Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 201 / Tuesday, October 19, 2004 / Notices 61551

at the July 8–9, 2003, meeting. The 

Working Group achieved consensus on 

recommendations for resolution of a 

portion of the issues in the proceeding. 

The full Committee considered the 

Working Group recommendations by 

mail ballots scheduled for return on 

August 14, 2003; however, a majority of 

the members voting did not concur. 

FRA has proceeded with preparation of 

a final rule, which is currently being 

reviewed in the Executive Branch. 

Task 00–1—Determining the need to 

amend regulations protecting persons 

who work on, under, or between rolling 

equipment and persons applying, 

removing or inspecting rear end 

marking devices (Blue Signal 

Protection). The Working Group held its 

first meeting on October 16–18, 2000, 

and six subsequent meetings have also 

been held. The Working Group 

significantly narrowed the issues, but 

did not reach full consensus on 

recommendations for regulatory action. 

The Administrator announced at the full 

RSAC meeting on December 2, 2003, 

that the task is withdrawn and the issue 

may be pursued at a later date. Contact: 

Doug Taylor (202) 493–6255. 

Task 03–01–Passenger Safety. This 

task was accepted May 20, 2003, and a 

Working Group was established. Prior to 

embarking on substantive discussions of 

a specific task, the Working Group set 

forth in writing a specific description of 

the task. The Working Group will report 

any planned activity to the full 

Committee at each scheduled full RSAC 

meeting, including milestones for 

completion of projects and progress 

toward completion. At the first meeting 

held September 9–10, 2003, a 

consolidated list of issues was 

completed. At the second meeting held 

November 6–7, 2003, five task groups 

were established: crashworthiness/

glazing; emergency preparedness; 

mechanical-general issues; mechanicalsafety appliances; and track/vehicle 

interaction. The task groups met and 

reported on activities for Working 

Group consideration at the third 

meeting held May 11–12, 2004. The task 

groups continue to meet and will report 

on its activities at the fourth Working 

Group meeting scheduled for October 

26–27, 2004. 

Completed Tasks: 

Task 96–1—(Completed) Revising the 

Freight Power Brake Regulations. 

Task 96–2—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to the 

Track Safety Standards (49 CFR Part 

213). 

Task 96–3—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to the 

Radio Standards and Procedures (49 

CFR Part 220). 

Task 96–5—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to Steam 

Locomotive Inspection Standards (49 

CFR Part 230). 

Task 96–6—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to 

miscellaneous aspects of the regulations 

addressing Locomotive Engineer 

Certification (49 CFR Part 240). 

Task 96–7—(Completed) Developing 

Roadway Maintenance Machines (OnTrack Equipment) Safety Standards. 

Task 96–8—(Completed) This 

Planning Task evaluated the need for 

action responsive to recommendations 

contained in a report to Congress 

entitled, Locomotive Crashworthiness & 

Working Conditions.

Task 97–7—(Completed) Determining 

damages qualifying an event as a 

reportable train accident. 

Task 01–1—(Completed) Developing 

conformity of FRA’s regulations for 

accident/incident reporting (49 CFR Part 

225) to revised regulations of the 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA), U.S. 

Department of Labor, and to make 

appropriate revisions to the FRA Guide 

for Preparing Accident/Incident Reports

(Reporting Guide). 

Please refer to the notice published in 

the Federal Register on March 11, 1996, 

(61 FR 9740) for more information about 

the RSAC.

Issued in Washington, DC, on October 12, 

2004. 

Grady C. Cothen, 

Acting Associate Administrator for Safety.

[FR Doc. 04–23384 Filed 10–18–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

In accordance with Part 211 of Title 

49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 

notice is hereby given that the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA) received 

a request for a waiver of compliance 

with certain requirements of its safety 

standards. The individual petition is 

described below, including the party 

seeking relief, the regulatory provisions 

involved, the nature of the relief being 

requested, and the petitioner’s 

arguments in favor of relief. 

