Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30203 

EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM: 

None. 

DATE OF UPDATE: 

June 3, 2009. 

Dated: June 18, 2009. 

Habib Azarsina, 

Departmental Privacy Officer, 202–366–1965. 

[FR Doc. E9–14837 Filed 6–23–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Notice of Application for Approval of 

Discontinuance or Modification of a 

Railroad Signal System or Relief From 

the Requirements of Title 49 Code of 

Federal Regulations Part 236 

Pursuant to Title 49 Code of Federal 

Regulations (CFR) Part 235 and 49 

U.S.C. 20502(a), the following railroad 

has petitioned the Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA) seeking approval 

for the discontinuance or modification 

of the signal system or relief from the 

requirements of 49 CFR Part 236, as 

detailed below. 

Docket Number FRA–2009–0052. 

Applicant: Norfolk Southern 

Corporation, Mr. Donald D. Graab, 

Assistant Vice-President Mechanical, 

Mechanical Department, 1200 Peachtree 

Street, NE., Atlanta, Georgia 30309– 

3579. 

The Norfolk Southern Corporation 

(NS) seeks relief from the requirements 

of the Rules, Standards, and 

Instructions, 49 CFR Part 236, 

§§ 236.586 and 236.110. NS seeks a 

waiver from compliance with § 236.586 

Daily or after trip test, in its entirety for 

locomotives equipped with UltraCab 

equipment. NS seeks a waiver from that 

portion of § 236.110 that requires 

record-keeping and record retention for 

tests performed under § 236.586. 

The reason given for the proposed 

changes is that UltraCab locomotive cab 

signal equipment is microprocessorbased, and it is universally recognized 

that this technology has provided vast 

breakthroughs in advanced train stop 

and train control equipment. These 

systems offer improvements far superior 

to their predecessors in performance, 

reliability, and safety. Equipment is now 

capable of checking itself several times 

a second and verifying that the system 

is functioning properly and that all 

external inputs are valid. 

Any interested party desiring to 

protest the granting of an application 

shall set forth specifically the grounds 

upon which the protest is made, and 

include a concise statement of the 

interest of the party in the proceeding. 

Additionally, one copy of the protest 

shall be furnished to the applicant at the 

address listed above. 

FRA expects to be able to determine 

these matters without an oral hearing. 

However, if a specific request for an oral 

hearing is accompanied by a showing 

that the party is unable to adequately 

present his or her position by written 

statements, an application may be set 

for public hearing. 

Interested parties are invited to 

participate in these proceedings by 

submitting written views, data, or 

comments. 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 

an opportunity for oral comment, they 

should notify FRA, in writing, before 

the end of the comment period and 

specify the basis for their request. 

All communications concerning these 

proceedings should identify the 

appropriate docket number (e.g., Waiver 

Petition Docket Number FRA–2009– 

0052) and may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

• Web site: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 202–493–2251. 

• Mail: Docket Operations Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

Communications received within 45 

days of the date 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 a.m.–5 p.m.) at the 

above facility. All documents in the 

public docket are also available for 

inspection and copying on the Internet 

at the docket facility’s Web site at 

http://www.regulations.gov. 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of any written 

communications and comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register 

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–78). 

Issued in Washington, DC on June 17, 

2009. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr., 

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety 

Standards and Program Development. 

[FR Doc. E9–14830 Filed 6–23–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Notice of Informational Filing 

For informational purposes only, the 

Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) 

is providing notice that it has received 

an informational filing from the BNSF 

Railway Company (BNSF) to conduct 

testing of Configuration IV of BNSF’s 

Electronic Train Management System 

(ETMS) submitted pursuant to Title 49 

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 

236.913. The informational filing is 

described below, including the 

submitting party and the requisite 

docket number where the informational 

filing and any related information may 

be found. The document is available for 

public inspection; however, FRA is not 

accepting public comment on the 

document. 

BNSF Railway Company 

[Docket Number FRA–2006–23687] 

BNSF has submitted an informational 

filing to FRA to begin operational 

testing of ETMS Version IV on BNSF’s 

Stampede Subdivision. This testing will 

allow BNSF to obtain the necessary 

assessments required to amend BNSF’s 

currently approved Product Safety Plan 

(PSP) for ETMS Version I for a future 

submittal to FRA. In addition, this 

testing will allow BNSF to substantiate 

the ETMS technology on mountain 

grade territory with freight operations. 

The informational filing has been placed 

under Docket Number FRA–2006–23687 

and is available for public inspection. 

Interested parties are invited to 

review the informational filing and 

associated documents at the DOT 

Docket Management facility during 

regular business hours (9 a.m.–5 p.m.) at 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Room 

W12–140, Washington, DC 20590. All 

documents in the public docket are also 

available for inspection and copying on 

the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of any written 

communications received into any of 

our dockets by name of the individual 

submitting the document (or signing the 

document, if submitted on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

30204 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

You may review the DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 

Register published on April 11, 2000 

(Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477– 

78). 

