[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 202 (Thursday, October 20, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-25995]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: October 20, 1994]


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INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION

[Docket No. AB-83 (Sub-No. 14X)]

Maine Central Railroad Company; Abandonment Exemption; Cumberland 
and Oxford Counties, ME

[Docket No. 268 (Sub-No. 2X)]

 

Portland Terminal Company; Discontinuance of Service Exemption; 
Cumberland and Oxford Counties, ME

    Maine Central Railroad Company (MEC) and Portland Terminal Company 
(PT) filed a notice of exemption under 49 CFR Part 1152 Subpart F--
Exempt Abandonments and Discontinuances to abandon and discontinue 
service over a segment of their Mountain Division line of railroad 
between milepost 5.76 and milepost 51.11, a distance of approximately 
45.35 miles in Cumberland and Oxford Counties, ME.
    MEC and PT 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 November 17, 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 October 28, 1994. Petitions to reopen or 
requests for public use conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed 
by November 7, 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 
Environmental Analysis in its independent investigation) cannot be 
made prior to the effective date of this notice of exemption. See 
Exemption of Out-of-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any 
entity seeking a stay on 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 petition filed with the Commission should be sent to 
applicant's representative: John R. Nadolny, Iron Horse Park, No. 
Billerica, MA 01862.
    If the notice of exemption contains false or misleading 
information, the exemption is void ab initio.
    MEC and PT 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 Environmental 
Analysis (SEA) will issue an environmental assessment (EA) by October 
21, 1994. Interested persons may obtain a copy of the EA by writing to 
SEA (Room 3219, Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, DC 20423) 
or by calling Elaine Kaiser, Chief of SEA, at (202) 927-6248. Comments 
on environmental and historic preservation matters must be filed within 
15 days after the EA becomes 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: October 12, 1994.

    By the Commission, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Vernon A. Williams,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 94-25995 Filed 10-19-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7035-01-P