Federal Transit Administration 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the selection of projects funded under the Veterans Transportation and Community Living Initiative (VTCLI) discretionary grant program, which was announced in the Section 5309 Discretionary Bus and Bus Facilities Program notice of funding availability on July 27, 2011. The VTCLI grant program makes funds available to local, state and tribal agencies to create or expand One- Call/One-Click Transportation Resource Centers in their communities. These centers will increase the availability of community transportation resources to veterans, service members and military families and improve the accessibility of existing mobility resources and other transportation information to the whole community. Additionally, they will enable closer coordination of existing transportation services to improve customer experiences and overall efficiency. The VTCLI supports the Obama Administration's priority of supporting America's veterans and military families, as well as the objectives of the Federal Interagency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility. The initiative is a joint effort of the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Service, Labor, Transportation and Veterans Affairs.

This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for projects in the following locations: City of Aurora and Arapahoe County, CO; Chicago, IL; Birmingham, AL; Sacramento, CA; New York, NY; and King County, WA. The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental decisions by FTA on the subject projects and to activate the limitation on any claims that may challenge these final environmental actions.

The Federal Transit Administration invites public comment about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to extend the approval of the following information collection: 49 U.S.C. Section 5330Rail Fixed Guideway Systems, State Safety Oversight. The information collected is used to monitor the safety of the rail transit agencies. The Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments was published on August 29, 2011 (Citation 76 FR 53713). No comments were received from that notice.

The Federal Transit Administration invites public comment about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval to renew the following information collection: 49 U.S.C. Section 5320Paul S. Sarbanes Transit in Parks Program. The information collected is to monitor projects and satisfy Congressional requests. The Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments was published on August 29, 2011 (Citation 76 FR 53714). No comments were received from that notice.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the selection of projects funded under two discretionary programs: Bus and Bus Facilities and Alternatives Analysis, in support of DOT's Livability Initiative, which was announced in the Discretionary Livability Funding Opportunity notice of funding availability on June 27, 2011. The Bus Livability program makes funds available to public transit providers to finance capital projects to replace, rehabilitate, and purchase buses and related equipment and to construct bus-related facilities, including programs of bus and bus- related projects for assistance to subrecipients that are public agencies, private companies engaged in public transportation, or private non-profit organizations. The Alternatives Analysis program makes funds available to States, authorities of States, metropolitan planning organizations, and local governmental authorities to develop alternatives analyses. The Alternatives Analysis Program assists potential sponsors of major transit capital investments (``New Starts'' and ``Small Starts'' projects) in the evaluation of all reasonable modal and multimodal alternatives and general alignment options to address transportation needs in a defined travel corridor. Through these funding awards, FTA will support a limited number of alternatives analyses, or technical work conducted as part of proposed or on-going alternatives analyses, that seek to advance major transit investments that foster the six livability principles of the DOT-HUD-EPA Partnership for Sustainable Communities.

FTA is extending the comment period on its proposed rule for Capital Project Management to December 2, 2011, to allow interested parties time to carefully review the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) issued September 13, 2011. Also, FTA will hold a webinar on November 10, 2011, to enable the public to ask questions and to clarify any misunderstandings regarding the NPRM or the Federal Transit Administrator's Dear Colleague letter of September 30, 2011.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority (the Construction Authority) are issuing this notice to advise the public that the Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for proposed improvements in the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Transit Corridor from Azusa to Montclair is being rescinded.

