19998 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 77 /Wednesday, April 22, 1998 / Notices

—Acquire Snow Removal Equipment

—Acquire Handicap Passenger Lifting

Device

—Construct Heliport Improvements

—Install Airport Signage And New

Electrical Vault

—Update Airport Master Plan

—Upgrade Airport Security System

—Develop Cargo Ramp

—Construct Aircraft De-Icing Facility

—Construct relocated portion of

Taxiway G

—Install New Terminal Main Entrance

Door System

—Runway Tunnel Rehabilitation

Runway 24

—Construct Airport Maintenance

Facility PFC will also be used as the

local share of the following future AIP

funded projects:

—Construct Lower Regional Holdroom

and Escalator

—Demolish Building 6 for Airport

Development

—Demolish Building 1 for Airport

Development and Part 77 Obstruction

Clearance

—Purchase Land for RPZ

—PPFC Program Formulation and

Annual Administrative Cost

Class or classes of air carriers which

the public agency has requested not be

required to collect PFCs: Part 135 On

Demand Air Taxis filing FAA Form

1800–31.

Any person may inspect the

application in person at the FAA office

listed above under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT and at the FAA

regional Airports office located at:

Fitzgerald Federal Building, John F.

Kennedy International Airport, Jamaica,

New York 11430.

In addition, any person may, upon

request, inspect the application, notice

and other documents germane to the

application in person at the Roanoke

Regional Airport Commission.

Issued in Jamaica, New York on April 10,

1998.

Thomas Felix,

Planning & Programming Branch, Airports

Division, Eastern Region.

[FR Doc. 98–10676 Filed 4–21–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–13–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

Petition for Waivers of Compliance

In accordance with Part 211.9 and

211.41 of Title 49 Code of Federal

Regulations (CFR), notice is hereby

given that the Federal Railroad

Administration (FRA) received a request

for waivers of compliance with certain

requirements of its safety standards. The

individual petitions are described

below, including the party seeking

relief, the regulatory provisions

involved, the nature of the reliefs being

requested, and the petitioner’s

arguments in favor of relief.

Central Montana Rail, Incorporated

[FRA Docket Number LI–97–7]

Central Montana Rail, Incorporated

(CMR) seeks a permanent waiver of

compliance with certain provisions of

the Locomotive Safety Standards (49

CFR 229). CMR is seeking relief from the

requirements of Section 229.125(d) that

requires, effective December 31, 1997,

each lead locomotive operating at

speeds over 20 mph over one or more

public highway-rail crossings shall be

equipped with operative auxiliary

lights.

CMR operates six diesel-electric

locomotives over 87 miles of track and

states that equipping the locomotives

would cause an undue financial burden.

The CMR indicates they haul less than

2,000 cars annually at a maximum

speed of 25 mph, over one state

highway-rail crossing, all other

crossings are located on county or

private roads. The railroad feels that

because of their remote location, low

speed, and traffic volume on affected

roads, the waiver would not jeopardize

the safety of the railroad operation.

The Kansas City Southern Railroad

[FRA Docket Number LI–97–9]

The Kansas City Southern Railroad

(KCS) seeks a waiver of compliance

with certain provisions of the

Locomotive Safety Standards (49 CFR

Part 229). KCS is seeking permanent

waiver of compliance from the

requirements of Section 229.73(b) that

requires ‘‘the maximum variation in the

diameter between any two wheel sets in

a three powered-axle truck may not

exceed 3⁄4 inch, except when shims are

used at the journal box springs to

compensate for wheel diameter

variation, the maximum variation may

exceed 11⁄4 inch’’.

KCS operates 165 six axle

locomotives. The railroad states they

change approximately 96 wheel sets a

year to remain in compliance with this

requirement, at a cost of $265,000.00,

and 1,152 hours of locomotive down

time.

