15158 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 55 / Wednesday, March 22, 1995 / Notices

1The Commission will grant a stay if an informed

decision on environmental issues (whether raised

by a party or by the Commission 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 stay should be filed as soon as possible

so that the Commission may take appropriate action

before the exemption’s effective date.

2See Exempt. of Rail Abandonment—Offers of

Finan. Assist., 4 I.C.C.2d 164 (1987).

3 The Commission will accept a late-filed trail

use request so long as the abandonment has not

been consummated and the abandoning railroad is

willing to negotiate an agreement.

By order of the Commission.

Donna R. Koehnke,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95–7047 Filed 3–21–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7020–02–P

INTERSTATE COMMERCE

COMMISSION

Availability of Environmental

Assessments

Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4332, the

Commission has prepared and made

available environmental assessments for

the proceedings listed below. Dates

environmental assessments are available

are listed below for each individual

proceeding.

To obtain copies of these

environmental assessments contact Ms.

Tawanna Glover-Sanders, Interstate

Commerce Commission, Section of

Environmental Analysis, Room 3219,

Washington, DC 20423, (202) 927–203.

Comments on the following

assessment are due 15 days after the

date of availability:

AB–43 (Sub-No. 166X), Illinois Central

Railroad Company—Notice of

Exemption Under 49 C.F.R. 1152.50—

Abandonment of Line In Taylorsville,

Mississippi. EA available 3/3/95

AB–436X, Bath & Hammondsport

Railroad Co.—Abandonment

Exemption—In Steuben County, NY.

EA available 3/10/95.

AB–55 (Sub-No. 501X), CSX

Transportation, Inc.—Abandonment—

In Lucas and Wood Counties, Ohio.

EA available 3/10/95.

Comments on the following

assessment are due 20 days after the

date of availability:

Finance Docket No. 32640, Canadian

National Railway Company—

Integration of Rail Operations with

U.S. Rail Affiliates. EA available

3/17/95.

Comments on the following

assessment are due 30 days after the

date of availability:

AB–43 (Sub-No. 168X), Illinois Central

Railroad Company Abandonment

Exemption—In Hinds County,

Mississippi. EA available 3/10/95.

AB–402 (Sub-No. 3X), Fox Valley &

Western Ltd.—Abandonment

Exemption—In Portage and Waupaca

Counties, Wisconsin. EA available

3/17/95.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95–7053 Filed 3–21–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7035–01–P

[Docket No. AB–6 (Sub-No. 365X)]

Exemption and of Interim Trail Use or

Abandonment; Burlington Northern

Railroad Company—Abandonment

Exemption—in Thurston County, WA

Burlington Northern Railroad

Company (BN) has filed a notice of

exemption under 49 CFR 1152 Subpart

F—Exempt Abandonments to abandon a

12.45-mile rail line between BN MP

16.00 near Belmore and BN MP 28.45

near Gate, including the station of Little

Rock at BN MP 21.4, in Thurston

County, WA.

BN has certified that: (1) No local

traffic has moved over the line for at

least 2 years; (2) any overhead traffic

can be rerouted over other lines; (3) no

formal complaint filed by a user of rail

service on this line (or a state or local

government entity acting on behalf of

such user) regarding cessation of service

over the line is either pending with the

Commission or with any U.S. District

Court or has been decided in favor of

the complainant within the 2-year

period; and (4) the requirements at 49

CFR 1105.7 (environmental report), 49

CFR 1105.8 (historic report), 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 use of this

exemption, any employee affected by

the 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. 10505(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 April 21,

1995, 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 statements under

49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by April

3, 1995.3 Petitions to reopen or requests

for public use conditions under 49 CFR

1152.28 must be filed by April 11, 1995,

with: Office of the Secretary, Case

Control Branch, Interstate Commerce

Commission, Washington, DC 20423.

A copy of any petition filed with the

Commission should be sent to

applicant’s representative: Sarah J.

Whitley, Burlington Northern Railroad

Company, 3800 Continental Plaza, 777

Main Street, Fort Worth, TX 76102–

5384.

If the notice of exemption contains

false or misleading information, the

exemption is void ab initio.

Thurston County (County) supports

the abandonment and seeks issuance of

a notice of interim trail use/rail banking

(NITU) under 16 U.S.C. 1247(d)

covering the involved lines. County has

submitted a statement of willingness to

assume financial responsibility for the

trail in compliance with 49 CFR

1152.29. BN consents to this request and

is willing to negotiate with County.

While expressions of interest in

interim trail use need not be filed until

10 days after the date the notice of

exemption is published in the Federal

Register [49 CFR 1152.29(b)(2)], the

provisions of 16 U.S.C. 1247(d) (Trails

Act) are applicable, and all of the

criteria for imposing trail use/rail

banking have been met. Accordingly,

based on BN’s willingness to enter into

negotiations with County, a NITU will

be issued. The parties may negotiate an

agreement during the 180-day period

prescribed below. If a mutually

acceptable final agreement is reached,

further Commission approval is not

necessary. If no agreement is reached

within 180 days, BN may fully abandon

the line. See 49 CFR 1152.29(d)(1).

Issuance of this NITU does not

preclude other parties from filing

interim trail use/rail banking requests.

Nor does it preclude BN from

negotiating with other parties in

addition to County during the NITU

negotiating period. If additional trail use

requests are filed, BN is directed to

respond to them. Use of the rights-ofway for trail purposes is subject to

restoration for railroad purposes.

