Federal Transit Administration March 10, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

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, in the context of the Council on Environmental Quality's early scoping process, methods of improving transit service in the City of Ogden, Utah. The early scoping process is part of a planning Alternatives Analysis (AA) required by Title 49 United States Code (U.S.C.) Sec. 5309 for the selection of alternatives that will be subject to the appropriate environmental process under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Early scoping meetings have been planned and are announced below. The Ogden-WSU Transit Corridor Alternatives Analysis is focusing on improving transit service in a 5-mile corridor between downtown Ogden and Weber State University (WSU). The entire study area is located within the City of Ogden, Weber County, Utah. The corridor connects the Ogden Intermodal Center/FrontRunner commuter rail station to the area's major employment, housing, commercial and education destinations, including Downtown Ogden, Weber State University, and McKay Dee Hospital. With the connection to FrontRunner commuter rail, the corridor also serves trips to and from the greater Wasatch Front Region. In 2005, the UTA and its regional partners completed a Major Investment Feasibility Study of the corridor. The 2005 study concluded that a corridor connecting downtown Ogden and WSU was a promising candidate for increased transit capital investment, potentially incorporating streetcar or Bus Rapid Transit service. This study also developed local consensus for an initial statement of the Purpose and Need for the project, and evaluated potential alignments and modes. The planning Alternatives Analysis now being initiated is expected to result in the selection of a Locally Preferred Alternative by the Utah Transit Authority and its partners, which include the Wasatch Front Regional Council, the metropolitan planning organization for the Greater Salt Lake metropolitan area. Other partners include the City of Ogden, Weber County, Weber State University, McKay Dee Hospital, and the Utah Department of Transportation. The Locally Preferred Alternative will then be a ``proposed action,'' subject to an appropriate environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). If the Preferred Alternative is anticipated to have significant impacts, an environmental impact statement (EIS) would be initiated with a Notice of Intent (NOI) in the Federal Register. Public and agency scoping of the EIS would be conducted at that time. The early scoping notice is intended to generate public comments on the scope of the alternatives analysis. This includes the purpose and need for the project, the range of alternatives, and environmental and community impacts and benefits to be considered in the alternatives analysis.