Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 147 / Friday, July 31, 1998 / Notices 40949

the petitioner’s arguments in favor of

relief.

Paducah & Louisville Railway, Inc.

[Waiver Petition Docket Number H–98–4]

The Paducah & Louisville Railway,

Inc. (PL) seeks a waiver of compliance

from 49 CFR 229.131, Railroad

Locomotive Safety Standards, Cabs and

Cab Equipment—Sanders. Section

229.131 states: ‘‘Except for MU

locomotives, each locomotive shall be

equipped with operable sanders that

deposit sand on each rail in front of the

first power operated wheel set in the

direction of movement.’’ PL would like

to disable sanding equipment on six

locomotives to test a new technology

adhesion device. The test period would

last for one year. The test locomotives

would be operated in unit coal train

service between Madisonville, (mile

post JK 149) and Louisville, Kentucky

(mile post J 1.9). The locomotives would

be monitored daily. Each of the test

locomotives would be equipped with

four Centrac Very High Positive Friction

(VHPF) traction enhancer devices. The

VHPF traction enhancer is a solid

friction modifier that provides

continuous treatment of the wheel/rail

interface through spring loaded devices.

Lake Terminal Railroad Company

[Waiver Petition Docket Number H–98–5]

The Lake Terminal Railroad Company

(LT) seeks a waiver of compliance from

49 CFR 229.131, Railroad Locomotive

Safety Standards, Cabs and Cab

Equipment—Sanders. Section 229.131

states: ‘‘Except for MU locomotives,

each locomotive shall be equipped with

operable sanders that deposit sand on

each rail in front of the first power

operated wheel set in the direction of

movement.’’ LT would like to disable

sanding equipment on six switching

locomotives to test a new technology

adhesion device. The test period would

last for one year. The test locomotives

would be operated in yard service and

the locomotives would be monitored

daily. Each of the test locomotives

would be equipped with four Centrac

Very High Positive Friction (VHPF)

traction enhancer devices. The VHPF

traction enhancer is a solid friction

modifier that provides continuous

treatment of the wheel/rail interface

through spring loaded devices.

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 (e.g., Waiver

Petition Docket Number H–98–4, H–98–

5) and must be submitted in triplicate to

the Docket Clerk, Office of Chief

Counsel, FRA, Nassif Building, 400

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

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 (9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.) at

FRA’s docket facility located at 1120

Vermont Avenue, N.W., Room 7051,

Washington, D.C. 20005.

Issued in Washington, D.C. on July 27,

1998.

Edward R. English,

Director, Office of Safety Assurance and

Compliance.

[FR Doc. 98–20503 Filed 7–30–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Finance Docket No. 33636]

Bad Water Line—Trackage Rights

Exemption—The Burlington Northern

and Santa Fe Railroad Co.

The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe

Railroad Company (BNSF) has agreed to

grant overhead trackage rights to Bad

Water Line (BWL) between milepost

303.06 and milepost 306.0 a distance of

2.4 miles in the state of WY.

The transaction was scheduled to be

consummated on July 16, 1998, the

effective date of the exemption.

The purpose of this transaction is to

permit BWL to move trains, locomotive,

cabooses and cars with its own officers,

agents, employees and contractors and

equipment in its account, over the joint

trackage between points on its existing

line and interchange with BNSF near

Shoshoni, WY.

As a condition to this exemption, any

employees affected by the trackage

rights will be protected by the

conditions imposed in Norfolk and

Western Ry. Co.—Trackage Rights—BN,

354 I.C.C. 605 (1978), as modified in

Mendocino Coast Ry., Inc.—Lease and

Operate, 360 I.C.C. 653 (1980).

This notice is filed under 49 CFR

1180.2(d)(7). If it contains false or

misleading information, the exemption

is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the

exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d)

may be filed at any time. The filing of

a petition to revoke will not

automatically stay the transaction.

An original and 10 copies of all

pleadings, referring to STB Finance

Docket No. 33636, must be filed with

the Surface Transportation Board, Office

of the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925

K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20423–

0001. In addition, a copy of each

pleading must be served on Clifford

Root, 642 South Federal Blvd., Riverton,

WY 82501.

Board decisions and notices are

available on our website at

WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.’’

By the Board, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 98–20389 Filed 7–30–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4915–00–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Docket No. AB–55 (Sub–No. 564X)]

CSX Transportation, Inc.—

Abandonment Exemption—in

Washington County, IL

CSX Transportation, Inc. (CSXT) has

filed a notice of exemption under 49

CFR part 1152 Subpart F—Exempt

Abandonments to abandon a 2.9-mile

line of its railroad between milepost

OOH–445.7 at Okawville and milepost

OOH–448.6 at the end of the track at

Venedy, in Washington County, IL. The

line traverses United States Postal

Service Zip Codes 62214 and 62271.

CSXT has certified that: (1) No local

traffic has moved over the line for at

least 2 years; (2) there is no overhead

traffic moving over the line; (3) no

formal complaint filed by a user of rail

service on the line (or by a state or local

government entity acting on behalf of

such user) regarding cessation of service

over the line either is pending with the

Surface Transportation Board (Board) or

with any U.S. District Court or has been

decided in favor of complainant within

the 2-year period; and (4) the

requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7

(environmental reports), 49 CFR 1105.8

(historic reports), 49 CFR 1105.11

(transmittal letter), 49 CFR 1105.12

(newspaper publication), and 49 CFR

1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental

agencies) have been met.

As a condition to this exemption, any

employee adversely affected by the
40950 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 147 / Friday, July 31, 1998 / Notices

1The Board will grant a stay if an informed

decision on environmental issues (whether raised

by a party or by the Board’s Section of

Environmental Analysis in its independent

investigation) cannot be made before the

exemption’s effective date. See Exemption of Outof-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C. 2d 377 (1989). Any

request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible

so that the Board may take appropriate action before

the exemption’s effective date.

2Each offer of financial assistance must be

accompanied by the filing fee, which currently is

set at $1000. See 49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25).

abandonment shall be protected under

Oregon Short Line R. Co.—

Abandonment— Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91

(1979). To address whether this

condition adequately protects affected

employees, a petition for partial

revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d)

must be filed. Provided no formal

expression of intent to file an offer of

financial assistance (OFA) has been

received, this exemption will be

effective on August 30, 1998, unless

stayed pending reconsideration.

Petitions to stay that do not involve

environmental issues,1 formal

expressions of intent to file an OFA

under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),2 and trail

use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR

1152.29 must be filed by August 10,

1998. Petitions to reopen or requests for

public use conditions under 49 CFR

1152.28 must be filed by August 20,

1998, with: Surface Transportation

Board, Office of the Secretary, Case

Control Unit, 1925 K Street, NW.,

Washington, DC 20423.

A copy of any petition filed with the

Board should be sent to applicant’s

representative: Charles M. Rosenberger,

Senior Counsel, CSX Transportation,

Inc., 500 Water Street J150, Jacksonville,

FL 32202.

If the verified notice contains false or

misleading information, the exemption

is void ab initio.

CSXT has filed an environmental

report which addresses the

abandonment’s effects, if any, on the

environment and historic resources. The

Section of Environmental Analysis

(SEA) will issue an environmental

assessment (EA) by August 5, 1998.

Interested persons may obtain a copy of

the EA by writing to SEA (Room 500,

Surface Transportation Board,

Washington, DC 20423) or by calling

SEA, at (202) 565–1545. Comments on

environmental and historic preservation

matters must be filed within 15 days

after the EA becomes available to the

public.

Environmental, historic preservation,

public use, or trail use/rail banking

conditions will be imposed, where

appropriate, in a subsequent decision.

Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR

1152.29(e)(2), CSXT shall file a notice of

consummation with the Board to signify

that it has exercised the authority

granted and fully abandoned the line. If

consummation has not been effected by

CSXT’s filing of a notice of

consummation by July 31, 1999, and

there are no legal or regulatory barriers

to consummation, the authority to

abandon will automatically expire.

Board decisions and notices are

available on our website at

‘‘WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.’’

Decided: July 23, 1998.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 98–20385 Filed 7–30–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4915–00–P

UNITED STATES INFORMATION

AGENCY

Culturally Significant Objects Imported

for Exhibition Determination: ‘‘The

Cave of the Warrior’’

AGENCY: United States Information

Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of the

following determinations: Pursuant to

the authority vested in me by the Act of

October 19, 1965 (79 Stat. 985, 22 U.S.C.

2459), Executive Order 12047 of March

27, 1978 (43 FR 13359, March 29, 1978),

and Delegation Order No. 85–5 of June

27, 1985 (50 FR 27393, July 2, 1985). I

hereby determine that the twenty-five

cultural objects to be included in the

exhibit History in New York, imported

from abroad for temporary exhibition

without profit within the United States,

is of cultural significance. These objects

are imported pursuant to a loan

agreement with the foreign lenders. I

also determine that the exhibition of

display of these objects for ‘‘The Cave of

the Warrior’’ at the American Museum

of Natural History in New York, N.Y.

from on or about July 31, 1998 to on or

about December 19, 1998, is in the

national interest. The action of the

United States in this matter and the

immunity based on the application of

the provisions of the law involved does

not imply any view of the United States

concerning the ownership of these

exhibition objects. Further, it is not

based upon and does not represent any

change in the position of the United

States occupied by Israel since 1967.

See letter of September 22, 1978, of

President Jimmy Carter, attached to the

Camp David Accords, reprinted in 78

Dept. State Bulletin 11 (October 1978);

Statement of September 1, 1982 of

President Ronald Reagan, reprinted in

82 Dept. of State Bulletin 23 (September

1982).’’ Public Notice of these

determinations is ordered to be

published in the Federal Register.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Carol B. Epstein, Assistant General

Counsel, Office of the General Counsel,

202/619–6981, and the address is Room

700, U.S. Information Agency, 301 4th

Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20547–

0001.

Dated: July 29, 1998.

Les Jin,

General Counsel.

[FR Doc. 98–20619 Filed 7–30–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8230–01–M