Interested parties are invited to

participate in these proceedings by

submitting written reviews, 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 (e.g., Waiver

Petition Docket Numbers LI–97–7 and

LI–97–9, and must be submitted in

triplicate to the Docket Clerk, Chief

Counsel, Federal Railroad

Administration, Nassif Building, 400

Seventh Street, S.W., Washington, D.C.

20590. Communications received within

45 days from the publication 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 FRA’s offices at

1120 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Room

7051, Washington, D.C. 20005.

Issued in Washington, D.C., on April 15,

1998.

Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety

Standards and Programs Development.

[FR Doc. 98–10698 Filed 4–21–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration

Safety Performance Standards and

Research and Development Programs

Meetings

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic

Safety Administration.

ACTION: Notice of NHTSA industry

meeting.

SUMMARY: This notice announces a

public meeting at which NHTSA will

answer questions from the public and

the automobile industry regarding the

agency’s vehicle regulatory program.

DATES: The Agency’s regular, quarterly

public meeting relating to its vehicle

regulatory program will be held on June

16, 1998, beginning at 9:45 a.m. and

ending at approximately 12:30 p.m., at

the Clarion Inn Hotel, Wickham Road,

in Romulus, MI. Questions relating to

the vehicle regulatory program must be

submitted in writing with a diskette

(Wordperfect 6.0-6.1) by Friday, May 29,

1998, to the address shown below or by

e-mail. If sufficient time is available,

questions received after May 29 may be

answered at the meeting. The

individual, group or company
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 77 /Wednesday, April 22, 1998 / Notices 19999

submitting a question(s) does not have

to be present for the question(s) to be

answered. A consolidated list of the

questions submitted by May 29, 1998,

and the issues to be discussed, will be

posted on NHTSA’s web site

(www.nhtsa.dot.gov) by June 11, 1998,

and will be available at the meeting. The

next NHTSA vehicle regulatory program

meeting will take place on Thursday,

September 17, 1998 at the Tysons

Westpark Hotel, 8401 Westpark Drive,

McLean, VA.

ADDRESSES: Questions for the June 16,

NHTSA Technical Industry Meeting,

relating to the agency’s vehicle

regulatory program, should be

submitted to Delia Lopez, NPS-01,

National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration, Room 5401, 400

Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC

20590, Fax Number 202–366–4329, email dlopez@nhtsa.dot.gov. The meeting

will be held at the Clarion Inn Hotel,

9191 Wickham Road, in Romulus, MI.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Delia Lopez, (202) 366–1810.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NHTSA

holds a regular, quarterly meeting to

answer questions from the public and

the regulated industries regarding the

agency’s vehicle regulatory program.

Questions on aspects of the agency’s

research and development activities that

related directly to ongoing regulatory

actions should be submitted, as in the

past, to the agency’s Safety Performance

Standards Office. The purpose of this

meeting is to focus on those phases of

NHTSA activities which are technical,

interpretative or procedural in nature.

Transcripts of these meetings will be

available for public inspection in the

DOT Docket in Washington, DC, within

four weeks after the meeting. Copies of

the transcript will then be available at

ten cents a page, (length has varied from

100 to 150 pages) upon request to DOT

Docket, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. The

DOT Docket is open to the public from

10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Questions to be

answered at the quarterly meeting

should be organized by categories to

help us process the questions into an

agenda form more efficiently. Sample

format:

I. RULEMAKING.

A. Crash avoidance

B. Crashworthiness

C. Other Rulemakings

II. CONSUMER INFORMATION

III. MISCELLANEOUS

NHTSA will provide auxiliary aids to

participants as necessary. Any person

desiring assistance of ‘‘auxiliary aids’’

(e.g., sign-language interpreter,

telecommunications devices for deaf

persons (TDDs), readers, taped texts,

brailled materials, or large print

materials and/or a magnifying device),

please contact Delia Lopez on (202)

366–1810, by COB June 11, 1998.

Issued: April 17, 1998.

L. Robert Shelton,

Associate Administrator for Safety

Performance Standards.