The FRA and FTA are issuing this Notice of Intent (NOI) to advise other agencies and the public that they will jointly prepare an EIS to study the implementation of passenger rail service between Tucson, Arizona and Phoenix, Arizona and to serve communities in between the two metropolitan areas (the proposed action). The FRA, FTA, and Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) will use a tiered process, as described in the regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) implementing the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) at 40 CFR 1502.20 and 1508.28 (NEPA) and FTA's environmental procedures at 23 CFR 771.111(g) and 774.7. This EIS is the first planning-level tier of the two-tiered environmental review process for the proposed action. FRA and FTA are issuing this Notice to alert interested parties, to solicit public and agency input on the scope of the Tier 1 EIS, provide information on the nature of the proposed project, including the purpose and need for the proposed action, possible alternatives to be considered in the preparation of the Tier 1 EIS, potentially significant impacts to the natural and built environment of those alternatives, and invite public participation in the EIS process. The Tier 1 EIS will be prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the CEQ regulations implementing NEPA, the FRA's Procedures for Considering Environmental Impacts as set forth in 64 FR 28545 dated May 26, 1999 (Environmental Procedures), and FTA's Environmental Impact and Related Procedures, in 23 CFR part 771. The EIS will also address Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, Section 4(f) of the U.S. Department of Transportation Act of 1966 (49 U.S.C. 303) and other applicable Federal and state laws and regulations to the extent relevant for a planning-level Tier-1 document. In addition, the Tier 1 study will incorporate the alternatives analyses process required by Federal transit law (49 U.S.C. 5309) and regulation (49 CFR part 611) for a project proposed for New Starts funding. Environmental Review Process: The FRA and FTA will use a tiered process, as provided for in 40 CFR 1508.28 and in accordance with FRA guidance, in the completion of the environmental review of the proposed action. ``Tiering'' is a staged environmental review process applied to environmental reviews for complex projects. The Tier 1 EIS will address broad corridor-level issues and alternatives. Subsequent tiers will analyze site-specific component projects and alternatives based on the decisions made in Tier 1. Tier 1: The Tier 1 assessment will result in a NEPA document with the appropriate level of detail for corridor-level decisions and will address broad overall issues of concern, including but not limited to: Confirming the purpose and need for the proposed action. Confirming the study area appropriate to assess reasonable alternatives. Developing evaluation criteria to identify alternatives that meet the purpose and need of the proposed action and those that do not. Identifying the range of reasonable alternatives to be considered, including the no action alternative, consistent with the current and planned use of the corridor and the existing services within and adjacent to the study area. Identifying the general alignment(s) of the reasonable alternatives. Identifying right-of-way requirements for the reasonable alternatives. Identifying the infrastructure and equipment investment requirements for the reasonable alternatives. Specifying the future no-build alternative that reflects already planned highway and transit developments in the study area expected to be in place by the project design year. Specifying the New Starts baseline alternative that addresses the proposed action's purpose and need to the maximum extent possible without a new transit fixed guideway. Identifying the operational changes required for the reasonable alternatives. Describing and evaluating the potential environmental impacts and mitigation associated with the proposed alternatives in the level of detail appropriate for a Tier 1 EIS. Establishing the timing and sequencing of independent actions to implement the proposed action. Evaluating the transit alternatives under the New Starts criteria specified in 49 U.S.C. 5309 and 49 CFR part 611. The transit alternatives may be subsets of the full build alternatives that provide intercity rail service. Identifying the Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA), FTA's planning level alternative for the New Starts program, through an Alternatives Analysis process. Tier 2: The Tier 2 assessments will not be included in this study but will be identified as future actions to address components of the planning level alternative selected at the conclusion of the Tier 1 EIS. This Tier 1 EIS preparation will include initial planning level elements of a Service Development Plan; present corridor route alternatives; and provide conceptual engineering designs of track, ancillary facilities, stations, and other major design features to a level sufficient to allow for meaningful understanding and comparison of alternatives. The Tier 1 EIS will provide programmatic assessment of environmental effects associated with the construction, operation, and maintenance components of the proposed action. The Tier 1 EIS will evaluate a range of reasonable corridor-level alternatives to include the ``Baseline Conditions'' and ``No Action'' Alternatives. Build alternatives may occur along existing rail line(s) or may be on a new alignment. The EIS will provide for: (1) An FTA-compliant Alternatives Analysis and (2) an FTA-compliant Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement.

This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for the following projects: (1) Middletown Train Station Relocation, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Middletown Borough and Lower Swatara Township, PA; (2) Union Station to Oak Cliff Dallas Streetcar, North Central Texas Council of Governments, Dallas, TX; (3) Wilshire Bus Rapid Transit Project, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Los Angeles, CA; (4) Cedar Avenue Bus Rapid Transit Station-to-Station Service, Minnesota Valley Transit Authority and Metropolitan Council, Cities of Lakeville, Apple Valley, Eagan, and Bloomington, MN; and (5) Albany Multimodal Transit Center, City of Albany and Georgia Department of Transportation, City of Albany, Dougherty County, GA. The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental decisions by FTA on the subject projects and to activate the limitation on any claims that may challenge these final environmental actions.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has placed in the docket and on its Web site, proposed guidance in the form of a Circular to assist grantees in complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The purpose of this Circular is to provide recipients of FTA financial assistance with instructions and guidance necessary to carry out the U.S. Department of Transportation's Title VI regulations (49 CFR part 21). FTA is updating its Title VI Circular to clarify requirements for compliance. By this notice, FTA invites public comment on the proposed Circular.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Federal Transit Administration and the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority (Sound Transit) intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Sound Transit's proposed extension of the Central Link Light Rail system from Seattle in King County to the city of Lynnwood in Snohomish County, Washington. The EIS will also be prepared in accordance with Washington's State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). This Notice of Intent initiates scoping for the EIS, invites interested parties to participate in the EIS process, provides information about the purpose and need for the proposed transit project, includes the general set of alternatives being considered for evaluation in the EIS, and identifies potential environmental effects to be considered. With this notice, Sound Transit and FTA invite public comments on the scope of the EIS, and announce the public scoping meetings that will be conducted. Alternatives being considered for evaluation in the EIS include a No-Build alternative and various build alternatives to develop light rail in the North Corridor. The light rail alternatives are based on the most promising alternatives identified through an Alternatives Analysis study completed by the project. Early scoping for the alternatives analysis phase was previously announced in the Federal Register on September 27, 2010. Results of the alternatives analysis are described below.

