Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 93 /Thursday, May 14, 1998 / Notices 26841

Transportation, 125 East 11th Street,

Austin, Texas 78701–2483 Telephone:

(512) 416–2734.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

project was initially planned to be

studied in a single EIS with limits from

Interstate Highway 35 West (IH 35W) in

Fort Worth, Tarrant County, to State

Highway 174 (SH 174) in Johnson

County. A first Notice of Intent (NOI)

was published in the August 4, 1988,

Federal Register with the SH 121 EIS

limits being proposed for the South

Section of the project. A second NOI

was published in the April 5, 1990,

Federal Register with the SH 121 EIS

limits being proposed for the North

Section of the project. This third NOI

will change the scope of the EIS. The

result will be a change of the limits and

scope of the freeway project with

portions that are proposed to be

developed as a toll road where it is

determined to be economically feasible.

The limits of the EIS for the proposed

project are now portions of the North

and the South Sections of SH 121 and

will extend from Interstate Highway 30

(IH 30) in Fort Worth to Farm-to-Market

Road 1187 (FM 1187), all within Tarrant

County. The previous documentation

was subdivided into a Draft

Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)

for the North Section with another DEIS

for the South Section. The DEIS for

South Section was completed and a

public hearing was held but a Record of

Decision was not issued. The DEIS for

the North Section was not completed

and work was suspended. The new EIS

for the proposed facility will cover a

part of the South Section from IH 20 to

FM 1187 and part of the North Section

from IH 30 to IH 20. Companion

documentation is being prepared

separately for the remainder of the

North Section of the proposed facility

from IH 35W to IH 30 in Fort Worth,

Tarrant County, as well as the

remainder of the South Section of the

proposed facility from FM 1187 in

Tarrant County to U.S. Highway 67 (US

67) in Cleburne; Johnson County.

Numerous public involvement

activities have taken place during the

development of the proposed project

and will continue until a general

consensus is reached on a preferred

alternative. Many alternatives and

routes have been considered. Among the

alternatives considered for a proposed

project are build nothing, freeway

development, and toll road

development.

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 the

proposed action and the EIS should be

directed to the FHWA or TxDOT at the

address provided.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Number 20.205, Highway Research,

Planning and Construction. The regulations

implementing Executive Order 12372

regarding intergovernmental consultation on

Federal programs and activities apply to this

program)

Walter C. Waidelich,

District Engineer.

[FR Doc. 98–12876 Filed 5–13–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–22–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

Petition for Waiver of Compliance

In accordance with 49 CFR 211.9 and

211.41, notice is hereby given that the

Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)

received from the Burlington Northern

Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF) a request for

a waiver of compliance with certain

requirements of the Code of Federal

Regulations. The petition is described

below, including the regulatory

provisions involved, and the nature of

the relief being requested.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad,

Docket Number RST–97–6

This notice covers the request of the

BNSF to be relieved of compliance with

Section 213.57(b) of the Federal Track

Safety Standards (49 CFR 213) for the

operation of National Passenger

Corporation (Amtrak) trains at up to five

(5) inches of unbalance on the former

Santa Fe Railroad. Since 1994, Amtrak

trains have been operatings at up to 4

inches of unbalance or cant deficiency

on the former Burlington Northern

Railroad. This petition would extend

the waiver to the former Santa Fe

Railroad and increase the level of

unbalance from 4 inches to 5 inches.

Section 213.57(b) refers to the

maximum allowable train operating

speeds on non-tangent track as a

function of existing curvature and

superelevation and, further, introduces

the concept of unbalanced

superelevation (cant deficiency) in

particular modes of train operation. The

idea of trains negotiating curved track at

speeds producing either positive or

negative unbalance was discussed

previously in the Federal Register (52

FR 38035 on October 13, 1987).

Currently, Section 213.57(b) permits a

maximum of 3 inches to be used as the

underbalance term in the formulation of

curve/speed tables by track maintenance

engineers defining intermediate train

speeds and curved track superelevations

for any route between two points.

BNSF petitioned for permission to

substitute the value of 5 inches instead

of 3 inches in determining maximum

train speeds on track owned by the

railroad and used under contract by

Amtrak in the provision of

transcontinental passenger train service.

BNSF is requesting the waiver to assist

Amtrak in improving its operating

efficiency.

Interested parties may submit written

views, data, or comments on this

petition. 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 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 Number RST–97–6), and

must be submitted in triplicate to the

Docket Clerk, Chief Counsel, Federal

Railroad Administration, Nassif

Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW,

Washington, DC 20590.

Communications received within 30

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, NW,

Room 7051, Washington, DC 20005.

Issued in Washington, DC on May 4, 1998.

Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety

Standards and Program Development.

[FR Doc. 98–12767 Filed 5–13–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[FRA Docket No. RST–97–5]

Petition for Exemption or Waiver of

Compliance With the Requirements of

Section 213.233(c) of the Federal Track

Safety Standards; New Jersey Transit

Rail Operations, Inc.

In accordance with 49 CFR 211.41,

notice is hereby given that the New

Jersey Transit Rail Operations,

Incorporated, (NJT) has submitted a

petition, dated December 3, 1997, for a