[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 239 (Wednesday, December 12, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64339-64341]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-30640]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


Environmental Impact Statement: Downtown/Natomas/Airport Corridor 
in Sacramento, CA

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement 
(EIS).

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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Sacramento 
Regional Transit District (RT), intend to prepare an Environmental 
Impact Statement (EIS) in accordance with the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) and an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in 
accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for 
proposed transit improvements from 7th Street and K Street in downtown 
Sacramento, north through the South and North Natomas areas to the 
Sacramento International Airport. To date, 11 alternatives have been 
identified to be addressed in the EIS/EIR. These alternatives include a 
no-action alternative, Transportation Systems Demand (TSM) alternative, 
transit service improvements, bus service expansion alternatives, bus 
rapid transit (BRT) alternatives, and light rail transit (LRT) 
alternatives. In addition, alternatives that are identified from the 
scoping process will be evaluated in the EIS/EIR. Scoping will be 
accomplished through correspondence and discussions with interested 
persons; organizations; and federal, state, and local agencies; and 
through public and agency meetings.

DATES: Comment Due Date: Written comments on the scope of alternatives 
and impacts to be considered in the EIS/EIR must be received no later 
than January 28, 2002, and must be sent to RT at the address indicated 
below. Scoping Meetings: RT will conduct three identical scoping 
meetings. These meetings will be held on December 11, 2001 from 2 p.m. 
to 4 p.m. at the Regional Transit Administration Building in the 
Auditorium, located at 1400 29th Street, Sacramento, California 95812; 
on December 12, 2001 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at The Club at North 
Natomas, located at 2101 Club Center Drive, Sacramento, California 
95835; and December 13, 2001 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the South Natomas 
Community Center, located at 2921 Truxel Road, Sacramento, California 
95833.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Mr. David M. Melko, 
Policy and Program Manager, Sacramento Regional Transit District, P.O. 
Box 2110, Sacramento, California 95812-2110. Phone: (916) 321-2992. 
Fax: (916) 444-2156.
    To be added to the mailing list, contact Ms. Susan Willson, Project 
Manager of Community Relations, The Hoyt Company, 660 J Street, Suite 
444, Sacramento, California 95814, (916) 448-2440, e-mail address: 
[email protected]. Please specify the mailing list for the Downtown/
Natomas/Airport Corridor Alternatives Analysis/Draft Environmental 
Impact Statement/Report (DNA AA/DEIS/R). Persons with special needs 
such as sign language interpretation also should contact Susan Willson, 
Project Manager of Community Relations, as indicated above. The dates 
and addresses of the scoping meetings are given in the DATES section 
above. All locations are accessible to people with disabilities.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request a scoping information 
packet, contact Mr. David Melko, Policy and Program Manager, Sacramento 
Regional Transit District, P.O. Box 2110, Sacramento, California 95812-
2110. Phone: (916) 321-2992. Fax: (916) 444-2156. The Federal Agency 
contact is Mr. Jerome Wiggins, Office of Planning and Program 
Development, FTA, 201 Mission Street, Room 2210, San Francisco, CA 
94105. Phone: (415) 744-3115.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Description of Study Area and Scope

    The Federal Transit Administration (FTA), as joint lead agency with 
the

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Sacramento Regional Transit District (RT), will prepare an EIS/EIR on a 
proposal to improve transit service in an approximately 13-mile-long 
corridor in north Sacramento, California. The study area begins in 
downtown Sacramento at 7th and K Streets. The southern terminus of the 
study boundary is typical of an urban downtown environment, with a 
mixture of land uses. Traveling north, the proposed action would cross 
the Union Pacific Railyard at the northern edge of downtown and the 
American River, possibly on a new bridge, traversing the American River 
Parkway at Discovery Park. It would pass through the South Natomas area 
(which consists of a mixture of single- and multi-family residential 
units, and commercial uses), cross Interstate 80 (I-80) and enter the 
North Natomas area (which consists of a combination of single- and 
multi-family residential units, commercial and light industrial uses, 
agricultural, and open space). The northern terminus of the proposed 
action is reached by crossing I-5/State Route 99, connecting to the 
Sacramento International Airport, located approximately 13 miles 
northwest of downtown Sacramento. The Airport now has a mixture of 
agricultural and urban uses surrounding it. RT will perform conceptual 
engineering for transit alternatives within the Sacramento Downtown/
Natomas/Airport (DNA) Corridor for a Draft EIS/EIR that satisfies both 
NEPA and CEQA requirements. In addition, a financial plan will be 
developed that examines alternative funding sources, including airport 
related funding opportunities.