This notice announces a final environmental action taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for the following project: Woodward Avenue Light Rail Transit Project, City of Detroit, Detroit, MI. The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental decision by FTA on the subject project and to activate the limitation on any claims that may challenge this final environmental action.

The Federal Transit Administration invites public comment about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval to renew the following information collection:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the intention of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to request the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to extend the following currently approved information collection: 49 U.S.C. Section 5316Job Access and Reverse Commute Program.

This notice is intended to inform the public that no significant changes are proposed to the existing guidance on the New Starts and Small Starts programs. FTA is required by statute to publish policy guidance every two years on the New Starts and Small Starts programs. This notice serves to notify the public that FTA intends to continue use of existing guidance at this time.

The Federal Transit Administration invites public comment about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval to renew the following information collection:

This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for the following projects: (1) Ardmore Transit Center, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), Ardmore, Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County, PA; (2) Charlotte Streetcar Project, City of Charlotte, Charlotte, NC; (3) Cincinnati Streetcar Project, City of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, OH; (4) Greenville Intermodal Transportation Center, City of Greenville, Greenville, NC; (5) New Kirk Bus Division, Maryland Transit Administration, Baltimore City, MD; (6) Mid-City/Exposition Corridor Light Rail Transit Project, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), Los Angeles, CA; (7) Moline Multimodal Station, Rock Island County Metropolitan Mass Transit District (MetroLINK), Moline, IL; (8) North White Plains Parking Garage Project, Metropolitan Transportation Authority Metro-North Railroad, White Plains, NY. The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental decisions by FTA on the subject projects and to activate the limitation on any claims that may challenge these final environmental actions.

Section 5334(h) of the Federal Transit Laws, as codified, 49 U.S.C. 5301, et seq., permits the Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to authorize a recipient of FTA funds to transfer land or a facility to a public body for any public purpose with no further obligation to the Federal Government if, among other things, no Federal agency is interested in acquiring the asset for Federal use. Accordingly, FTA is issuing this Notice to advise Federal agencies that the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) intends to transfer a parcel of property to the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), a corporation organized under the Rail Passenger Service Act, recodified 48 U.S.C. 24101 et seq., and the laws of the District of Columbia, and having its principal place of business at 60 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Washington, DC 20002. Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District currently owns the land. The property, which consists of 1.97 acres, is located at Amtrak South Bend Station, 2702 West Washington Street, South Bend, Indiana, 46628 and consists of approximately the following components: Station and Parking Lot Area of 1.13 acres, Undeveloped Land of 0.84 acres and Station Building of 5,890 square feet (the ``Property''). NICTD wishes to transfer ownership of the Property to Amtrak for Amtrak's continued use as their passenger station in South Bend, Indiana. Amtrak has used the Property since 1975 and wishes to continue to use it for an Amtrak station. NICTD has not used it since 1992. Because Amtrak seeks to make major renovations to the station to make it more usable for their passengers and Amtrak is the only entity using the Property, NICTD seeks to relinquish ownership of the Property to Amtrak.

The FTA and the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) intend to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for transit improvements for the Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project in San Diego, California. The SEIS will be prepared in accordance with regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and all applicable environmental laws, regulations, and executive orders. The purpose of this Notice of Intent is to alert interested parties regarding the plan to prepare the SEIS, and to provide information on the nature of the proposed transit project, to invite participation in the SEIS process, including comments on the scope of the SEIS proposed in this notice.

