37784 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 134 / Friday, July 16, 2021 / Notices 

• Submitting a Preapplication 

Statement of Intent (PASI) Form (FAA 

Form 8400–6) (14 CFR parts 121, 135 

and 141); 

• Submitting an Application for 

Repair Station (FAA Form 8310–3) (14 

CFR part 145); 

• Submitting an Application for 

Aviation Maintenance School Certificate 

and Ratings Application (FAA Form 

8310–6) (14 CFR part 147); 

• Submitting a Letter of Intent (14 

CFR part 142); 

• Submitting Element Design (ED) 

data collection tools (DCTs); and, 

• Sharing of other documentation as 

needed. 

Benefits to the certificate holder or 

applicant to use the external portal 

include: 

• Ease of submission and expedited 

processing and tracking of documents/ 

requests; 

• Documents/requests are sent 

directly to the FS employees, which 

eliminates wait time for the entry of 

information by the PI/CPM; and, 

• Access to DCTs. 

Respondents: Applicant 

respondents—922, 

Certificate Holder respondents—7892. 

Frequency: On occasion. 

Estimated Average Burden per 

Response: Applicant respondents—135 

hours, 

Certificate Holder respondents—90 

hours. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 

Applicants $7,027,935, 

Certificate Holders $40,104,456. 

Issued in Minneapolis, MN, on June 10, 

2021. 

Wendy I. Johnson, 

Assistant Program Office Manager, System 

Approach for Safety Oversight (SASO) 

Program Office, AFS–910. 

[FR Doc. 2021–15131 Filed 7–15–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Highway Administration 

[Docket No. FHWA–2021–0007] 

Emergency Temporary Closure of the 

Interstate 40 Hernando DeSoto Bridge 

Over the Mississippi River Between 

Arkansas and Tennessee 

AGENCY: Federal Highway 

Administration (FHWA), U.S. 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Arkansas Department of 

Transportation (ARDOT) and the 

Tennessee Department of 

Transportation (TDOT) closed the I–40 

Hernando DeSoto Bridge (I–40 Bridge) 

over the Mississippi River between 

Arkansas and Tennessee on May 11, 

2021, for safety considerations when a 

mechanical fracture was discovered 

within the elements of a steel box beam. 

FHWA is providing notice that ARDOT 

and TDOT are continuing the temporary 

closure of the I–40 Bridge for an 

indefinite period of time. FHWA has 

approved a request by the Arkansas and 

the Tennessee Divisions of the FHWA 

for an emergency deletion of a segment 

of I–40 between the I–55 Split (Exit 

279B) in West Memphis, Arkansas, and 

the I–240 Interchange (Exit 1E) in 

Memphis, Tennessee, from the National 

Network in accordance with applicable 

regulations due to the safety 

considerations discussed in this notice. 

FHWA is requesting comments from the 

public on the alternate routes selected 

by TDOT and ARDOT due to the 

closure. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before August 16, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: To ensure that you do not 

duplicate your docket submissions, 

please submit them by only one of the 

following means: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: U.S. 

Department of Transportation, Docket 

Operations, West Building Ground 

Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 

9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET, except 

Federal holidays. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251 

Instructions: You must include the 

agency name and docket number 

[FHWA–2021–0007] at the beginning of 

your comments. All comments received 

will be posted without change to http:// 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John 

Berg, Truck Size and Weight Team, 

Office of Operations, (202) 740–4602, 

john.berg@dot.gov, or William Winne, 

Office of the Chief Counsel, (202) 366– 

0791, william.winne@dot.gov, Federal 

Highway Administration, 1200 New 

Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 

20590; Vivien N. Hoang, FHWA 

Division Administrator, Arkansas 

Division, (501) 324–6436, 

vivien.hoang@dot.gov, or Pamela 

Kordenbrock, FHWA Division 

Administrator, Tennessee Division, 

(615) 781–5770, pamela.kordenbrock@

dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access and Filing 

This document and all comments 

received may be viewed online through 

the Federal eRulemaking portal at 

http://www.regulations.gov. The website 

is available 24 hours each day, 365 days 

each year. An electronic copy of this 

document may also be downloaded by 

accessing the Office of the Federal 

Register’s website at 

www.federalregister.gov and the 

Government Publishing Office’s website 

at www.govinfo.gov. 

Background 

The ARDOT and TDOT closed the I– 

40 Bridge over the Mississippi River 

between Arkansas and Tennessee on 

May 11, 2021, for safety considerations. 

