54694 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 173 / Wednesday, September 8, 2010 / Notices 

Dated: August 31, 2010. 

Thomas M. Countryman, 

Acting Assistant Secretary, Bureau of 

Political-Military Affairs, Department of 

State. 

[FR Doc. 2010–22357 Filed 9–7–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4710–25–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Notice of Availability of a 

Supplemental Draft Environmental 

Impact Statement for the DesertXpress 

High-Speed Passenger Rail Project 

AGENCY: Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA), United States 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: FRA is issuing this notice to 

advise the public that a Supplemental 

Draft EIS has been prepared for the 

DesertXpress High-Speed Passenger 

Train Project (Project). FRA is the lead 

agency for the environmental review 

process and has prepared the 

Supplemental Draft EIS consistent with 

the provisions of Section 102(2)(c) of the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), 

the Counsel of Environmental Quality 

(CEQ) regulations implementing NEPA 

(40 CFR parts 1500 et seq.) and FRA’s 

Procedures for Considering 

Environmental Impacts (64 FR 28545; 

May 26, 1999). 

DesertXpress Enterprises Inc., the 

Project proponent, proposes to construct 

and operate a fully grade-separated, 

dedicated double-track, passenger-only 

railroad along an approximately 200- 

mile corridor, from Victorville, CA, to 

Las Vegas, NV. After publication of the 

Draft EIS and in response to substantive 

comments submitted by interested 

agencies and the public, the Project 

proponent proposed several project 

modifications and additions. After 

reviewing the proposed project 

modifications and additions, FRA 

determined a Supplemental Draft EIS 

describing the potential environmental 

effects of the modifications and 

additions was necessary to fulfill its 

responsibility under NEPA. 

DATES: Written comments on the 

Supplemental Draft EIS for the 

DesertXpress Project should be provided 

to FRA on or before October 18 2010. 

Public hearings are scheduled on 

October 13 and October 14, 2010, at the 

times and dates listed in the Addresses 

Section below in Las Vegas, NV and 

Barstow, CA. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the 

Supplemental Draft EIS should be sent 

to Ms. Wendy Messenger, 

Environmental Protection Specialist, 

Office of Railroad Policy and 

Development, ATTN: DesertXpress EIS, 

Federal Railroad Administration, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., MS–20, 

Washington, DC 20590 or via e-mail 

with the subject line DesertXpress EIS to 

Wendy.Messenger@dot.gov. Comments 

may also be provided orally or in 

writing at the public hearings scheduled 

at the following locations: 

• Las Vegas, NV, Wednesday, October 

13, 2010, 5:30 to 8 p. m., Hampton Inn 

Tropicana, SW. Event Center B, 4975 

Dean Martin Drive, Las Vegas, NV; and 

• Barstow, CA, Thursday, October 14, 

2010, 5:30 to 8 p.m., Lenwood Hampton 

Inn, Jackrabbit Room 1, 2710 Lenwood 

Road, Barstow, CA. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Wendy Messenger, Environmental 

Protection Specialist, Office of Railroad 

Policy and Development, Federal 

Railroad Administration, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., MS–20, 

Washington, DC 20590 (telephone: 202– 

493–6396). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Following 

the March 18, 2009 publication of the 

Draft EIS on the Project, several project 

modifications and additions were 

proposed to address substantive 

comments received during public and 

agency review of the Draft EIS and to 

reduce or avoid significant 

environmental effects. After evaluating 

the proposed project modifications and 

additions, FRA determined, pursuant to 

40 CFR 1502.9, that it was necessary to 

prepare a supplement to the Draft EIS 

analyzing the potential environmental 

impacts that might result from those 

modifications and additions. Therefore, 

in compliance with CEQ’s regulations 

and FRA’s Procedures for Considering 

Environmental Impacts, FRA, in 

cooperation with the Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM), Surface 

Transportation Board (STB), Federal 

Highway Administration (FHWA), and 

the National Park Service (NPS), and 

with the added participation of the 

California Department of Transportation 

(Caltrans) and the Nevada Department 

of Transportation (NDOT), prepared a 

Supplemental Draft EIS. 

