[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 74 (Monday, April 20, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18031-18032]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-8978]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Environmental Impact Statement: Kings County, NY

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), USDOT.

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public and other 
agencies that a tiered environmental impact statement (EIS) will be 
prepared for a proposed project involving approximately 1.5 miles of 
the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE), Interstate 278 (I-278) in Kings 
County, New York (Project Identification Number X730.56). This segment 
of the BQE extends from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street and encompasses 
21 structures, including a unique 0.4-mile triple cantilever structure. 
The objective of the tiered EIS is to evaluate alternatives and make 
corridor level decisions regarding the rehabilitation or reconstruction 
of the existing facility and to identify a general alignment and 
corridor for proposed improvements. The tiered approach will allow for 
a broad range of solutions and the appropriate consideration of area 
wide environmental and land use impacts, including the maintenance and 
protection of traffic during construction.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey W. Kolb, P.E., Division 
Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, New York Division, Leo 
W. O'Brien Federal Building, Suite 719, Clinton Avenue and North Pearl 
Street, Albany, New York 12207, Telephone: (518) 431-4127; or Fred 
Libove, P.E., Project Development Supervisor, New York State Department 
of Transportation, Region 11, Hunters Point Plaza, 47-40 21st Street, 
Long Island City, New York 11101, Telephone: (718) 482-4565.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FHWA, in cooperation with the New York 
State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), will prepare a tiered EIS 
that will study and document proposed improvements to a 1.5-mile 
segment of the BQE (I-278) between Atlantic Avenue and Sands Street in 
Kings County, New York (the Project). The Project would be the first 
major rehabilitation or reconstruction of this segment of the BQE/I-278 
since its opening in 1954. Based on the results of on-site inspections 
of 14 of the 21 structures as documented in a June 2002 Seismic 
Evaluation Report (SER) prepared for the NYSDOT, and the results of 
recent inspections of the remaining seven structures, the current 
overall condition of this segment of the BQE is safe for use by the 
public. However, the SER and subsequent inspections of the structures, 
indicate that corrective action will be required within the next 10 to 
15 years to maintain this segment of the BQE in a state of good repair.
    Need for the Project: The segment of the BQE/I-278 under 
consideration carries a daily volume of approximately 140,000 vehicles 
and is a critical transportation link in the New York City metropolitan 
area that serves the needs of the Boroughs of Brooklyn, Manhattan, 
Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island, as well as areas outside New York 
City.
    The most important bridge along this segment of the BQE is the 
unique triple cantilevered structure. This multi-level structure 
carries six lanes of the BQE. The eastbound and westbound roadways, 
with three lanes each, are carried at separate levels. The eastbound 
lanes are located above the westbound lanes. Furman Street, an 
important local connector, runs parallel to the highway at grade below 
the westbound lanes of the BQE. A third cantilever above the eastbound 
lanes of the highway supports the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, a key 
community resource that provides spectacular views of the East River, 
Lower Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. The remaining bridges within 
this segment of the BQE are comprised of multi-girder steel and 
concrete-encased steel structures. Indirect and circuitous connections 
between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges and the BQE add to the 
complexity of this segment of the highway.
    The segment of highway within the project limits is characterized 
by narrow lanes (10.5 feet), lack of shoulders, and short merge/weave 
distances near on-ramps and off-ramps that do not meet current highway 
design standards. These deficiencies, combined with vertical clearance 
constraints, and the approximately 140,000 vehicles using this segment 
of the highway each day, result in the highway operating at or above 
capacity during most of the day. Severe congestion throughout much of 
the midday and the diversion of the highway traffic, particularly truck 
traffic because of the vertical clearances, onto local streets are also 
operational deficiencies.
    Based on the results of the SER and periodically scheduled 
inspections of the facility by NYSDOT and the New York City Department 
of Transportation (NYCDOT), which owns the facility within the project 
limits, the NYSDOT and FHWA convened an Accelerated Construction 
Technology Transfer (ACTT) workshop in March 2006 attended by a broad 
range of public agency staff and private consultants to consider 
potentially viable options for rehabilitating or replacing the 
structures, and on ways to alleviate the severe congestion experienced 
by motorists along this segment of the BQE/I-278. Issues considered in 
identifying and evaluating possible alternatives during the ACTT 
workshop included constructability, environmental impacts, geometric 
design considerations, public involvement/concerns, structural 
considerations, traffic, safety, use of intelligent transportation 
systems (ITS), and work zone concerns. Although the ACTT workshop 
reached no final recommendation on which alternative should be pursued 
to address the structural deterioration or operational issues affecting 
this segment of the BQE/I-278, the results of the ACTT workshop 
confirmed the need for a more comprehensive examination of alternative 
rehabilitation or reconstruction options. The results of the SER and 
ACTT workshop will be considered in the environmental review process 
initiated with this NOI.
    Environmental Review Process: The EIS will be developed in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 
the environmental review provisions of Section 6002 of the Safe, 
Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy 
for Users (SAFETEA-LU), and the New York State Environmental Quality 
Review Act (SEQRA). The FHWA and the NYSDOT will use a tiered process, 
as provided for in 40 CFR 1508.28, in the completion of the 
environmental review of the Project. ``Tiering'' is a staged 
environmental review process applied to environmental reviews for 
complex projects.
    The initial phase (``Tier 1 EIS'') of this process will address 
broad corridor-level issues and proposals. Subsequent phases or tiers 
will analyze, at a greater level of detail, narrower site-specific 
proposals based on the decisions made in Tier 1.
    Tier 1: Although open to refinement based on public and agency 
review and comment, the Tier 1 assessment will result in a NEPA 
document with the appropriate level of detail for corridor-level 
decisions and will address broad overall issues of concern, including 
but not limited to:


