Department of Transportation January 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Commonwealth of Virginia has petitioned for approval of alternate requirements governing certain aspects of Federal odometer law. NHTSA is issuing a final determination granting Virginia's petition.

Pursuant to section 658.11(e) of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations, the Washington, DC Department of Transportation (DDOT) has requested approval of a plan to temporarily close segments of the Interstate to all traffic except motor coaches and busesI-395 (from the 14th Street Bridge to New York Avenue), I-695 (from the 3rd Street Tunnel to the 11th Street Bridges), and I-295 (from I-695 to DC-295) on January 20, 2009, beginning at 12 a.m., for one consecutive 24-hour period, because of the Presidential Inauguration. I-395 would be closed to general purpose traffic at New York Avenue up to the 14th Street Bridge. I-695 would be closed to general purpose traffic at the 11th Street Bridges. I-295 would be closed to general purpose traffic at Pennsylvania Avenue. The request has been made for the purposes of safety and security in and around the Capitol Building as well as for the critically needed space to park a portion of the expected 10,000 buses bringing people into the Washington area on January 20th. The Interstate routes included in the request are part of the National Network of highways that can safely and efficiently accommodate the large vehicles authorized by provisions of the Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 (STAA), as amended, designated in accordance with 23 CFR Part 658 and listed in Appendix A. This regulation limits the authority of the States to restrict the access of these commercial motor vehicles to the designated National Routes, and requires the approval of the FHWA for additions, deletions, exceptions and restrictions in accordance with 23 CFR 658.11. The FHWA has decided to approve the request by the DDOT as an emergency deletion in accordance with section 658.11(e) due to the safety considerations discussed in this notice. The FHWA is requesting comments from the general public on this determination. Under title 23 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 658.11 (Additions, deletions, exceptions, and restrictions), the FHWA can grant the closing of the Interstate system or other National Network route based upon specified justification criteria in section 658.11(d)(2). The FHWA is also authorized to delete any route from the National Network on an emergency basis based on safety considerations pursuant to section 658.11(e). These emergency deletions are published in the Federal Register for notice and comment.

The Surface Transportation Board (Board or STB) proposes to amend its rules to provide that where an agreement for rail carriage contains the disclosure statement to be set forth in this new rule, the Board will not find jurisdiction over a dispute involving the rate or service under the agreement and will treat that agreement as a rail transportation contract governed by 49 U.S.C. 10709; and conversely where an agreement for rail carriage fails to contain the disclosure statement, the Board will find jurisdiction over a dispute involving the rate or service under the agreement, absent clear and convincing evidence that the parties intended to enter into a rail transportation contract governed by 49 U.S.C. 10709; and the shipper was made aware that it could request service under a common carrier tariff rate that would be subject to STB jurisdiction.

FMCSA announces its decision to grant Volvo Trucks North America, Inc.'s (Volvo) application for an exemption for one of its drivers to enable him to test-drive commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in the United States without a commercial driver's license (CDL) issued by one of the States. Volvo stated the exemption is needed to support a field test to meet future air quality standards and to test-drive Volvo prototype vehicles to verify results in ``real world'' environments. Its driver holds a valid CDL issued in Sweden but lacks the U.S. residency necessary to obtain a CDL issued by one of the States. FMCSA believes the knowledge and skills testing and training program that drivers must undergo to obtain a Swedish CDL ensures that their drivers will achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety achieved without the exemption.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is making minor technical changes to the requirements for submitting a petition for rulemaking or exemption. In a final rule published in the Federal Register on December 5, 2007, the FAA inadvertently did not make conforming amendments to plain language requirements in the structure and content of the final rule. This technical amendment restructures or reorders the filing of petitions and incorporates a reference for additional filing guidance and instructions using the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS). These changes ensure general rulemaking procedures are clear, written in plain language, and better inform the public of administrative practices.

This establishes, amends, suspends, or revokes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.

The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be prepared for a proposed highway project on State Route 302 (SR) from Key Peninsula Highway to SR 16 in Pierce County, Washington.