[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 84 (Wednesday, May 2, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24353-24355]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-8446]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


Notice of Limitation on Claims Against Proposed Public 
Transportation Projects

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Limitation on Claims.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the 
Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for public transportation projects 
in the following metropolitan areas: Eugene, Oregon; Fort Myers, 
Florida; Houston, Texas; and New York, New York. 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.

DATES: By this notice, FTA is advising the public of final agency 
actions subject to Title 23, United States Code (U.S.C.), 
section139(l). A claim seeking judicial review of the FTA actions 
announced herein for the listed public transportation projects will be 
barred unless the claim is filed on or before October 29, 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph Ossi, Environmental Protection 
Specialist, Office of Planning and Environment, 202-366-1613, or 
Christopher Van Wyk, Office of Chief Counsel, 202-366-1733. FTA is 
located at 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590. Office 
hours are from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby given that FTA has taken 
final agency actions by issuing certain approvals for the public 
transportation projects listed below. The actions on these projects, as 
well as the laws under which such actions were taken, are described in 
the documentation issued in connection with the project to comply with 
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and in other documents in 
the FTA administrative record for the project. The final agency 
environmental decision documents--Records of Decision (ROD) or Findings 
of No Significant Impact (FONSI)--for the listed projects are available 
online at http://www.fta.dot.gov/planning/environment/planning_environment_documents.html or may be obtained by contacting the FTA 
Regional Office for the metropolitan area where the project is located. 
Contact information for the FTA Regional Offices may be found at http://www.fta.dot.gov.
    This notice applies to all FTA decisions on the listed projects as 
of the issuance date of this notice and all laws under which such 
actions were taken, including, but not limited to, the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) [42 U.S.C. 4321-4375], Section 4(f) of 
the Department of Transportation Act of 1966 [49 U.S.C. 303], Section 
106 of the National Historic Preservation Act [16 U.S.C. 470f], and the 
Clean Air Act [42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q].
    The projects and actions that are the subject of this notice are:
    1. Project name and location: Bus Rapid Transit System Improvements 
for the Pioneer Parkway Corridor; Eugene, Oregon. Project sponsor: Lane 
Transit District (LTD). Project description: The Pioneer Parkway bus 
rapid transit (BRT) project consists of construction of 5.2 miles of 
exclusive transit lanes and 14 transit stations. The southern part of 
the project alignment would follow Pioneer Parkway, utilizing portions 
of an abandoned railroad right-of-way. The existing pedestrian and 
bicycle path in this corridor will be maintained. Along the northern 
loop, a single lane will be located in the median of Martin Luther King 
Jr. Parkway. On RiverBend Drive and International Way, the BRT buses 
will operate in the median. On Gateway Street and Harlow Road, the BRT 
buses will operate in mixed traffic. Final agency actions: FONSI issued 
on December 22, 2006; Section 106 Finding of No Adverse Effect; 
project-level Air Quality Conformity determination. Supporting 
documentation: Environmental Assessment: Bus Rapid Transit System 
Improvements for the

[[Page 24354]]

