[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 246 (Friday, December 21, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66009-66011]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-31527]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


Preparation of An Environmental Impact Statement on a Transit 
Connection Between the 2100 South Light Rail Station and the Cities of 
West Valley City and Taylorsville in Metropolitan Salt Lake City, UT

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA), in cooperation with 
the Wasatch Front Regional Council (WFRC) and Utah Transit Authority 
(UTA), is issuing this notice to advise interested agencies and the 
public that, in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA), an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be prepared for a 
transit connection westward from the North-South Light Rail line to a 
logical terminus near the West Valley City center. Possible extensions 
or other transit improvements extending southward to the city of 
Taylorsville will also be evaluated. This proposed transportation 
project was identified in a Type I Major Investment Study (MIS) 
completed in March 2000. In addition to the rail transit alternatives 
from the ``Transit Corridors Analysis,'' the No-Build Alternative and 
any new alternatives generated through the scoping process will be 
evaluated. Scoping will be accomplished through coordination with 
interested persons, organizations, and federal, state, and local 
agencies. FTA is serving as the federal lead agency for the project in 
anticipation of a grant application from UTA for its construction. 
Based on the results of the scoping process, FTA will establish the 
scope of the environmental review under NEPA, including the 
identification of environmental issues and effects to be addressed and 
the reasonable alternatives to be retained for detailed evaluation.

DATES: Interagency and public scoping and information meetings will be 
held on the following dates at the locations indicated:
    Interagency Scoping Meeting: Wednesday, January 9th, 2002 from 10 
a.m. to noon, at the Wasatch Front Regional Council, 295 North Jimmy 
Doolittle Road, Salt Lake City, UT 84116.
    Public Scoping Meeting No. 1: Wednesday, January 9, 2002 from 5 
p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Utah Transit Authority Board Room, located at 
3600 South 700 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84119-0810.
    Public Scoping Meeting No. 2: Saturday, January 12, 2002 from 9 
a.m. to 11 a.m. at the West Valley City Hall located at 3600 South 
Constitution Blvd., West Valley City, UT 84119-3720.
    Written comments on the scope of the environmental study should be 
sent by January 28, 2002, to Barry Banks, Project Manager, Wasatch 
Front Regional Council, 295 North Jimmy Doolittle Road, Salt Lake City, 
UT 84116.

ADDRESSES: The addresses where scoping meetings will be held and where 
comments on the scope of the study may be sent, appear above in the 
DATES section. A Scoping Booklet is available from Barry Banks, Project 
Manager, Wasatch Front Regional Council, 295 North Jimmy Doolittle 
Road, Salt Lake City, UT 84116 or by calling the project information 
line at (801) 904-4127.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Don Cover, Federal Transit 
Administration, 216 16th Street, Suite 650, Denver, Colorado 80202; 
telephone (303) 844-3242.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[[Page 66010]]

I. Scoping

    The WFRC and UTA will hold interagency and public scoping meetings 
as presented in the DATES section above. At these meetings, WFRC and 
UTA will present the results of the ``Type 1 MIS'' and the alternatives 
proposed for detailed evaluation in the EIS. At the public meetings, 
interested persons will have an opportunity to speak individually with 
a WFRC or UTA representative. In addition, a WFRC or UTA person will be 
available to receive written and record verbal comments on the scope of 
the NEPA review. All scoping meeting locations are accessible to 
persons with disabilities. Individuals who require special 
accommodations, such as a sign language interpreter, to participate in 
the meeting should contact Ms. Sherry L. Repscher, ADA Compliance 
Officer, Utah Transit Authority, 3600 South 700 West, Salt Lake City, 
UT 84119-0810 or by telephone at (801) 262-5626 or TDD at (801) 287-
4657. Interested individuals, organizations, and public agencies are 
invited to attend the scoping meetings and participate in identifying 
any important environmental impact issues related to the proposed 
alternatives and suggesting alternatives which would be more economical 
or would have less environmental impact while achieving similar 
transportation objectives. An information packet, referred to as the 
Scoping Booklet, will be distributed to all public agencies and 
interested individuals and will be available at the meetings. Others 
may request the Scoping Booklet by contacting Barry Banks at the 
address listed above in ADDRESSES. Anyone wishing to be placed on the 
project mailing list to receive meeting notices and further information 
as the project develops should also contact Barry Banks at the address 
listed in ADDRESSES or call the project information line (801) 904-
4127. Comments during the scoping period should focus on identifying 
the social, economic, and environmental concerns associated with the 
proposed action, and alternatives that deserve consideration, and not 
on a preference for a particular alternative. Comments regarding 
preference for a particular alternative may be submitted during 
subsequent public meetings or at a hearing on the Draft Environmental 
Impact Statement, when it is published. Scoping comments may be made at 
the scoping meetings or may be directed in writing to Barry Banks, 
Project Manager, at the address given in ADDRESSES.

