[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 3 (Wednesday, January 5, 1994)]
[Notices]
[Page 596]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-172]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: January 5, 1994]


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INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. AB-32 and AB-355 (Sub-Nos. 61X and 13X)]

 

Boston and Maine Corporation--Abandonment Exemption--New Haven 
County, CT; Springfield Terminal Railway Company--Discontinuance of 
Service Exemption--New Haven County, CT

    Boston and Maine Corporation (B&M) and Springfield Terminal Railway 
Company (ST) filed a notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1152 Subpart F--
Exempt Abandonments and Discontinuances to abandon and discontinue 
service over a segment of B&M's Dublin Street Track line of railroad 
between milepost 17.29 and milepost 19.86, a distance of approximately 
2.57 miles, in Waterbury, New Haven County, CT. B&M seeks authority to 
abandon the line, and ST, which leases the line from B&M, seeks 
authority to discontinue service over the line.
    B&M and ST certify that: (1) No local traffic has moved over the 
line for at least 2 years; (2) overhead traffic, if any, has been 
rerouted over other lines; (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 adversely 
affected by the abandonment or discontinuance 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 February 4, 1994, 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 
1152.293 must be filed by January 18, 1994. Petitions to reopen or 
requests for public use conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed 
by January 25, 1994, with: Office of the Secretary, Case Control 
Branch, Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, DC 20423.
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    \1\A 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 Energy 
and Environment 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 before the effective 
date of this exemption.
    \2\See 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 as 
long as it retains jurisdiction to do so.
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    A copy of any pleading filed with the Commission should be sent to 
applicants' representative: Kevin J. O'Connell, Esq., Law Department, 
Iron Horse Park, North Billerica, MA 01862.
    If the notice of exemption contains false or misleading 
information, the exemption is void ab initio.
    B&M and ST have filed an environmental report which addresses the 
effect, if any, of the abandonment and the discontinuance on the 
environmental and historic resources. The Section of Energy and 
Environment (SEE) will issue an environmental assessment (EA) by 
January 10, 1994. Interested persons may obtain a copy of the EA by 
writing to SEE (room 3219, Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, 
DC 20423) or by calling Elaine Kaiser, Chief of SEE, at (202) 927-6248. 
Comments on environmental and historic preservation matters must be 
filed within 15 days after the EA is available to the public.
    Environmental, historic preservation, public use, or trail use/rail 
banking conditions will be imposed, where appropriate, in a subsequent 
decision.


    Decided: December 27, 1993.

    By the Commission, Julia M. Farr, Acting Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Sidney L. Strickland, Jr.,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 94-172 Filed 1-4-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7035-01-P