Pioneer Parkway Corridor issued in September 2006.
    2. Project name and location: LeeTran Transit Facility; Fort Myers, 
Florida. Project sponsor: Lee County Transit (LeeTran). Project 
description: The project is the construction of a new transit facility 
for LeeTran, which would house administrative functions, service 
operations, and bus maintenance functions and facilities. The facility 
would also accommodate passenger transfers and a customer service area. 
Final agency actions: FONSI issued on August 31, 2006; Section 106 
Finding of No Historic Property Affected. Supporting documentation: 
Final Environmental Assessment: LeeTran Transit Facility, July 2006.
    3. Project name and location: METRO Intermodal Terminal; Houston, 
Texas. Project sponsor: Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County 
(METRO). Project description: The project is the construction of a 
multimodal, multi-use, multi-story transit facility adjacent to the 
Near Northside neighborhood of downtown Houston. It will act as a major 
transit hub for the area, enabling transit riders to transfer easily 
between the different modes of transit. The facility will house 
passenger waiting and transfer facilities; bicycle storage facilities; 
and passenger and driver amenities, including parking, public 
restrooms, and retail space. Final agency action: FONSI issued on 
January 10, 2007; Section 4(f) finding; Section 106 Memorandum of 
Agreement. Supporting documentation: Final Environmental Assessment: 
Intermodal Terminal, December 2006.
    4. Project name and location: North Corridor Fixed Guideway Transit 
Project; Houston, Texas. Project name and sponsor: Metropolitan Transit 
Authority of Harris County (METRO). Project description: The project is 
the construction of approximately 5.5 miles of fixed guideway transit 
consisting of: (1) An extension of the existing light rail transit 
(LRT) Red line from the University of Houston-Downtown Station to the 
new Burnett Station following the North Main Street right-of-way; and 
(2) from the Burnett Station, a new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line, 
proceeding north on North Main Street in mixed flow traffic for 0.3 
mile and then entering an exclusive guideway in the middle of North 
Main Street. The BRT line will continue north in the North Main Street 
right-of-way to Boundary Street, where it will turn east and follow 
Boundary Street to Fulton Street. At Fulton Street, the BRT Line will 
turn north and proceed to Northline Mall. The project includes six at-
grade transit stations and one elevated station at Burnett Street. 
Final agency actions: ROD issued on February 2, 2007; Section 4(f) 
finding; Section 106 Memorandum of Agreement; project-level Air Quality 
Conformity determination. Supporting documentation: North Corridor 
Fixed Guideway Project: Final Environmental Impact Statement issued on 
December 29, 2006.
    5. Project name and location: Southeast Corridor Fixed Guideway 
Transit Project; Houston, Texas. Project sponsor: Metropolitan Transit 
Authority of Harris County (METRO). Project description: The project is 
the construction of a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line that will operate 
between downtown Houston and a terminus on Griggs Road at Beekman Road 
east of Martin Luther King Boulevard, a distance of approximately 6 
miles. The BRT line will connect downtown Houston with the universities 
area including Texas Southern University and the University of Houston, 
and the Palm Center. The BRT service will operate in diamond lanes in 
downtown from Louisiana to Polk Street and in exclusive transit lanes 
on Scott Street, Wheeler Street, Martin Luther King Boulevard, and 
Griggs Road to the terminus at Beekman Road. The project includes 11 
BRT stations. Final agency actions: ROD issued on February 6, 2007; 
Section 4(f) finding; Section 4(f) de minimis impact finding; Section 
106 Memorandum of Agreement; project-level Air Quality Conformity 
determination. Supporting documentation: Southeast Corridor Fixed 
Guideway Project: Final Environmental Impact Statement issued on 
January 5, 2007.
    6. Project name and location: World Trade Center Vehicular Security 
Center and Tour Bus Parking Facility; New York, New York. Project name 
and sponsor: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Project 
description: The World Trade Center (WTC) Vehicular Security Center and 
Tour Bus Parking Facility to be constructed at Ground Zero in Lower 
Manhattan will provide security precautions to protect new public 
investments at the WTC site. The project will also include a subsurface 
parking facility to serve tour buses bringing visitors to the memorial 
at the WTC site. The security center will provide off-street screening 
of buses, trucks, and automobiles entering the WTC site. The visible 
security location will lend a level of protection against threats to 
the WTC site. The project will also allow delivery truck access to 
subgrade loading areas for Towers 3, 4, and 5 on the WTC site. The 
project will be built on 4 levels. The entrance/exit will be located on 
the south side of Liberty Street between Route 9A and Greenwich Street. 
The roof of the facility will be at street-level and will be the base 
of the future Liberty Park and St. Nicholas Church. The security center 
will be located underground on the B1 level. Once vehicles have been 
properly screened, those that comply with security standards will be 
directed to a common ramp structure. The vehicles that do not meet the 
requirements of the security screen will be exited onto Liberty Street. 
Authorized trucks, buses, and automobiles will continue downward 
through the B2 level to the B3 level of the WTC site. The B3 level will 
include a consolidated loading area beneath Towers 3 and 4 as well as 
tour bus parking. The project will also include ancillary facilities 
and systems, such as employee spaces, mechanical rooms, emergency 
egress, and ventilation structures. Final agency actions: FONSI issued 
on January 26, 2007; Section 4(f) finding; Section 106 Memorandum of 
Agreement. Supporting documentation: Environmental Assessment: WTC 
Vehicular Security Center and Tour Bus Parking Facility, November 2006.
    7. Project name and location: Long Island Rail Road East Side 
Access--50th Street Facility; New York, New York. Project sponsors: 
Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). 
Project description: The project is a new above-ground structure on 
East 50th Street housing the ventilation equipment, ventilation shafts 
and openings, emergency generators, and a loading dock for the LIRR 
East Side Access (ESA) project. The facility is a modification of the 
original design of the LIRR ESA project presented in its Final 
Environmental Impact Statement of March 16, 2001. A new building 
replacing the existing buildings at the project site will house the 
ventilation facility, loading docks, and freight elevators. The sub-
basements below the new surface structure will connect to the new LIRR 
concourse and tunnels that are part of the ESA project. At street 
level, an area of open space and a through drive from 49th Street to 
50th Street are included in the design. The project also includes, on 
an adjacent building, a cooling tower and a chase to house conduits and 
pipes. Final agency actions: FONSI issued on July 27, 2006; Section 106 
Amended Programmatic Agreement. Supporting documentation: Revised 
Supplemental Environmental Assessment, LIRR East Side Access 50th 
Street Facility, April 2006.


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    Issued on: April 25, 2007.
Susan Borinsky,
Associate Administrator for Planning and Environment, Washington, DC.
 [FR Doc. E7-8446 Filed 5-1-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P