[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 248 (Wednesday, December 27, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67015-67016]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-31328]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Petition for a Waiver of Compliance

    In accordance with Title 49 CFR 211.9 and 211.41, notice is hereby 
given that 

[[Page 67016]]
the following railroads have petitioned the Federal Railroad 
Administration (FRA) for exemptions from or waivers of compliance with 
a requirement of its safety standards. The individual petitions are 
described below, including the party seeking relief, the regulatory 
provisions involved, and the nature of the relief being requested.
    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 of 
their request.
    All communications concerning these proceedings should identify the 
appropriate waiver petition docket number (e.g., Waiver Petition Docket 
Number HS-95-13, HS-95-15, HS-95-16 or HS-95-17) and must be submitted 
in triplicate to the Docket Clerk, Office of Chief Counsel, Federal 
Railroad Administration, Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street SW, 
Washington, DC 20590. Communications received within 45 days of the 
date of publication 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. to 5 p.m.) in room 8201, Nassif Building, 400 Seventh 
Street SW, Washington, DC 20590.
    The individual petitions are as follows:

Southern Pacific Transportation Company (SPT), FRA Waiver Petition 
Docket No. HS-95-13

    Southern Pacific requests a permanent waiver, after testing, to 
utilize new technologies to record hours of duty information for train, 
engine and yard personnel.

CNNA--Grand Trunk Western Railroad, Inc. (GTW), FRA Waiver Petition 
Docket No. HS-95-15

    Grand Trunk Western requests a permanent waiver, after testing, to 
utilize new technologies to record hours of duty information for train, 
engine and yard personnel.

Houston Belt and Terminal Railway Company (HBT), FRA Waiver Petition 
Docket No. HS-95-16

    Houston Belt and Terminal requests a permanent waiver, after 
testing, to utilize new technologies to record hours of duty 
information for engine, hostler, yard, signal and operator personnel.

Port Terminal Railroad Association (PTRA), FRA Waiver Petition Docket 
No. HS-95-17

    Port Terminal Railroad requests a permanent waiver, after testing, 
to utilize new technologies to record hours of duty information for 
engine, hostler, yard and operator personnel.
    The above railroads seek a waiver of compliance with certain 
provisions of FRA Safety Regulations (Hours of Service of Railroad 
Employees, 49 CFR Part 228). The railroads seek a waiver of 49 CFR 
228.9(a)(1) which requires that records maintained under Part 228 be 
signed by the employee whose time of duty is being recorded, or in the 
case of train and engine crews, signed by the ranking crew member. Each 
railroad seeks to establish a program that utilizes a computerized 
system of recording hours of duty information which would not comply 
with the above requirement for a ``signature'' of the employee or 
ranking crew member. The individual railroads propose that each 
employee will have his or her own personal identification number 
(``pin'') which will remain confidential to the employee. When 
accessing the computer for input of the hours of service record, 
required by Sec. 228.11, the ``pin'' will not appear on the computer 
screen when the employee enters his or her number. The ``pin'' is 
proposed to satisfy the signature requirements of the ``Hours of 
Service of Railroad Employees.'' The railroads maintain that the change 
is necessary to modernize recordkeeping.

    Issued in Washington, DC on December 21, 1995.
Phil Olekszyk,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Compliance and Program 
Implempmention.
[FR Doc. 95-31328 Filed 12-26-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P