II. Description of the Project Area and Transportation Need

    The UTA North-South TRAX system that now includes the extension 
from the Salt Lake City Central Business District (CBD) to the 
University of Utah provides the spine for an expanded Light Rail 
Transit (LRT) system to serve more communities in Salt Lake County. 
Recent passage of a \1/4\ cent regional sales tax increase indicates 
broad public support for expansion and improvement of transit services 
throughout Salt Lake, Davis and Weber Counties. Expanded and improved 
bus service and extensions of the existing LRT system have been studied 
for several years by WFRC and UTA, and the West Valley City Transit 
Corridors has been identified as a high priority among five proposed 
LRT corridors previously studied by WFRC and UTA.
    In March 2000, a Major Investment Study (MIS) was completed for a 
transportation corridor connecting West Valley City, Utah's second most 
populous, with Salt Lake City. The Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) 
emerging from this MIS was an LRT extension extending from the existing 
North-South (TRAX) Light Rail line near Andy Avenue to the West Valley 
City center. The proposed alignment crosses Interstate Highways 15 and 
215 utilizing existing structures and would connect several major trip 
generators in West Valley City with TRAX. The MIS identified 
significant and growing demand for transit service in this corridor and 
concluded that construction of LRT in this corridor held far more 
advantages than other alternatives. This concept enjoys strong support 
from local government. The Project Sponsors propose to advance the West 
Valley City Corridor through the EIS-PE phase of development in two 
contract phases. This first phase (DEIS) includes all work necessary to 
gain FTA approval to commence PE in the corridor. The current planning 
and project approval status for this corridor follows.
    A copy of the ``Type I MIS'' (executive summary) is available for 
review by contacting Barry Banks, Project Manager, as previously 
presented, or on the Internet at www.wfrc.org.

III. Alternatives To Be Studied

    A feasibility analysis was conducted as part of the South Lake 
County Transit Corridors Analysis. During scoping, the alternatives, 
findings and issues covered in the earlier studies will be reviewed and 
will be either affirmed or, if necessary, reconsidered in detail during 
the NEPA process.
    The alternatives expected to be considered in detail in the EIS 
include:
    <bullet> A ``no-build'' alternative: This alternative represents no 
change in transportation services or facilities in the corridor beyond 
already committed projects. Committed projects include those transit 
improvements defined in the transportation agencies' Long-Range 
Transportation Plans and Transit Development Plans for which funding 
has been committed.
    <bullet> Transportation Systems Management Alternative: This 
alternative consists of low-cost infrastructure and bus transit 
improvements, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) improvements, 
improvements in bus routes and operations, and other transportation 
systems management improvements.
    <bullet> Rail Transit Alternatives: These alternatives represent 
the construction of a rail transit system using LRT technology. The 
eastern terminus of the project would be the North-South (TRAX) LRT 
Line at the 2100 South Station. Opportunities for interlining with the 
existing (TRAX) system will be explored for the LRT alternative. The 
rail alternatives would also include all facilities associated with the 
construction and operations of a rail transit line, including right of 
way, structures, track, stations, park-and-ride lots, storage and 
maintenance facilities, and the respective rail and bus operating 
plans.

IV. Probable Effects

    The EIS will be prepared in accordance with NEPA and its 
implementing regulations including those of the Council on 
Environmental Quality (CEQ) implementing NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), 
and the FTA regulation on environmental procedures shared with the 
Federal Highway Administration (23 CFR part 771). The EIS will evaluate 
the social, economic, and environmental impacts of the alternatives. 
Primary concerns to be addressed include: safety at grade crossings, 
site contamination in railroad rights-of-way, property effects 
including business disruptions and relocation, impacts on local traffic 
and travel patterns, noise and vibration impacts, land use impacts, 
wetland impacts, and aesthetic/visual impacts. The cumulative impacts 
of the project together with other reasonably foreseeable actions and 
activities will be addressed.

V. FTA New Starts Procedures

    Following public review of the Draft EIS, the UTA will request FTA 
approval

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to initiate Preliminary Engineering, in accordance with the FTA New 
Starts regulation (49 CFR part 611). FTA will consider the merits of 
the project at that time, in comparison with other projects across the 
nation competing for New Starts funding, and either recommend or not 
recommend that the preferred alternative advance into Preliminary 
Engineering, which would include the preparation of the Final EIS.

    Issued on: December 12, 2001.
Lee O. Waddleton,
Regional Administrator, Federal Transit Administration.
[FR Doc. 01-31527 Filed 12-20-01; 8:45 am]
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