During a routine inspection of the I–40 

Bridge by ARDOT, a mechanical 

fracture was discovered within the 

elements of a steel box beam. Local law 

enforcement agencies were immediately 

notified to shut down the bridge to all 

traffic. FHWA is providing notice that 

ARDOT and TDOT are continuing the 

temporary closure of the I–40 Bridge for 

an indefinite period of time. 

FHWA is responsible for enforcing the 

Federal regulations applicable to the 

National Network of highways that can 

safely and efficiently accommodate the 

large vehicles authorized by provisions 

of the Surface Transportation Assistance 

Act of 1982, Public Law 97–424 as 

amended, designated in accordance 

with 23 CFR part 658 (Truck Size and 

Weight, Route Designations—Length, 

Width and Weight Limitations) and 

listed in Appendix A to Part 658. Under 

23 CFR 658.11 (Additions, deletions, 

exceptions, and restrictions), FHWA 

may approve deletions of, or use 

restrictions on, the Interstate system or 

other National Network route based 

upon specified justification criteria in 

23 CFR 658.11(d)(2). FHWA is 

authorized to delete any route from the 

National Network on an emergency 

basis based on safety considerations 

pursuant to section 658.11(e), which 

also requires publishing this notice in 

the Federal Register for comment. 

The closure of the I–40 Bridge has 

affected traffic throughout western 

Tennessee, the Memphis metropolitan 

area, and eastern Arkansas. The I–40 

Bridge and the I–55 Memphis-Arkansas 

Bridge (I–55 Bridge) are the only two 

Mississippi River crossings in the 

Memphis area. The additional traffic on 

I–55 due to the I–40 Bridge closure has 

increased delays in crossing the river. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 134 / Friday, July 16, 2021 / Notices 37785 

1Tennessee Statewide Multimodal Freight Plan is 

available at www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/ 

freight-and-logistics/TDOT_FreightPlan_

AMENDED_04022019.pdf. 

Based on traffic volume data provided 

by ARDOT and TDOT, the closed I–40 

Bridge carried an Average Annual Daily 

Traffic (AADT) count of over 40,000 

vehicles, and trucks comprised 30 

percent of that volume. The I–55 Bridge 

had an AADT count of over 40,000 

vehicles, with 35 percent of the volume 

comprised of trucks. The TDOT’s 2018 

Statewide Multimodal Freight Plan 1

identified the I–55 river crossing as one 

of the top freight bottlenecks, based on 

the route meeting the condition that the 

segment had a level of service of F with 

a truck volume of greater than 5,000 

trucks per day, and truck travel speeds 

averaging less than 45 mph. 

Arkansas and Tennessee State 

transportation officials have 

implemented official detours via the 

Interstate network. Traffic on I–40 

eastbound from West Memphis, 

Arkansas, into Memphis, Tennessee, is 

being rerouted to I–55 south to cross the 

I–55 Bridge. Motorists may then use I– 

240 to connect to I–40 eastbound in 

Tennessee. Traffic on I–40 westbound 

from Memphis, Tennessee, into West 

Memphis, Arkansas, is detoured to I– 

240, where traffic may connect to I–55 

northbound to cross the MemphisArkansas Bridge and merge back into I– 

40 westbound. 

Some ramps in the area are also 

closed. The TDOT closed the ramps 

accessing I–40 westbound from State 

Route 3 (SR 3)/Danny Thomas 

Boulevard southbound and northbound, 

Riverside Drive, Front Street, Madison 

Avenue, and I–240 northbound. In 

addition, I–40 westbound is closed to 

traffic at the split with I–240 

southbound and the ramps to SR 3/ 

Danny Thomas Boulevard southbound, 

Mound City Road and Martin Luther 

King Jr. Drive. The ARDOT closed the 

ramps accessing I–40 eastbound from 

Mound City Road and Martin Luther 

King Jr. Drive. In addition, I–40 

eastbound is closed at the split with I– 

55 southbound and there is a lane 

closure in the area. The City of 

Memphis retimed the traffic signals to 

accommodate new traffic patterns and 

distributed maps through media on how 

to travel in and around downtown 

Memphis. In addition, TDOT is 

addressing the capacity of the I–55 and 

Crump Interchange by performing 

signing and striping changes to improve 

operations for both northbound and 

southbound traffic near the I–55 bridge. 

These improvements include ramp 

closures, enhanced striping to address 

friction points, and signage restricting 

movements that impact operations. 

