[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 215 (Tuesday, November 7, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65168-65169]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-9099]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Environmental Impact Statement: St. Clair County, Michigan

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION:  Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The FHWA is reissuing this notice to advise the public of 
changes to the Environmental Impact Statement that will be prepared for 
proposed improvements to the United States Port of Entry Plaza for the 
Blue Water Bridge in St. Clair County, Michigan. This Notice revises 
the published Notice of Intent of January 12, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. James Kirschensteiner, Assistant 
Division Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, 315 W. Allegan 
Street, Room 201, Lansing, Michigan 48933, Telephone: (517) 702-1835; 
or Mr. Paul McAllister, Supervisor, Environmental Section, Bureau of 
Transportation Planning, Michigan Department of Transportation, P.O. 
Box 30050, Lansing, MI 48909, Telephone: (517) 335-2622.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FHWA in cooperation with the Michigan 
Department of Transportation (MDOT) is preparing an Environmental 
Impact Statement (EIS) to evaluate alternatives for potential 
improvements to the United States Border Plaza at the Blue Water 
Bridge. The Federal cooperating agencies for the project include: U.S. 
Coast Guard, U.S. General Service Administration (GSA), U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency (U.S.EPA), U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
    The Blue Water Bridge is a major passenger and commercial border 
crossing between the United States and Canada and is the northern 
termination point for Interstate Routes I-69 and I-94 in the United 
States and for Highway 402 in Canada. MDOT owns and operates the Blue 
Water Bridge Border Plaza. Several agencies operate on the United 
States Plaza. These agencies are responsible for inspecting vehicles, 
goods, and people entering the United States and include: CBP, the 
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA). The inspection agencies lease facilities on the 
United States Plaza from MDOT through GSA, which serves as the Federal 
leasing agent. MDOT collects tolls from vehicles departing the United 
States for Canada on the plaza.
    The study area is located within the City of Port Huron and Port 
Huron Township. The study area consists of approximately 30 blocks (195 
acres) of urban land use surrounding the existing plaza and ramps, and 
it extends to the west along I-69/I-94 for approximately 2.2 miles. The 
study area includes the existing plaza, the Black River Bridge, the 
Water Street interchange, and locations for off-site inspection 
facilities, located north of I-69/I-94 and west of the Water Street 
Interchange.
    In September 2002, this project started as an Environmental 
Assessment (EA) and has proceeded through the scoping phase, purpose 
and need documentation, and alternatives development. Three resource 
agency meetings and four public information meetings have been held. As 
a result of identified potentially significant impacts, FHWA and MDOT 
concluded that an environmental Impact Statement (EIS) should be 
completed.
    The purposes of this Environmental Impact Statement are to:
    <bullet> Accommodate projected 2030 traffic growth and potential 
future facility needs,
    <bullet> Minimize backups on Highway 402 and I-69/I-94 and correct 
existing traffic weaving issues,
    <bullet> Accommodate the latest inspection technologies and 
procedures,
    <bullet> Provide flexibility to accommodate future unknown 
inspection technologies and procedures,
    <bullet> Improve border security,
    <bullet> Provide facilities that ensure cars and trucks do not 
leave the plaza without being inspected,
    <bullet> Improve safety on the bridge, plaza, and I-69/I-94,
    <bullet> Reduce vehicle and pedestrian conflicts on the plaza,
    <bullet> Improve access between the plaza and the Port Huron area, 
and
    <bullet> Minimize routing of commercial traffic to local roads 
during maintenance operations.
    The need for improvements to the United States Plaza at the Blue 
Water Bridge is supported by several key issues including:
    <bullet> Traffic growth and repeated traffic backups,
    <bullet> Insufficient truck parking for inspection purposes,
    <bullet> The introduction of new inspection technology,
    <bullet> Emerging Security issues,
    <bullet> Insufficient space for the increased number of border 
inspection agents,
    <bullet> Traffic conflicts and crash history, and
    <bullet> Inadequate connections between the plaza and local roads 
needing improvements.

[[Page 65169]]

    In the fall of 2005, a preliminary Draft Environment Impact 
Statement (DEIS) was completed and circulated to the Federal 
cooperating agencies for review and comment. As a result of this 
coordination effort, the CBP requested that another alternative be 
considered for evaluation and inclusion in the DEIS.
    In an effort to continue to move independent and critical road and 
bridge portions of the project forward, MDOT and FHWA have separated 
the Blue Water Bridge Plaza Study into two projects: (a) An EIS for the 
Blue Water Bridge Plaza that will focus specifically on plaza expansion 
and improvements, and (b) An Environmental Assessment that will address 
transportation improvements along I-69/I-94 and the creation of a new 
off-site welcome center. The improvements covered in the EA are 
independent of any of the alternatives under consideration for the 
plaza improvements. The FHWA has reviewed and concluded that the 
improvements that will be studied in the EA have independent utility 
and logical termini
    The purposes of the I-69/I-94 EA Corridor improvements are:
    <bullet> Accommodate projected 2030 traffic growth,
    <bullet> Improve the safety on the Black River Bridge and reduce 
weaving movements at the Water Street Interchange,
    <bullet> Replace the aging Black River Bridge spans,
    <bullet> Improve vehicle access to the Port Huron Area, and
    <bullet> Create a more visible and accessible Welcome Center.
    The need for improvements to the I-69/I-94 Corridor is supported by 
several key issues:
    <bullet> Traffic growth,
    <bullet> Traffic backups,
    <bullet> Traffic conflicts and crash history,
    <bullet> The current condition of existing roadways in the 
corridor, and
    <bullet> The current condition of the Black River Bridge.
    The study boundaries for the I-69/I-94 Environmental Assessment are 
located along I-69/I-94 and the M-25 connector. The northern terminus 
for the EA is the M-25 connector intersection with Hancock Street and 
the southern terminus is the I-69/I-94 bridge over Lapeer Road. The EA 
study area includes the I-69/I-94 ramps to and from the existing plaza, 
the Black River Bridge, the Water Street interchange and the Lapeer 
connector interchange.
    The purpose and need and study boundaries for the plaza 
Environmental Impact Statement remain the same as described earlier. 
The study area includes a potential location for a relocated plaza in 
Port Huron Township.
    A range of plaza and transportation improvement alternatives for 
the plaza EIS, will be analyzed. Reasonable alternatives under 
consideration include: taking no action, expanding the existing plaza 
location in the City of Port Huron (two alternatives), and relocating 
the major plaza functions to an off-site plaza location in Port Huron 
Township. The EIS study area for the off-site plaza, along with 
subsequent improvements to I-94/I-69 and the EA improvements to I-94/I-
69, overlap for this alternative, but only for this alternative.
    Agencies and citizen involvement will continue to be solicited 
throughout this process. A public meeting and a public hearing will be 
held on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). Public notice 
will be given of the time and place of the hearing. The DEIS will be 
available for public and agency review and comment prior to the public 
hearing.
    To ensure that the full range of issues related to this proposed 
action are addressed and all significant issues identified, comments 
and suggestions are invited from all interested parties. Comments or 
questions concerning this proposed action and the EIS should be 
directed to the FHWA at the address provided above.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, 
Highway Planning and Construction. The regulations implementing 
Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation of 
Federal programs and activities apply to this program.)


    Issued on: October 31, 2006.
James A. Kirschensteiner,
Assistant Division Administrator, Lansing, Michigan.
[FR Doc. 06-9099 Filed 11-6-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-M