Department of Transportation March 13, 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Board is granting an exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502 from the prior approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 11323-25 for Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP), a Class I rail carrier, to acquire and operate 0.8 miles of rail line owned by Brownsville and Matamoros Bridge Company (B&M), between UP milepost 0.59 (B&M milepost 0.80) to the international border with Mexico located at the center point of B&M's railroad bridge (B&M milepost 0.00). B&M is a common carrier by railroad but does not perform railroad operations itself. Historically, UP has conducted all operations on the line. Upon consummation of the transaction, UP will relocate overhead traffic to a newly constructed line outside the city of Brownsville, Tex. This exemption is subject to standard labor protective conditions.

FMCSA announces its decision to renew the exemptions from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 17 individuals. FMCSA has statutory authority to exempt individuals from the vision requirement if the exemptions granted will not compromise safety. The Agency has concluded that granting these exemption renewals will provide a level of safety that is equivalent to or greater than the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.

FMCSA announces receipt of applications from 13 individuals for an exemption from the prohibition against persons with a clinical diagnosis of epilepsy or any other condition which is likely to cause a loss of consciousness or any loss of ability to operate a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) from operating CMVs in interstate commerce. The regulation and the associated advisory criteria published in the Code of Federal Regulations as the ``Instructions for Performing and Recording Physical Examinations'' have resulted in numerous drivers being prohibited from operating CMVs in interstate commerce based on the fact that they have had one or more seizures and are taking anti- seizure medication, rather than an individual analysis of their circumstances by a qualified medical examiner. If granted, the exemptions would enable these individuals who have had one or more seizures and are taking anti-seizure medication to operate CMVs for 2 years in interstate commerce.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) invites public comments about our intention to request Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for a new information collection. The information collection involves eligibility, demographic, and debriefing questionnaires. The information will be used to recruit participants for a field study on vehicle occupant protection technologies and to get information from study participants about their experience with such technologies. The study focuses on occupant protection technologies that restrict some vehicle functionality, permanently or temporarily, when they detect that a vehicle occupant is not wearing a seat belt.