The TDOT and ARDOT have 

coordinated plans with local 

governments on both sides of the 

Mississippi River. The TDOT and 

ARDOT met with local transportation 

officials and police agencies 

immediately after the closure to prepare 

for the anticipated overflow of traffic 

from the official detour route on the 

Interstates to the local network. Such 

coordination is continuing with the City 

of Memphis counterparts in traffic, 

operations, and emergency management 

to address any issues on diverted traffic, 

incidents, detours, and delay notices as 

changes are being made to improve 

travel in the area. Police agencies in the 

region are also assisting. 

The TDOT SmartWay Traffic 

Management System provides access to 

closed circuit television and dynamic 

message signs (DMS) on both sides of 

the Mississippi River to allow real-time 

monitoring of traffic and incidents. 

Daily updates are being posted on 

TDOT’s website for the I–40 closure. 

Traffic conditions on the I–55 MemphisArkansas Bridge can also be heard on 

TDOT’s 511 system. The TDOT placed 

portable message signs on I–40 west of 

the Tennessee River and east of Jackson, 

Tennessee, advising of the bridge 

closure. Estimated travel time to E. H. 

Crump Boulevard is displayed on the I– 

40 DMS west of the I–40/I–55 

Interchange in West Memphis, 

Arkansas. Navigation service providers 

were advised of the bridge closure so 

that digital maps correctly reflect the 

current situation. 

The ARDOT is also providing closed 

circuit television, portable changeable 

message signs (CMS), and static DMS on 

the Arkansas side of the river. Portable 

CMS were placed along I–55, as far as 

the Missouri State line and along I–40. 

DMS were posted as far away as Fort 

Smith, Texarkana, and Little Rock to 

advise intrastate traffic of the bridge 

closure. The ARDOT public facing 

website, iDriveArkansas, has incident 

and advisory information concerning 

the closure. Live streaming video is 

available to the public and the ARDOT 

Traffic Management Center, which it 

actively monitors and provides 

assistance to first responders. Portable 

camera trailers and temporary cameras 

were deployed nearby and, on the 

structure, to assist with bridge 

monitoring. Traffic signal timing was 

reviewed for Marion and West 

Memphis. 

To assist in facilitating Interstate 

commerce, ARDOT and TDOT are 

coordinating with local trucking 

associations to minimize freight traffic 

disruptions. The TDOT is working with 

State departments of transportation in 

Mississippi and Missouri along with the 

trucking industry to identify possible 

detour routes for long haul commercial 

motor vehicle (CMV) drivers to allow 

them to divert to other Mississippi River 

crossings and avoid the I–55 Bridge. By 

partnering with a smart mobility CMV 

fleet service, TDOT has arranged for 

detour information to be shared directly 

with CMV drivers through in-cab 

devices. 

Overweight permitted loads in excess 

of 180,000 lbs. are being routed around 

the I–55 Bridge on alternate routes. 

Eastbound loads in excess of 12′6′′ in 

width are being rerouted as well. CMVs 

of the dimensions and configurations 

described in 23 CFR 658.13 and 658.15 

which serve the affected area must use 

the following alternate routes: 

For vehicles with a height of 13′7′′ to 

15′9′′: Eastbound I–55 travel must follow 

E. H. Crump Boulevard to Florida Street 

to South Parkway to I–240. Vehicles 

headed westbound must take I–240 Exit 

28 to South Parkway to Florida Street to 

E. H. Crump Boulevard to I–55. 

For vehicles with a height of 15′10′′ 

and up: Eastbound I–55 travel must 

follow E. H. Crump Boulevard to Florida 

Street to Kansas Street/New Horn Lake 

Road to US–61. Vehicles headed 

westbound must take SR–175 to US–61 

to New Horn Lake Road/Kansas Street to 

Florida Street to E. H. Crump Boulevard 

to I–55. 

Note: Any load over 15′6′′ will have 

a survey that must be reviewed for 

accuracy. Vehicles servicing the 

businesses bordering the impacted area 

are still able to do so by also using the 

alternate routes described above and 

local signage to circulate around the 

restricted area. 

Authority: 23 U.S.C. 127 and 315; 49 

U.S.C. 31111, 31112, and 31114; 23 CFR 

part 658. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on July 12, 

2021. 

Stephanie Pollack, 

Acting Administrator, Federal Highway 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2021–15151 Filed 7–15–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–22–P 


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