Union Pacific Railroad Company 

[Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA–2004–

18896] 

The Union Pacific Railroad Company 

(UPRR) seeks a waiver of compliance 

with the Locomotive Safety Standards, 

49 CFR 229.49(a)(1) and with the Brake 

System Safety Standards 49 CFR 

232.103(o)(2), as they pertain to main 

reservoir safety valve setting and 

minimal deferential between brake pipe 

and main reservoir air pressure on 

UPRR locomotives. The railroad states 

in their request that their locomotive 

safety valves are set at 150 (one hundred 

fifty) pounds-per-square-inch (psi) and 

the maximum working pressure of 125 

psi (one hundred twenty-five) creating a 

25 (twenty-five) psi differential. 

Locomotive safety standards (49 CFR 

229.46(a)(1) requires that the main 

reservoir system of each locomotive 

shall be equipped with at least one 

safety valve that shall prevent an 

accumulation of pressure of more than 

15 pounds per square inch above the 

maximum working air pressure and 

Brake System Safety Standards (49 CFR 

232.103(o)(2)) requires minimum 

differential 15 psi between brake pipe 

and main reservoir air pressures, with 

brake valve in running position. UPRR 

adjusted its fleet of locomotives 

maximum working air pressure from 

135 psi to125 psi in the late 1970’s as 

a method to conserve fuel. The 150 psi 

safety valve setting was maintained so 

that UPRR locomotives remained 

compatible when operated in consist 

with foreign locomotives. UPRR has 

operated their locomotives with the 125 

psi maximum working air pressure for 

over twenty-five years and reports no 

adverse effect. 

Interested parties are invited to 

participate in these proceedings by 

submitting written views, data, or 

comments. FRA does not anticipate 

scheduling a public hearing in 

connection with these proceedings since 

the facts do not appear to warrant a 

hearing. If any interested party desires 

an opportunity for oral comment, they 

should notify FRA, in writing, before 

the end of the comment period and 

specify the basis for their request. 

All communications concerning these 

proceedings should identify the 

appropriate docket number (FRA–2004–

18896) and must be submitted to the 

Docket Clerk, DOT Docket Management 

Facility, Room PL–401 (Plaza Level), 

400 7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 

20590. Communications received within 

45 days of the date of this notice will 

be considered by FRA before final 

action is taken. Comments received after 

that date will be considered as far as 

practicable. All written communications 

concerning these proceedings are 

available for examination during regular 

business hours (9 a.m.—5 p.m.) at the 

above facility. All documents in the 

public docket are also available for 

61552 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 201 / Tuesday, October 19, 2004 / Notices 

1According to TMBL, an agreement has been 

reached between BNSF, as seller and lessor of the 

real estate and grantor of incidental trackage rights, 

and TMBL, as buyer and lessee of the real estate 

and grantee of incidental trackage rights.

2 Inasmuch as TMBL did not certify to the Board 

compliance with 49 CFR 1150.42(e) 60 days prior 

to its intended consummation of the transaction, it 

sought waiver of the 60-day certification 

requirement. The Board denied that request in a 

decision served on September 27, 2004. As a 

consequence, this exemption is not scheduled to 

become effective until November 16, 2004, and the 

inspection and copying on the Internet 

at the docket facility’s Web site at http:/

/dms.dot.gov.

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–19478). 

The Statement may also be found at 

http://dms.dot.gov.

Issued in Washington, DC, on October 12, 

2004. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr., 

Acting Associate Administrator for Safety.

[FR Doc. 04–23386 Filed 10–18–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

In accordance with Part 211 of Title 

49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 

notice is hereby given that the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA) received 

a request for a waiver of compliance 

with certain requirements of its safety 

standards. The individual petition is 

described below, including the party 

seeking relief, the regulatory provisions 

involved, the nature of the relief being 

requested, and the petitioner’s 

arguments in favor of relief. 