The Project would involve the 

construction and operation of an 

interstate high-speed passenger train 

system between Victorville, CA and Las 

Vegas, NV, along an approximately 200- 

mile corridor. The project proponent 

proposes to construct nearly the entire 

fully grade-separated, dedicated doubletrack, passenger-only railroad either in 

the median of, or immediately 

alongside, Interstate-15 (I–15). 

The proposed project modifications 

and additions do not in any way change 

the underlying purpose of, or need for, 

the project. The need for high-speed 

passenger rail service arises from several 

factors, including high and increasing 

travel demand with limited increases in 

capacity on I–15, constraints to the 

expansion of air travel, and frequent 

highway vehicle accidents on the I–15 

corridor. The DesertXpress high-speed 

passenger train is intended to provide 

reliable and safe passenger rail 

transportation using proven high-speed 

rail technology that would be a 

convenient alternative to automobile 

travel on I–15 or air travel to and from 

Las Vegas, and that would add 

transportation capacity along the I–15 

corridor. 

Consistent with the requirements of 

NEPA, the Supplemental Draft EIS 

evaluates the environmental effects of 

the proposed modifications and 

additions, which include a new 

Victorville passenger station option at 

Dale Evans Parkway, a rail alignment 

through the Barstow area following the 

I–15 freeway corridor from Lenwood 

through Yermo, CA, a new rail 

alignment through the Clark Mountains 

near the Mojave National Preserve, new 

sites for maintenance and operation 

facilities in unincorporated Clark 

County, NV, relocation of portions of 

the rail alignment in metropolitan Las 

Vegas from the immediate I–15 corridor 

to the Industrial Road/Dean Martin 

Drive corridor, and several alignment 

modifications to reduce or avoid 

environmental impacts, improve 

operating characteristics, or avoid 

conflicts with other planned projects. 

Copies of both the Supplemental Draft 

EIS and Draft EIS are available online at 

FRA’s Web site: http://www.fra.dot.gov; 

they are also available for viewing at the 

following locations near the planned 

rail system: 

• Victorville City Library, 15011 

Circle Drive, Victorville, CA 92395; 

• Barstow Library, 304 East Buena 

Vista, Barstow, CA 92311; 

• Clark County Library, 1401 E. 

Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, NV 89119; 

and 

• Las Vegas Library, 833 Las Vegas 

Blvd. N., Las Vegas, NV 80101. 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 173 / Wednesday, September 8, 2010 / Notices 54695 

Issued in Washington, DC, on September 1, 

2010. 

Mark E. Yachmetz, 

Associate Administrator for Railroad Policy 

& Development. 

[FR Doc. 2010–22246 Filed 9–7–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Research and Innovative Technology 

Administration 

Advisory Council on Transportation 

Statistics; Notice of Meeting 

AGENCY: Research and Innovative 

Technology Administration, U.S. 

Department of Transportation. 

ACTION: Notice. 

This notice announces, pursuant to 

Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory 

Committee Act (FACA) (Pub. L. 72–363; 

5 U.S.C. app. 2), a meeting of the 

Advisory Council on Transportation 

Statistics (ACTS). The meeting will be 

held on Friday, October 8, 2010, from 9 

a.m. to 5 p.m. EST in the Oklahoma City 

Room at the U.S. Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave., 

SE., Washington, DC. 

Section 5601(o) of the Safe, 

Accountable, Flexible, Efficient 

Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for 

Users (SAFETEA–LU) directs the U.S. 

Department of Transportation to 

establish an Advisory Council on 

Transportation Statistics subject to the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

U.S.C., App. 2) to advise the Bureau of 

Transportation Statistics (BTS) on the 

quality, reliability, consistency, 

objectivity, and relevance of 

transportation statistics and analyses 

collected, supported, or disseminated by 

the Bureau and the Department. 

The following is a summary of the 

draft meeting agenda: (1) USDOT 

welcome and introduction of Council 

Members; (2) Overview of prior meeting; 

(3) Discussion of DOT Strategic Plan 

and related BTS products; (4) Council 

Members review and discussion of 

statistical programs; and (5) future 

Council activities. Participation is open 

to the public. Members of the public 

who wish to participate must notify 

Tonya Tinsley-Grisham at 

tonya.tinsley@dot.gov, not later than 

September 27, 2010. Members of the 

public may present oral statements at 

the meeting with the approval of Steven 

K. Smith, Deputy Director of the Bureau 

of Transportation Statistics. Noncommittee members wishing to present 

oral statements or obtain information 

should contact Ms. Tinsley-Grisham via 

e-mail no later than October 4, 2010. 

