 CFR
236.1011(e). Under 49 CFR 236.1021,
FRA maintains the authority to approve,
approve with conditions, or deny a
railroad’s RFA to its PTCSP at FRA’s
sole discretion.
Privacy Act Notice
In accordance with 49 CFR 211.3,
FRA solicits comments from the public
to better inform its decisions. DOT posts
these comments, without edit, including
any personal information the
commenter provides, to https://
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 https://www.regulations.gov/
privacy-notice for the privacy notice of
regulations.gov. To facilitate comment
tracking, we encourage commenters to
provide their name, or the name of their
organization; however, submission of
names is completely optional. If you
wish to provide comments containing
proprietary or confidential information,
please contact FRA for alternate
submission instructions.
Issued in Washington, DC.
Carolyn R. Hayward-Williams,
Director, Office of Railroad Systems and
Technology.
[FR Doc. 2021–20642 Filed 9–23–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–06–P
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53141
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket Number FRA–2021–0091]
Petition for Waiver of Compliance
This document provides the public
notice that on September 7, 2021,
Wisconsin Central Ltd. (WCL) and
Canadian National Railway Company
(collectively referred to as CN)
petitioned the Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA) under 49 CFR
211.51 to temporarily suspend for
testing purposes, certain provisions of
the Federal railroad safety regulations
contained at 49 CFR 232.205, Class I
brake test-initial terminal inspection.
Although CN filed its petition under
§ 211.51, FRA concluded that
considering this request under the
provisions of 49 CFR part 211, subpart
C, Waivers, would be more appropriate.
Accordingly, FRA assigned the petition
Docket Number FRA–2021–0091.
Specifically, CN seeks relief from the
requirements of § 232.205(c)(ii)(B) for
testing purposes which would allow CN
to operate trains with a combined air
flow to the brake pipe above 90 cubic
feet per minute (CFM) with no
individual source of air having a flow
greater than 60 CFM or 15 psi gradient.
CN seeks a short duration of relief to
physically test braking reaction and
train performance, under conditions of
higher air flow, specifically caused by
the addition of air sources (air cars or
locomotives) that yield a more even
pressure throughout the brake pipe. CN
seeks to perform the testing on the WCL
Chicago to Winnipeg corridor and the
CN Sprague Subdivision, from
November 2021 to April 2022, to test
under cold temperature conditions. CN
has previously conducted similar testing
through an exemption granted by
Transport Canada between February and
April 2020 and November 2020 and
March 2021. CN reports that the
program yielded positive results,
demonstrating that when multiple air
sources were used, trains operated at a
healthy pressure level in cold weather,
which resulted in cars applying an even
level of braking effort and greater
braking efficiency.
A copy of the petition, as well as any
written communications concerning the
petition, is available for review online at
www.regulations.gov.
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
E:\FR\FM\24SEN1.SGM
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53142
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 183 / Friday, September 24, 2021 / Notices
hearing. If any interested party desires
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 at https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the online
instructions for submitting comments.
Communications received by
November 8, 2021 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), the U.S. Department of
Transportation (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/
privacy-notice for the privacy notice of
regulations.gov.
Issued in Washington, DC.
John Karl Alexy,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety,
Chief Safety Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021–20644 Filed 9–23–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–06–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket Numbers FRA–2010–0028, –0029,
–0039, –0042, –0043, –0045, –0048, –0051,
–0054, –0056, –0057, –0058, –0059, –0060,
–0061, –0062, –0064, –0065, and –0070]
Railroads’ Requests To Amend Their
Positive Train Control Safety Plans and
Positive Train Control Systems
Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of availability and
request for comments.
AGENCY:
This document provides the
public with notice that nineteen host
railroads recently submitted requests for
amendments (RFA) to their FRAapproved Positive Train Control Safety
Plans (PTCSP). As these RFAs may
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:50 Sep 23, 2021
Jkt 253001
involve requests for FRA’s approval of
proposed material modifications to
FRA-certified positive train control
(PTC) systems, FRA is publishing this
notice and inviting public comment on
railroads’ RFAs to their PTCSPs.
DATES: FRA will consider comments
received by October 14, 2021. FRA may
consider comments received after that
date to the extent practicable and
without delaying implementation of
valuable or necessary modifications to
PTC systems.
ADDRESSES:
Comments: Comments may be
submitted by going to https://
www.regulations.gov and following the
online instructions for submitting
comments.
Instructions: All submissions must
include the agency name and the
applicable docket number. The relevant
PTC docket numbers for the host
railroads that filed RFAs to their
PTCSPs are cited above and in the
Supplementary Information section of
this notice. For convenience, all active
PTC dockets are hyperlinked on FRA’s
website at https://railroads.dot.gov/
train-control/ptc/ptc-annual-andquarterly-reports. All comments
received will be posted without change
to https://www.regulations.gov; this
includes any personal information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Gabe Neal, Staff Director, Signal, Train
Control, and Crossings Division,
telephone: 816–516–7168, email:
Gabe.Neal@dot.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In general,
Title 49 United States Code (U.S.C.)
Section 20157(h) requires FRA to certify
that a host railroad’s PTC system
complies with 49 CFR part 236, subpart
I, before the technology may be operated
in revenue service. Before making
certain changes to an FRA-certified PTC
system or the associated FRA-approved
PTCSP, a host railroad must submit, and
obtain FRA’s approval of, an RFA to its
PTCSP under Title 49 Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) Section 236.1021.
Under 49 CFR 236.1021(e), FRA’s
regulations provide that FRA will
publish a notice in the Federal Register
and invite public comment in
accordance with 49 CFR part 211, if an
RFA includes a request for approval of
a material modification of a signal and
train control system. Accordingly, this
notice informs the public that host
railroads’ recent RFAs to their PTCSPs
are available in their respective public
PTC dockets, and this notice provides
an opportunity for public comment on
these RFAs.
On September 10, 2021, the following
19 host railroads jointly submitted an
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RFA to their respective PTCSPs for their
Interoperable Electronic Train
Management Systems (I–ETMS): Alaska
Railroad Corporation (ARR), The Belt
Railway Company of Chicago (BRC),
BNSF Railway (BNSF), Caltrain (PCMZ),
Canadian National Railway (CN),
Canadian Pacific Railway (CP),
Consolidated Rail Corporation (CRSH),
CSX Transportation, Inc. (CSX), Kansas
City Terminal Railway (KCT), Kansas
City Southern Railway (KCS), National
Passenger Railroad Corporation
(Amtrak), New Mexico Rail Runner
Express (NMRX), Northeast Illinois
Regional Commuter Railroad
Corporation (Metra), Northern Indiana
Commuter Transportation District
(NICD), Norfolk Southern Railway (NS),
South Florida Regional Transportation
Authority (SFRV), Southern California
Regional Rail Authority (Metrolink),
Terminal Railroad Association of St.
Louis, and Union Pacific Railroad (UP).
Their joint RFA is available in Docket
Numbers FRA–2010–0028, –0029,
–0039, –0042, –0043, –0045, –0048,
–0051, –0054, –0056, –0057, –0058,
–0059, –0060, –0061, –0062, –0064,
–0065, and –0070.
Interested parties are invited to
comment on any RFAs to railroads’
PTCSPs by submitting written
comments or data. During FRA’s review
of railroads’ RFAs, FRA will consider
any comments or data submitted within
the timeline specified in this notice and
to the extent practicable, without
delaying implementation of valuable or
necessary modifications to PTC systems.
See 49 CFR 236.1021; see also 49 CFR
236.1011(e). Under 49 CFR 236.1021,
FRA maintains the authority to approve,
approve with conditions, or deny
railroads’ RFAs to their PTCSPs at
FRA’s sole discretion.
Privacy Act Notice
In accordance with 49 CFR 211.3,
FRA solicits comments from the public
to better inform its decisions. DOT posts
these comments, without edit, including
any personal information the
commenter provides, to https://
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 https://www.regulations.gov/
privacy-notice for the privacy notice of
regulations.gov. To facilitate comment
tracking, we encourage commenters to
provide their name, or the name of their
organization; however, submission of
names is completely optional. If you
wish to provide comments containing
proprietary or confidential information,
please contact FRA for alternate
submission instructions.
E:\FR\FM\24SEN1.SGM
24SEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 183 (Friday, September 24, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53141-53142]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-20644]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket Number FRA-2021-0091]
Petition for Waiver of Compliance
This document provides the public notice that on September 7, 2021,
Wisconsin Central Ltd. (WCL) and Canadian National Railway Company
(collectively referred to as CN) petitioned the Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA) under 49 CFR 211.51 to temporarily suspend for
testing purposes, certain provisions of the Federal railroad safety
regulations contained at 49 CFR 232.205, Class I brake test-initial
terminal inspection. Although CN filed its petition under Sec. 211.51,
FRA concluded that considering this request under the provisions of 49
CFR part 211, subpart C, Waivers, would be more appropriate.
Accordingly, FRA assigned the petition Docket Number FRA-2021-0091.
Specifically, CN seeks relief from the requirements of Sec.
232.205(c)(ii)(B) for testing purposes which would allow CN to operate
trains with a combined air flow to the brake pipe above 90 cubic feet
per minute (CFM) with no individual source of air having a flow greater
than 60 CFM or 15 psi gradient. CN seeks a short duration of relief to
physically test braking reaction and train performance, under
conditions of higher air flow, specifically caused by the addition of
air sources (air cars or locomotives) that yield a more even pressure
throughout the brake pipe. CN seeks to perform the testing on the WCL
Chicago to Winnipeg corridor and the CN Sprague Subdivision, from
November 2021 to April 2022, to test under cold temperature conditions.
CN has previously conducted similar testing through an exemption
granted by Transport Canada between February and April 2020 and
November 2020 and March 2021. CN reports that the program yielded
positive results, demonstrating that when multiple air sources were
used, trains operated at a healthy pressure level in cold weather,
which resulted in cars applying an even level of braking effort and
greater braking efficiency.
A copy of the petition, as well as any written communications
concerning the petition, is available for review online at
www.regulations.gov.
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
[[Page 53142]]
hearing. If any interested party desires 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 at https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
Communications received by November 8, 2021 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), the U.S.
Department of Transportation (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/privacy-notice for the
privacy notice of regulations.gov.
Issued in Washington, DC.
John Karl Alexy,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, Chief Safety Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-20644 Filed 9-23-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P