The parties should note that operation

of the trail use procedures could be

delayed, or even foreclosed, by the

financial assistance process under 49

U.S.C. 10905. As stated in Rail

Abandonments—Use of Rights-of-Way

as Trails, 2 I.C.C.2d 591 (1986) (Trails),

offers of financial assistance (OFA) to

acquire rail lines for continued rail

service or to subsidize rail operations

take priority over interim trail use
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 55 / Wednesday, March 22, 1995 / Notices 15159

4The statement in Trails that section 10905 does

not apply to abandonment or discontinuance

exemptions has since been superseded by our

adoption of rules allowing OFAs in these

exemption proceedings. See 49 CFR 1152.27.

1A stay will be issued routinely by the

Commission in those proceedings where an

informed decision on environmental issues

(whether raised by a party or by the Commission’s

Section of Environmental Analysis in its

independent investigation) cannot be made prior to

the effective date of the notice of exemption. See

Exemption of Out-of-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d

377 (1989). Any entity seeking a stay involving

environmental concerns is encouraged to file its

request as soon as possible in order to permit this

Commission to review and act on the request prior

to the effective date of this exemption.

2See Exempt. of Rail Abandonment—Offers of

Finan. Assist., 4 I.C.C.2d 164 (1987).

3The Commission will accept a late-filed trail use

request as long as it retains jurisdiction to do so.

conditions.4 Accordingly, if a formal

expression of intent to file an OFA is

timely filed under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),

the effective date of this notice will be

postponed 10 days beyond the effective

date indicated here. In addition, the

effective date may be further postponed

at later stages in the OFA process. See

49 CFR 1152.27(e)(2) and (f). Finally, if

the line is sold under the OFA

procedures, the notice for abandonment

exemption will be dismissed and trail

use precluded. Alternatively, if a sale

under the OFA procedures does not

occur, trail use may proceed.

BN 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 March 27, 1995. Interested persons

may obtain a copy of the EA by writing

to SEA (Room 3219, Interstate

Commerce Commission, Washington,

DC 20423) or by calling Elaine Kaiser,

Chief of SEA, at (202) 927–6248.

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 other trail use/rail

banking conditions will be imposed,

where appropriate, in a subsequent

decision.

It is ordered:

1. Subject to the conditions set forth

above, BN may discontinue service,

cancel tariffs for the line on not less

than 10 days’ notice to the Commission,

and salvage track and material

consistent with interim trail use/rail

banking after the effective date of this

notice of exemption and NITU. Tariff

cancellations must refer to this notice by

date and docket number.

2. If an interim trail use/rail banking

agreement is reached, then with respect

to the right-of-way, it must require the

trail user to assume, for the term of the

agreement, full responsibility for

management of, for any legal liability

arising out of the transfer or use of

(unless the user is immune from

liability, in which case it need only

indemnify BN from any potential

liability), and for the payment of any

and all taxes that may be levied or

assessed against, the right-of-way.

3. Interim trail use/rail banking is

subject to the future restoration of rail

service and to the user’s continuing to

meet the financial obligations for the

right-of-way.

4. If interim trail use is implemented

and subsequently the user intends to

terminate trail use, it must send the

Commission a copy of this notice of

exemption and NITU and request that it

be vacated on a specified date.

5. If an agreement for interim trail

use/rail banking is reached by the 180th

day after service of this decision and

notice, interim trail use may be

implemented. If no agreement is

reached by that time, BN may fully

abandon the line.

6. Provided no formal expression of

intent to file an offer of financial

assistance has been received, this notice

of exemption and NITU will be effective

on April 21, 1995.

Decided: March 15, 1995.

By the Commission, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95–6896 Filed 3–21–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7035–01–P

[Docket No. AB–6 (Sub-No. 364X)]

Burlington Northern Railroad

Company; Abandonment Exemption—

in Snohomish County, WA; Exemption

and Notice of Interim Trail Use or

Abandonment

Burlington Northern Railroad

Company (BN) has filed a notice of

exemption under 49 CFR part 1152

Subpart F—Exempt Abandonments to

abandon its 2.69-mile line of railroad

between BN milepost 6.92 and BN

milepost 8.19, and the 1.42-mile

Cascade Pole Spur in and near

Arlington, in Snohomish County, WA.

BN has certified that: (1) No local

traffic has moved over the line for at

least 2 years; (2) there is no overhead

traffic on 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

Commission or with any U.S. District

Court or has been decided in favor of

the 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 use of this

exemption, any employee affected by

the 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. 10505(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 April 21,

1995 (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 3 must be filed by April 3,

1995. Petitions to reopen or requests for

public use conditions under 49 CFR

1152.28 must be filed by April 11, 1995,

with: Office of the Secretary, Case

Control Branch, Interstate Commerce

Commission, Washington, DC 20423.

A copy of any pleading filed with the

Commission should be sent to

applicant’s representative: Sarah J.

Whitley, 3800 Continental Plaza, 777

Main Street, Fort Worth, TX 76102–

5384.

If the notice of exemption contains

false or misleading information, the

exemption is void ab initio.

The Snohomish County Parks and

Recreation Department (SCPRD)

requests issuance of a notice of interim

trail use/rail banking (NITU) for the

involved line under the National Trails

System Act (Trails Act), 16 U.S.C.

1247(d). SCPRD has submitted a

statement of willingness to assume

financial responsibility for the interim

trail use and rail banking in compliance

with 49 CFR 1152.29 and acknowledged

that the use of the right-of-way as a trail

is subject to future reactivation of rail

service. BN consents to this request and

is willing to negotiate with SCPRD.

While expressions of interest in

interim trail use need not be filed until

10 days after the date the notice of

exemption is published in the Federal

Register [49 CFR 1152.29(b)(2)], the

provisions of 16 U.S.C. 1247(d) (Trails

Act) are applicable, and all of the