Canadian National Railway Company 

(Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA–2004–

18960) 

The Canadian National Railway 

Company (CN) seeks a waiver of 

compliance with the Locomotive Safety 

Standards, 49 CFR 229.23, 229.27, and 

229.29, as they pertain to the 

requirement to maintain the locomotive 

repair record form FRA 6180.49A, 

commonly referred to as the Blue Card, 

in the cab of their locomotives. If 

granted, CN would maintain locomotive 

inspection information in a secure data 

base. The data base would be 

maintained as the required office copy 

of form FRA 6180.49A. A computer 

generated form, which is similar to and 

contains all information currently 

contained on the required FRA 

6180.49A, would be maintained on 

board the locomotive. In place of 

required signatures of persons 

performing inspections and tests, CN 

employees would be provided a unique 

login identification number and a secure 

password to access the system and 

verify performance of inspections. In 

place of signatures, computer generated 

reports would block print the name of 

the employee performing a required 

inspection and block print the 

employees supervisor who is certifying 

that all inspections have been made and 

all repairs were completed. Required 

filing of the previous inspection record 

will be maintained through the data 

base. 

Interested parties are invited to 

participate in these proceedings by 

submitting written views, data, or 

comments. FRA does not anticipate 

scheduling a public hearing in 

connection with these proceedings since 

the facts do not appear to warrant a 

hearing. If any interested party desires 

an opportunity for oral comment, they 

should notify FRA, in writing, before 

the end of the comment period and 

specify the basis for their request. 

All communications concerning these 

proceedings should identify the 

appropriate docket number (FRA–2004–

18960) and must be submitted to the 

Docket Clerk, DOT Docket Management 

Facility, Room PL–401 (Plaza Level), 

400 7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 

20590. Communications received within 

45 days of the date of this notice will 

be considered by FRA before final 

action is taken. Comments received after 

that date will be considered as far as 

practicable. All written communications 

concerning these proceedings are 

available for examination during regular 

business hours (9 a.m.–5 p.m.) at the 

above facility. All documents in the 

public docket are also available for 

inspection and copying on the Internet 

at the docket facility’s Web site at http:/

/dms.dot.gov.

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–19478). 

The Statement may also be found at 

http://dms.dot.gov.

Issued in Washington, DC, on October 12, 

2004. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr., 

Acting Associate Administrator for Safety.

[FR Doc. 04–23388 Filed 10–18–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Finance Docket No. 34555) 

City of Tacoma, Department of Public 

Utilities, Beltline Division, d/b/a 

Tacoma Rail or Tacoma Municipal 

Beltline or TMBL—Acquisition and 

Operation Exemption—Lakeview 

Subdivision, Quadlok-St. Clair and 

Belmore-Olympia Rail Lines in Pierce 

and Thurston Counties, WA 

The City of Tacoma, Department of 

Public Utilities, Beltline Division, d/b/a 

Tacoma Rail or Tacoma Municipal 

Beltline or TMBL (TMBL), a Class III rail 

carrier, has filed a verified notice of 

exemption under 49 CFR 1150.41 to 

acquire and operate approximately 28 

miles of rail line, and to obtain 

approximately 22 miles of incidental 

trackage rights, in Pierce and Thurston 

Counties, WA. Specifically, TMBL 

intends: (1) To acquire a freight service 

easement from The Burlington Northern 

and Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) 

from milepost 2.15 at South Tacoma to 

milepost 8.92 at Lakeview Junction, and 

from milepost 0.0 at West Lakeview to 

milepost 10.98 at Nisqually, a total 

distance of 17.75 miles in Pierce 

County; (2) to lease BNSF’s right-of-way 

from milepost 3.27 at Quadlok to 

milepost 0.0 at St. Clair, and from 

milepost 16.0 at Belmore to milepost 

9.07 at Olympia, a total distance of 10.2 

miles in Thurston County; and (3) to 

obtain incidental trackage rights from 

BNSF from milepost 23.0 at Nisqually to 

milepost 37.00 at East Olympia, and to 

be assigned incidental trackage rights 

from BNSF over Union Pacific Railroad 

Company’s rail line from milepost 0.0 at 

East Olympia to milepost 9.07 at 

Olympia. 1

Because TMBL’s projected annual 

revenues will exceed $5 million, it 

certified to the Board on September 17, 

2004, that it sent the required notice of 

the transaction on July 29, 2004, to the 

national offices of all labor unions 

representing employees on the line and 

that a copy of the notice was posted at 

the workplace of the employees on the 

affected lines on July 30, 2004. 2