Federal Transit Administration 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

As part of a Federal Government-wide effort to streamline the process to seek feedback from the public on service delivery, 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 under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et. seq.):

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has placed in the docket and on its Web site, guidance in the form of a circular to assist grantees in implementing the Enhanced Mobility for Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities Program. The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act blended the New Freedom Program and the Elderly Individuals and Individuals with Disabilities Program into a new Enhanced Mobility for Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities Program. FTA is updating the circular due to these changes in the law.

The FTA and FHWA are jointly issuing this guidance on implementation of provisions of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), that require representation by providers of public transportation in each metropolitan planning organization (MPO) that serves a transportation management area (TMA) no later than October 1, 2014. The purpose of this guidance is to assist MPOs and providers of public transportation in complying with this new requirement.

This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for projects in the following locations: Boise, ID and Houston, TX. 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 document seeks public comment on FTA's proposed requirements for the interim safety certification training provisions for Federal and State safety oversight personnel and their contractor support who conduct safety audits and examinations of public transportation systems not otherwise regulated by another Federal agency. Additionally, FTA proposes that designated safety oversight personnel of public transportation systems that receive Federal transit funding may voluntarily participate in the interim safety certification training program.

The US. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the selection of projects with Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 appropriations for the Tribal Transit Program (TTP). On May 9, 2013 FTA published a Federal Register Notice (78 FR 27284) announcing the availability of the funding for the program. The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) authorizes approximately $5 million for federally recognized Indian Tribes or Alaska Native villages, groups, or communities as identified by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in the U.S. Department of the Interior for public transportation. Combined with available funding from prior years, FTA is allocating a total of approximately $5.05 million to selected projects in this notice. The TTP supports capital projects, operating costs and planning activities that are eligible under the Formula Grants for Rural Areas Program (Section 5311). FTA funds may only be used for eligible purposes defined under 49 U.S.C 5311 and described in the proposed FTA Circular 9040.1G, and consistent with the specific eligibility and priorities established in the May 2013 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) .

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 renew the following information collection:

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) are issuing joint guidance on the implementation of the financial penalty provisions contained in Section 1306 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). The financial penalty provisions require Federal agencies of jurisdiction (Reviewing Agency) to render a decision on a permit, license, or other approval related to a transportation project within 180 days from the later of the date FHWA or FTA issue a Record of Decision or Finding of No Significant Impacts for a project, or the date on which an application for a permit, license, or approval for the project is complete. If the Reviewing Agency does not render a decision by the 180-day deadline, it is subject to a rescission of funds of $10,000 or $20,000 per week until the Reviewing Agency renders a decision. The FHWA and FTA have the authority to grant ``no-fault'' certifications if the Reviewing Agency's failure to decide was due to circumstances beyond its control. You may review the guidance by visiting FHWA's Web site at https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/map21, or FTA's Web site at https://www/fta.dot.gov/map21.

In response to the MTA Capital Construction Company's (MTACC) request for a Buy America waiver for the pad and rubber boot of a concrete block for the Low Vibration Track (LVT) system that it is constructing on behalf of New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (MTA) operating agency, New York City Transit (NYCT), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) hereby waives its Buy America requirements on the basis of non-availability for the pad and rubber bootcomponents of the concrete blocks used in MTA's LVT system. This waiver is limited to Phase 1 of the Second Avenue Subway Project and is valid only for the pads and rubber boots already procured for this project.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is apportioning fiscal years (FY) 2013 and 2014 funds for the new State Safety Oversight (SSO) Formula Grant Program in accordance with the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). This notice apportions the available funding for FYs 2013 and 2014 and provides instructions and guidance for this new formula grant program, for which funding is available to eligible States to develop or carry out SSO Programs (SSOPs) that monitor and improve the safety of rail fixed guideway public transportation systems (RFGPTS or rail transit systems) in their jurisdictions that are not regulated by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). This notice also establishes the formula for this new grant program and responds to the comments received pursuant to the May 13, 2013 Federal Register notice (78 FR 28014) on the illustrative apportionment for SSO grant funding.

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 collections:

This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for a project in Bucks County, PA, and Mercer County, NJ. The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental decisions by FTA on the subject project and to activate the limitation on any claims that may challenge these final environmental actions.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) received a request for a waiver to permit the purchase of a Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) HVAC system that is non-compliant with Buy America requirements using FTA funding. The request is from the Rock Island County Metropolitan Mass Transit District (MetroLINK) for its Rock Island Transfer Station. In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 5323(j)(3)(A), FTA is providing notice of the waiver request and seeks public comment before deciding whether to grant the request. If granted, the waiver would apply only to the FTA-funded procurement of a VRF HVAC system by MetroLINK.