[FR Doc. 98–10675 Filed 4–21–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–59–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Research and Special Programs

Administration

[Docket No. RSPA–98–3638; Notice 1]

Pipeline Safety: Liquefied Natural Gas

Facilities Petition for Waiver; Exxon

Company, USA

Exxon Corporation has petitioned the

Research and Special Programs

Administration (RSPA) for a waiver

from compliance with certain

provisions of 49 CFR part 193 for its

proposed Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

storage tanks at its existing LaBarge,

Wyoming, gas processing operation. The

existing operation includes two parallel

Nitrogen Rejection Units and a small

liquefied natural gas (LNG) truck

loading facility. Exxon is proposing to

install two used 55,000 gallon LNG

storage tanks (vessel nos. 5477 and

5516). According to Exxon, these tanks

were in LNG service for 19 years

without problems. The tanks were

designed, built, tested, and registered in

accordance with the requirements of the

American Society of Mechanical

Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure

Vessel Code, Section VIII, Division 1.

Exxon states that as a part of the post

fabrication procedures of the ASME

Code, the longitudinal and

circumferential butt welds of vessel

number 5477 were spot checked by

radiographic methods. The longitudinal

and circumferential butt welds of vessel

number 5516 were 100 percent

radiographically tested at the time of

manufacture. The ASME Code does not

apply to any piping beyond the first

weld.

Exxon requests a waiver from

compliance with certain sections of Part

193 and proposes to ensure equivalent

safety through compliance with the

National Fire Protection Association

(NAPA) Standard 59A. The specific

sections of Part 193 for which Exxon

seeks a waiver are:

(1) § 193.2321 (a)—Nondestructive

tests. This section requires that 100

percent of circumferential butt welded

pipe joints in cryogenic piping and 30

percent of circumferential butt welded

pipe joints in the non-cryogenic piping

be nondestructively tested.

Exxon is requesting a waiver for

vessels 5477 and 5516 of the

requirements of § 193.2321 (a)—

Nondestructive tests, based on the

following:

• Calculated value of the pressure

induced hoop stresses for the inner

vessel nozzles and interconnecting

piping are less than the 20 percent of

the specified minimum yield stress

(SMYS) for the piping material which is

recognized as acceptable under NAPA

59A. To support this allegation Exxon

has submitted stress calculations.

• NAPA 59A—Standard of the

Production, Storage and Handling of

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), section 6–

6—Inspection and Testing of Pipe,

Paragraph 6–6.3.2, requires all

circumferential butt welds to be

nondestructively tested, except that

liquid drain and vapor vent piping with

an operating pressure that produces a

hoop stress of less than 20 percent of

SMYS need not be nondestructively

tested, provided it has been inspected

visually in accordance with the ASME

standard B31.3—Chemical Plant and

Petroleum Refinery, section 344.2.

RSPA believes that safety will not be

compromised by waiving the

requirements of § 193.2321(a) for noncryogenic piping with operating

pressures that produce hoop stresses of

less than 20 percent SMYS, if that

piping complies with standard NAPA

59A, Section 6–6.3.2. Therefore, RSPA

is proposing to grant the waiver from

§ 193.2321(a).

(2) § 193.2321 (e)—Nondestructive

tests. This section requires 100 percent

nondestructive tests of both longitudinal

and circumferential butt welds in metal

shells of storage tanks that are subject to

cryogenic temperatures and are under

pressure to be radiographically tested.

Exxon requests a waiver of the

requirements of § 193.2321 (e)—

Nondestructive tests, for vessel number

5477 based on the following reasons:

• The tank was designed,

manufactured, tested and registered to

the requirements of the ASME Boiler

and Pressure Vessel Code. Section VIII

Division 1 of the ASME Code is an

accepted standard to which cryogenic

pressure vessels are built throughout the

world.

• Safety in this case is not

compromised because the storage tank

at the Exxon facility is small, less than

70,000 gallons, shop fabricated and built

to the ASME Code.

• Public safety is not the issue

because the facility is very remote.