Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 71 / Thursday, April 13, 1995 / Notices 18877

Issued on: April 4, 1995.

Stanley Gee,

Division Administrator, Assistant Federal

Highway Administration, Albany, New York.

[FR Doc. 93–9123 Filed 4–12–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–22–M

Environmental Impact Statement:

Newport County, Rhode Island

AGENCY: Federal Highway

Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

SUMMARY: The FHWA is issuing this

notice to advise the public that an

environmental impact statement will be

prepared for the proposed construction

of a marine terminal facility in Newport,

Rhode Island.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Gordon G. Hoxie, Division

Administrator, Federal Highway

Administration, 380 Westminster Mall,

Room 547, Providence, Rhode Island,

Telephone: (401) 528–4541, or Marjorie

Keefe, Project Manager, Rhode Island

Department of Transportation, Two

Capitol Hill—Room 372, Providence, RI

02903, Telephone: (401) 277–2023.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

FHWA, in cooperation with the Rhode

Island Department of Transportation

(RIDOT), will prepared an

environmental impact statement (EIS) to

evaluate alternatives to provide a

proposed marine terminal facility or

facilities serving cruise ships and/or

commuter vessels and ferries on

Aquidneck Island, Rhode Island.

Marine terminal facilities are needed

to alleviate congestion in both the

harbor and on local streets in Newport,

Rhode Island, for both current as well as

projected levels of activity. Linking the

Newport Gateway Center, a multi-modal

ground transportation and visitor hub

located in Newport’s business tourist

district, with a marine terminal would

integrate ground transportation with

waterborne commuter vessels, tour

boats, and cruise ships. This link would

create a true multi-modal complex

capable of providing numerous

transportation options and destinations

while relieving congestion in both the

harbor and on local streets. Alternatives

under consideration include: (1) Taking

no action; (2) a combination of sites

within the Newport Inner Harbor

including State Pier No. 9, American

Shipyard, and/or Goat Island; (3) Fort

Adams (eastern and western sides); (4)

Newport Naval Pier No. 1 (Derektors

Pier); and (5) Melville Marina. Other

reasonable alternatives identified during

the scoping process will also be

considered.

Letters describing the proposed action

and soliciting comments will be sent to

appropriate Federal, State, and local

agencies, and to private organizations

and citizens who have previously

expressed or are known to have interest

in the proposed project. A public

scoping meeting will be held in

Newport, Rhode Island during May

1995. In addition, a public hearing will

be held. Public notice will be given of

the time and place of the meeting and

hearing. The draft EIS will be available

for public and agency review and

comment prior to the public hearing.

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 this

proposed action and the EIS should be

directed to FHWA at the address

provided above.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Number 20.205, Highway Research,

Planning and Construction. The regulations

implementing Executive Order 12372

regarding intergovernmental consultation of

Federal programs and other activities apply

to this program)

Issued on: April 5, 1995.

Gordon G. Hoxie,

Division Administrator, Providence, Rhode

Island.

[FR Doc. 95–9124 Filed 4–12–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–22–M

Federal Railroad Administration

Petition for Waiver of Compliance

In accordance with Title 49 CFR 211.9

and 211.41, notice is hereby given that

the Federal Railroad Administration

(FRA) received from the Southern

Pacific Transportation Company 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.

Southern Pacific Transportation

Company (SP) (Waiver Petition, Docket

Number RST–95–1)

The SP has requested to be relieved of

compliance with § 213.57(b) of the

Federal Track Safety Standards (Title 49

CFR part 213). That section refers to

maximum allowable train operating

speeds on nontangent track as a

function of existing curvature and

superelevation and, further, introduces

the concept of unbalanced

superelevation. 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 2 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.

SP petitioned for permission to

substitute the value of 4 inches instead

of 3 inches in determining maximum

train speeds on several hundred routemiles of track owned by the railroad and

used under contract by the National

Railroad Passenger Corporation

(Amtrak). SP has stated that it is doing

this to assist Amtrak in improving its

operating efficiency. SP believes that

passenger trains can be operated safely

at 4 inches of underbalance and cites

Amtrak’s experience in operating

comparable equipment on the Union

Pacific Railroad Company and the

Burlington Northern Railroad Company

at 4 inches of underbalance. SP’s policy

to operate freight trains at less than 3

inches of underbalance will be

unaffected by the proposed waiver.

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

and opportunity for comment, they

should notify FRA, in writing, before

the end of the comment period and

specify the basis for their request.

All communication concerning this

proceeding should identify the

appropriate docket number (e.g., Waiver

Petition Docket Number RST–95–1) and

must be submitted in triplicate to the

Docket Clerk, Office of Chief Counsel,

Federal Railroad Administration, Nassif

Building, 400 Seventh Street, S.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20590.

Communications received within 45

days of the date of 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 (9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.) in room

8201, Nassif Building, 400 Seventh

Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590.