Questions about the agenda or written 

comments may be e-mailed or submitted 

by U.S. Mail to: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Research and Innovative 

Technology Administration, Bureau of 

Transportation Statistics, Attention: 

Tonya Tinsley-Grisham, 1200 New 

Jersey Avenue, SE., Room # E34–403, 

Washington, DC 20590, 

tonya.tinsley@dot.gov or faxed to (202) 

366–3640. BTS requests that written 

comments be received by October 5, 

2010. 

Notice of this meeting is provided in 

accordance with the FACA and the 

General Services Administration 

regulations (41 CFR part 102–3) 

covering management of Federal 

advisory committees. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on the 1st day 

of September 2010. 

Steven K. Smith, 

Deputy Director, Bureau of Transportation 

Statistics. 

[FR Doc. 2010–22319 Filed 9–7–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–HY–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

Noise Exposure Map Notice; 

Brownsville South Padre Island 

International Airport, Brownsville, TX 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration, DOT. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA) announces its 

determination that the noise exposure 

maps submitted by the City of 

Brownsville, Texas for Brownsville 

South Padre Island International Airport 

under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 47501 

et seq. (Aviation Safety and Noise 

Abatement Act) and 14 CFR part 150 are 

in compliance with applicable 

requirements. 

DATES: Effective Date: The effective date 

of the FAA’s determination on the noise 

exposure maps is August 30, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Lance E. Key, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 2601 Meacham 

Boulevard, Fort Worth, Texas 76137, 

(817) 222–5681. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

notice announces that the FAA finds 

that the noise exposure maps submitted 

for Brownsville South Padre Island 

International Airport are in compliance 

with applicable requirements of part 

150, effective August 30, 2010. Under 49 

U.S.C. section 47503 of the Aviation 

Safety and Noise Abatement Act 

(hereinafter referred to as ‘‘the Act’’), an 

airport operator may submit to the FAA 

noise exposure maps which meet 

applicable regulations and which depict 

non-compatible land uses as of the date 

of submission of such maps, a 

description of projected aircraft 

operations, and the ways in which such 

operations will affect such maps. The 

Act requires such maps to be developed 

in consultation with interested and 

affected parties in the local community, 

government agencies, and persons using 

the airport. An airport operator who has 

submitted noise exposure maps that are 

found by FAA to be in compliance with 

the requirements of Federal Aviation 

Regulations (FAR) part 150, 

promulgated pursuant to the Act, may 

submit a noise compatibility program 

for FAA approval which sets forth the 

measures the operator has taken or 

proposes to take to reduce existing noncompatible uses and prevent the 

introduction of additional noncompatible uses. 

The FAA has completed its review of 

the noise exposure maps and 

accompanying documentation 

submitted by the City of Brownsville, 

Texas. The documentation that 

constitutes the ‘‘noise exposure maps’’ as 

defined in section 150.7 of part 150 

includes: Tables 5.1 through 5.13 and 

Figures 5.1 through 5.5 for year 2009 

existing conditions and Tables 6.1 

through 6.10 and Figures 6.1 through 

6.5 for year 2015 future conditions at 

Brownsville South Padre Island 

International Airport. The FAA has 

determined that these noise exposure 

maps and accompanying documentation 

are in compliance with applicable 

requirements. This determination is 

effective on August 30, 2010. 

FAA’s determination on an airport 

operator’s noise exposure maps is 

limited to a finding that the maps were 

developed in accordance with the 

procedures contained in appendix A of 

FAR part 150. Such determination does 

not constitute approval of the 

applicant’s data, information or plans, 

or a commitment to approve a noise 

compatibility program or to fund the 

implementation of that program. If 

questions arise concerning the precise 

relationship of specific properties to 

noise exposure contours depicted on a 

noise exposure map submitted under 

section 47503 of the Act, it should be 

noted that the FAA is not involved in 

any way in determining the relative 

locations of specific properties with 

regard to the depicted noise contours, or 

in interpreting the noise exposure maps 

to resolve questions concerning, for 

example, which properties should be 

covered by the provisions of section 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES