[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 188 (Thursday, September 27, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Page 49449]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-24244]


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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) received a request for a waiver of compliance with 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.

The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company

[Docket Number FRA-2001-10653]

    The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) seeks a 
waiver of compliance from the provisions of the Track Safety Standards, 
49 CFR 213.121(b), regarding cracked or broken joint bars in Classes 3 
through 5 track.
    The BNSF is petitioning for a waiver which would provide relief 
from cracks which can develop between the outermost bolt holes of a 
specified six-hole skirted joint bar in use on 115-pound rail. The 
petitioner states that the cracks develop from spike notches on the 
skirted portion of the bar and in some cases penetrate the entire bar, 
producing a complete end failure.
    The petitioner states that these six-hole bars which develop cracks 
between the outermost bolt holes are comparable in strength and 
stability to their conventional 115-pound, four-hole unskirted joint 
bars and present no additional safety hazards. BNSF has submitted 
laboratory test results to support their request for a waiver.
    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 communication concerning these proceedings should identify the 
appropriate docket number (e.g., Waiver Petition Docket Number 2001-
10653) and must be submitted to the Docket Clerk, DOT Docket Management 
Facility, Room PL-401 (Plaza Level), 400 7th Street, SW., Washington, 
DC 20590. 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://dms.dot.gov.

    Issued in Washington, DC on September 21, 2001.
Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program 
Development.
[FR Doc. 01-24244 Filed 9-26-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P