The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has asked the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to waive its Buy America requirements on the basis of public interest to permit the low bidder for a contract to construct the 86th Street Station for the Second Avenue Subway project to certify compliance with Buy America. The bidder certified non-compliance based on a misunderstanding of how FTA would apply its rules to certain construction materials. In fact, the low bidder is willing and able to comply with the Buy America rules. Without a waiver, MTA may spend an additional $32.9 million on the 86th Street Station without furthering the goals of Buy America. FTA seeks public comment before deciding whether to grant MTA's request. This Notice sets forth the justification for a public interest waiver in this instance.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the availability of discretionary funds in Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 for two programs in support of the Department of Transportation's (DOT) Livability Initiative: the Bus and Bus Facilities grant funds (49 U.S.C. 5309(b)) (``Bus Livability Program'') and the Alternatives Analysis Program (49 U.S.C. 5339), both authorized by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: A legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), Pub. L. 109-59, August 10, 2005. The Bus Livability Program will be funded using at least $150 million in available FY 2011 Discretionary Bus and Bus Facilities Program funds. The Alternatives Analysis program will be funded using up to $25 million in FY 2010 and FY2011 discretionary funds. These discretionary program funds will be distributed in accordance with the mission of each program and in support of the U.S. DOT's Livability Initiative and the Partnership for Sustainable Communities between the U.S. DOT, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Please note that this notice is one of several discretionary funding opportunities that FTA intends to issue by early Fall 2011. This notice includes priorities established by FTA for these discretionary funds, the criteria FTA will use to identify meritorious projects for funding, and describes how to apply for funding under each discretionary program. This announcement is available on the FTA Web site at: https://www.fta.dot.gov. FTA will announce final selections for each program on the Web site and in the Federal Register. Additionally, a synopsis of each funding opportunity will be posted in the FIND module of the government-wide electronic grants Web site at https://www.grants.gov.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the availability of discretionary funds in Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 for the Transit Investments for Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction (TIGGER) program and Clean Fuels Grant program, augmented with Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities program funds. These discretionary program funds will be distributed in accordance with the mission of each program and in support of the U. S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) environmental sustainability efforts. This notice includes priorities established by FTA for these discretionary funds, the criteria FTA will use to identify meritorious projects for funding, and describes how to apply for funding under each discretionary program. This announcement is available on the FTA Web site at: https://www.fta.dot.gov. FTA will announce final selections on the Web site and in the Federal Register. Additionally, a synopsis of each funding opportunity will be posted in the FIND module of the government-wide electronic grants Web site at https://www.grants.gov.

This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for the following projects: (1) sbX E Street Corridor Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Corridor, Omnitrans, San Bernardino, CA; (2) Georgia Transit Connector: Atlanta Streetcar, City of Atlanta and Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), Atlanta, GA; (3) Baldwin Park Transit Center Project, City of Baldwin Park, Baldwin Park, CA; (4) Regional Intermodal Transportation Center and Runway 33 Safety Area Restoration at Bob Hope Airport, Burbank- Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority, Burbank, CA; (5) Downtown Transit Center, Des Moines Area Regional Transit (DART) Authority, Des Moines, IA; (6) Improvements at Farmdale Avenue and Exposition Boulevard for the Exposition Light Rail Transit Project, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Los Angeles, CA; (7) Relocation of Traction Power Substations 3 and 4 for the Exposition Light Rail Project, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Los Angeles, CA; (8) I-90 Two-Way Transit and High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Operations Project, Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority (Sound Transit), King County, WA; (9) University of Washington to Sound Transit Link Pedestrian Connection Project (Montlake Triangle Project) Sound Transit North Link Light Rail, Sound Transit, Seattle, WA; (10) North Metro Corridor, Regional Transportation District, Commerce City, Thornton, Northglenn, and Adams County, CO; (11) St. Louis Loop Trolley, East-West Gateway Council of Governments, City of St. Louis and University City, MO; (12) Bus Operations and Maintenance Facility, Worchester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA), Worchester, MA; and (13) Jacksonville Bus Rapid Transit North Corridor, Jacksonville Transportation Authority, Jacksonville, FL. The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental decisions by FTA on the subject projects and to activate the limitation on any claims that may challenge these final environmental actions.

This notice announces the adoption of certain amendments for the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) 2011 National Transit Database (NTD) Urbanized Area Annual Reporting Manual (Annual Manual). On October 11, 2010, FTA published a notice in the Federal Register (73 FR 7361) inviting comments on proposed amendments to the 2011 Annual Manual. This notice provides responses to those comments, and announces the adoption of certain amendments for the 2011 Annual Manual.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is hosting a conference call to address issues concerning its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the calculation of average passenger weights and test vehicle weights. The purpose of this conference call is to allow the public to ask questions and to clarify any misunderstandings regarding the NPRM published on March 14, 2011 (76 FR 13580). Furthermore, due to the complexity of the issues proposed in the NPRM, FTA is extending the comment period to June 15, 2011, to allow interested parties time to carefully review the actual changes proposed in the NPRM and the information presented during the conference call.