Issued in Washington, DC on June 17, 

2009. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr., 

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety 

Standards and Program Development. 

[FR Doc. E9–14825 Filed 6–23–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

In accordance with Part 211 of Title 

49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 

notice is hereby given that the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA) has 

received a request for a waiver of 

compliance from certain requirements 

of its safety standards. The individual 

petition is described below, including 

the party seeking relief, the regulatory 

provisions involved, the nature of the 

relief being requested, and the 

petitioner’s arguments in favor of relief. 

BNSF Railway Company 

[Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA–2009– 

0048] 

The BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) 

requests a waiver of compliance from 

the requirements of 49 CFR Part 240, 

Qualification and Certification of 

Locomotive Engineers, specifically, 

§ 240.129. BNSF’s specific request is for 

a waiver from the requirement that 

locomotive engineers have annual 

operational performance evaluations as 

provided under the procedures pursuant 

to Sections 240.129(b), (c), and (e). 

Section 240.129(b) requires a railroad 

to ‘‘have procedures for monitoring the 

operational performance of those it has 

determined as qualified as a locomotive 

engineer.’’ Section 240.129(c) provides 

the requirements of the procedures 

referenced under (b), including that the 

engineer ‘‘shall be annually monitored 

(check ride) by a Designated Supervisor 

of Locomotive Engineers’’ and is either 

‘‘accompanied by the designated 

supervisor’’ or ‘‘has his or her train 

handling activities electronically 

recorded.’’ BNSF has a program to 

comply with these requirements. 

Section 240.129(e) requires the railroad 

to have an operational testing and 

monitoring program in place, and to 

perform at least one unannounced test 

each calendar year. This program must 

be designed to monitor compliance with 

railroad operating rules and other 

directives, and to examine and test such 

compliance. 

BNSF is currently working to 

implement an automatic control system 

that will allow the engineer certification 

database to connect directly to the crew 

database. By connecting these systems, 

BNSF will then be able to constantly 

validate information to safeguard 

against engineers falling outside of the 

provisions of Section 240.129. Once this 

system is fully functioning, individuals 

who are not current on the check-ride 

requirement or operational testing will 

automatically be prevented from 

operating a locomotive until such time 

as they meet the requirements of this 

rule. BNSF plans to have this system in 

place and fully functional by the end of 

August 2009. As a result, the relief 

granted under this waiver request will 

neither lead to a degradation of safety 

nor to any conflict with the intent of the 

rule. 

BNSF has several employees certified 

under 49 CFR Part 240 for service who 

are not currently performing the duties 

that require this certification. Some of 

these individuals have bid on and taken 

positions in other service, while others 

have been furloughed. As a result, these 

individuals are not in a position to 

operate locomotives as an engineer. 

BNSF requests relief from Section 

240.129 to avoid having to perform 

operational performance evaluations on 

individuals who are currently out of 

locomotive engineer service. Waiving 

performance of these evaluations on 

individuals not currently active as 

locomotive engineers is consistent with 

the general application of Part 240, 

which applies to ‘‘any person who 

operates locomotives.’’ 

These individuals are not operating 

locomotives, nor will they be allowed to 

operate locomotives under BNSF’s 

control system. Performance of the 

operational evaluation on individuals 

not currently operating locomotives 

causes safety concerns because it 

requires calling a person in for the sole 

purpose of an evaluation ride and also 

because it would lead to those 

individuals achieving technical 

compliance with the rule only to go 

back to prolonged service in areas other 

than operation of locomotives. BNSF’s 

proposal provides the operational 

evaluation at a time prior to the full 

operation of a locomotive, in 

compliance with the rules, but also at a 

time that is contemporary to the return 

to the active operation of locomotives. 

BNSF requests this waiver as a 

method of ensuring that active 

locomotive engineers receive timely and 

appropriate training and monitoring as 

required for compliance with the rule. 

Through granting this waiver, BNSF 

believes there will be no negative 

impact on safety. As described, BNSF 

will not permit any locomotive engineer 

to operate a locomotive without being in 

full compliance with Part 240, including 

Section 129, of which relief is 

requested. BNSF believes this process 

will promote enhanced safety by 

providing for the operational 

performance evaluations to be done as 

these engineers return to active engine 

service such that safe operation is fresh 

in their minds upon their return. 

Interested parties are invited to 

participate in these proceedings by 

submitting written views, data, or 

comments. 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 

an opportunity for oral comment, they 

should notify FRA, in writing, before 

the end of the comment period and 

specify the basis for their request. 

All communications concerning these 

proceedings should identify the 

appropriate docket number (e.g., Waiver 

Petition Docket Number FRA–2009– 

0048) and may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

• Web site: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 202–493–2251. 

• Mail: Docket Operations Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

Communications received within 45 

days of the date 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 a.m.–5 p.m.) at the 

above facility. All documents in the 

public docket are also available for 

inspection and copying on the Internet 

at the docket facility’s Web site at 

http://www.regulations.gov. 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of any written 

communications and comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register