[[Page 18032]]


--Confirm the purpose and need for the proposed action.
--Determine the logical termini for the proposed action.
--Define the study area appropriate to assess reasonable alternatives.
--Identify a comprehensive set of goals and objectives for the corridor 
in conjunction with Stakeholders and Steering Committee members. These 
goals and objectives will be crafted to allow comprehensive evaluation 
of all aspects of the project to include alignment, mode, limits, etc.
--Identify the range of reasonable alternatives to be considered, 
including consideration of travel demand management, transportation 
systems management, and transit options consistent with the current and 
planned use of the corridor and the transit needs and existing services 
within and adjacent to the study area.
--Develop criteria and screen alternatives to eliminate those that do 
not meet the purpose and need of the proposed action.
--Identify the general alignment of the reasonable alternatives.
--Identify right-of-way requirements for the reasonable alternatives.
--Characterize the overall land use and environmental consequences of 
the reasonable alternatives.
--Establish, as necessary, the timing and sequencing of independent 
actions to maintain a state of good repair.
--Establish the environmental review process to be followed in 
completing subsequent tier evaluations of the proposed Project.

    Tier 2: The second tier assessment will result in more detailed 
assessments of a range of build alternatives within the general 
corridor and alignment identified in the Tier 1 EIS. These evaluations 
will be based on a higher level of engineering detail and environmental 
analysis than in the Tier 1 evaluation. It is anticipated that the 
subsequent evaluation(s) will:

--Incorporate by reference the data and evaluations included in the 
Tier 1 EIS.
--Concentrate on the issues specific to the selected alternative 
identified in the Tier 1 EIS.
--Provide a more detailed evaluation of transit accommodations if 
carried forward from Tier 1.
--Screen the identified alternatives to determine the alternative that 
best meets the purpose and need for the proposed action.
--Identify the environmental consequences at a higher level of detail 
than in the Tier 1 assessment and identify measures necessary to 
mitigate environmental impacts based on a higher level of engineering 
detail than in the Tier 1 EIS.
--Establish, as necessary, the timing and sequencing of independent 
actions to maintain a state of good repair.

Notice of Initiation of the Environmental Process and Request to Public 
Agencies to Become Participating Agencies in the Environmental Review 
Process: In accordance with Section 6002 of SAFETEA-LU, letters will be 
sent to all Federal, State and local agencies, and to private 
organizations and citizens who have previously identified and/or 
expressed interest in the project, notifying them of the initiation of 
the environmental process and requesting that they be included as 
participating agencies or parties in the environmental review process. 
Once the Draft EIS is certified as complete, it will be made available 
for further public and agency review and comment.
    Scoping Process: To assure that the full range of issues related to 
the proposed action is addressed and all significant issues identified, 
FHWA and NYSDOT will undertake an extensive public ``scoping process'' 
that will allow the public and affected agencies to provide comment on 
the scope of the environmental review process. To facilitate public 
comment, a Draft EIS Scoping Document will be prepared for public 
review and comment. Included in the Draft Scoping Document will be 
draft descriptions of:

--Purpose and Need for the Project.
--Alternatives for Study.
--Public Involvement Process.
--Environmental Impact Assessment Methodologies and Study Areas.

    A separate notification will be published regarding the 
availability of the Draft Scoping Document for public review. 
Additional opportunities for comment will also be provided through a 
series of public participation activities. These include:

--Public scoping meetings on the EIS will be held at a venue within the 
project study area, during which the public will be provided with a 
description of information included in the Draft Scoping Document and 
opportunity to comment on the scope of the DEIS. NYSDOT personnel will 
be available at the scoping meetings to answer questions concerning the 
Project and proposed scope of the DEIS.
--Direct discussions with agencies and organizations with jurisdiction 
or interest in the project corridor and project area.
--Briefings to elected officials.
--A project Web site that will allow the public to provide comment over 
the Internet.

Comments received from any of these activities and sources will be 
considered in the development of the environmental document.
    Public Hearing: A public hearing will be held after publication of 
the Tier 1 DEIS to obtain comments on that document. Public notice will 
be given prior to the hearing regarding its time and location and 
process for submitting comment.
    Project Funding: The proposed project will be funded in part 
through Federal programs which assist State transportation agencies in 
the planning and development of an integrated, interconnected 
transportation system important to interstate commerce and travel by 
constructing and rehabilitating the National Highway System, including 
the Interstate System.

(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).

    Issued on: April 14, 2009.
Jeffrey W. Kolb,
Division Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, New York 
Division, Albany, New York.
[FR Doc. E9-8978 Filed 4-17-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-P