The Federal Transit Agency (FTA), as the lead federal agency, the Washington County Regional Railroad Authority (WCRRA), and the Metropolitan Council intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Gateway Corridor project. The Gateway Corridor project is a planned transitway approximately 12 miles in length located in Ramsey and Washington Counties in the eastern part of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota. The project is located in a corridor generally parallel to Interstate 94 (I-94) and will better connect downtown Saint Paul with its east side neighborhoods and the suburban cities of Maplewood, Landfall, Oakdale, Lake Elmo, and Woodbury. More broadly, the Gateway Corridor project will better connect the eastern Twin Cities Metropolitan Area to the regional transit network via the Union Depot multimodal hub in downtown Saint Paul. The project is also intended to serve and draw ridership from other portions of the metropolitan area, including portions of eastern Washington County and western St. Croix County (Wisconsin) to the east, Dakota County to the south, and the city of Minneapolis and Hennepin County to the west. The EIS will be prepared in accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and its implementing regulations with FTA as the lead agency. The purpose of this notice is to alert interested parties of the intent to prepare the EIS; to provide information on the nature of the proposed action and possible alternatives; to invite public participation in the EIS process, including comments on the scope of the Draft EIS proposed in this notice; and to announce that public and agency scoping meetings will be conducted.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA), in cooperation with the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) and the City of Anaheim, are issuing this notice to advise the public that the Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for proposed transit improvements in the corridor between the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC) and The Anaheim Resort in the city of Anaheim is being rescinded.

This notice announces the availability of the Federal Transportation Administration's (FTA) Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 Annual List of Certifications and Assurances for FTA Grants and Cooperative Agreements. See FTA Web site, https://www.fta.dot.gov. In this notice, FTA provides a consolidated list of the various pre-award Certifications and Assurances that may apply to an Applicant for FTA funding and its Project. Each Applicant for FTA funding must submit the Certifications and Assurances that apply to itself and the Project(s) for which it seeks funding during the fiscal year in which it requests that funding. An Applicant typically acts through its certified or authorized representative (You). You, as the Authorized Representative, must have the authority to, among other things, sign the Applicant's Certifications and Assurances and bind the Applicant's compliance. This Notice also describes both FTA's and the Applicant's responsibilities with respect to the Certifications and Assurances and highlights the differences between the FY 2014 Certifications and Assurances and those published for FY 2013. In addition, this Notice also provides instructions on how and when to submit Certifications and Assurances for FY 2014.

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 collections:

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has placed in the docket and on its Web site, guidance, in the form of a Circular, to assist recipients in their implementation of the Urbanized Area Formula Program. The purpose of this Circular is to provide recipients of FTA financial assistance with instructions and guidance on the program's administration and the grant application process.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Utah Transit Authority (UTA) issue this early scoping notice to advise other agencies and the public that they intend to explore potential alternatives for improving public transportation service to and within the central Wasatch Mountains of Salt Lake County and Summit County, Utah. UTA is conducting this work through formal agreement and partnership with numerous state and local agencies, including Salt Lake County, Summit County, Wasatch Front Regional Council, Salt Lake City, Cottonwood Heights, Sandy City, Park City, Town of Alta, and others. This early scoping process is part of a regional planning effort to examine regional connectivity for the central Wasatch Mountains. This notice invites the public to help frame transportation improvements, while considering the inherent interdependence of watershed protection, wilderness protection, land-use planning, and economic opportunities in the central Wasatch Mountains. This process builds upon prior planning efforts contained in Salt Lake County's ``Wasatch Canyons Tomorrow'' study and ``Mountain Transportation Study'' completed in September 2010 and November 2012, respectively. The early scoping process is intended to support a future National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) scoping process, as appropriate.

On December 31, 2013, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) issued Safety Advisory 14-1 to provide guidance to State Safety Oversight Agencies (SSOAs) and rail fixed guideway public transportation agencies on redundant protections for roadway workers in the rail transit industry, and review and revision of rules and procedures to protect roadway workers from trains and moving equipment. FTA issued this guidance in response to a number of recent accidents in the industry, and two urgent recommendations by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). FTA's Safety Advisory 14-1, ``Right-of-Way Worker Protection,'' is available in its entirety on the agency's public Web site (https://www.fta.dot.gov/tso.html). Further, FTA has asked each SSOA to coordinate with every rail transit agency within its jurisdiction to complete and submit Appendix 1 to Safety Advisory 14-1, ``Right-of-Way Worker Protection Assessment Checklist,'' and to conduct formal hazard analyses regarding the presence of workers in rail transit rights-of-way.