II. Purpose and Need

    Freeways, highways, streets, and RT's 226 buses and 36 light rail 
vehicles are currently the primary transportation components 
responsible for the movement of people and goods in the Sacramento 
region. All types of services, such as public and private transit 
services, bicycles and pedestrians, use the existing highway and 
roadway network. Implementation of the proposed action will serve one 
of the fastest growing areas of the Sacramento region. The population 
in RT's service area is expected to grow by about 40 percent over the 
next 25 years and employment levels are expected to grow even faster. 
In the DNA Corridor, population is expected to increase by 100 percent 
(80,000 persons), and employment by 64 percent (83,000 jobs) by 2025. 
The Sacramento region is a non-attainment area for air quality and 
measures are needed to reduce mobile source emissions. In addition, 
RT's current service levels are lower than most of its peer cities of 
comparable size around the U.S. An expanded transit system will provide 
greater transportation mobility in a corridor that currently has the 
lowest amount of transit service in the region, and support economic 
development in a rapidly growing corridor.

III. Alternatives

    The alternatives under consideration include a No-Action 
Alternative, a Transportation Systems Management (TSM) alternative, two 
Enhanced Bus Alternatives, two Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Alternatives, 
and five Light Rail Transit (LRT) Alternatives. In addition, several 
sub-alternatives will be evaluated as well as any other alternatives 
that are identified during the public scoping process. A brief 
description of the alternatives is provided below. These alternatives 
will be developed further during the preparation of the Draft EIS/EIR.
    Alternative 1: No-Action. This alternative consists of highway and 
transit systems existing as of year 2000, plus programmed improvements. 
It serves as the NEPA baseline against which the transportation, 
environmental, and community impacts of the other alternatives are 
compared.
    Alternative 2: TSM Alternative. This alternative consists of all 
reasonable cost-effective transit service improvements within the DNA 
corridor that are in the financially constrained regional 
transportation plan, short of an investment in a New Starts project. 
The New Starts Program is a federal program that provides funds for 
qualifying bus, rail and other transit-related projects.
    Alternative 3: Enhanced Bus to North Natomas Town Center. This 
alternative consists of major expansion in the level of bus service 
from downtown Sacramento to the North Natomas Town Center, including 
bus enhancements and high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane capital 
improvements along major corridor freeways.
    Alternative 4: Enhanced Bus to Sacramento International Airport. 
This alternative consists of major expansion in the level of bus 
service from downtown Sacramento to the Sacramento International 
Airport, including bus enhancements and HOV lane capital improvements 
along major corridor freeways.
    Alternative 5: Bus Rapid Transit to North Natomas Town Center. This 
alternative consists of major expansion in the level of bus service, 
HOV lane capital improvements along major corridor freeways, and a Bus 
Rapid Transit (BRT) guideway from downtown Sacramento to the North 
Natomas Town Center (following the light rail alignment, including an 
exclusive BRT bridge across the American River at Discovery Park).
    Alternative 6: Bus Rapid Transit to Sacramento International 
Airport. This alternative consists of major expansion in the level of 
bus service, HOV lane capital improvements along major corridor 
freeways, and a BRT guideway from downtown Sacramento to the Sacramento 
International Airport (following the light rail alignment, including an 
exclusive BRT bridge across the American River at Discovery Park).
    Alternative 7: Light Rail Transit to Richards Blvd/Bus Rapid 
Transit to Airport. This alternative consists of modest expansion in 
the level of bus service, with light rail service from downtown 
Sacramento to Richards Boulevard and a BRT connection to the North 
Natomas Town Center and the Sacramento International Airport.
    Alternative 8: Light Rail Transit to North Natomas Town Center Plus 
Modest Bus Expansion. This alternative consists of modest expansion in 
the level of bus service, HOV lane capital improvements along major 
corridor freeways, with light rail service from downtown Sacramento to 
the North Natomas Town Center.
    Alternative 9: Light Rail Transit to Airport Plus Modest Bus 
Expansion. This alternative consists of modest expansion in the level 
of bus service, HOV lane capital improvements along major corridor 
freeways, with light rail service from downtown Sacramento to the 
Sacramento International Airport.
    Alternative 10: Light Rail Transit to North Natomas Town Center 
Plus Major Bus Expansion. This alternative consists of major expansion 
in the level of bus service, HOV lane capital improvements along major 
corridor freeways, with light rail service from downtown Sacramento to 
the North Natomas Town Center.
    Alternative 11: Light Rail Transit to Airport Plus Major Bus 
Expansion. This alternative consists of major expansion in the level of 
bus service, HOV lane capital improvements along major corridor 
freeways, with light rail service from downtown Sacramento to the 
Sacramento International Airport.
    Sub-Alternatives or alignment options to those described above are 
being considered at specific locations. These include, but are not 
limited to:
     Interstate 5 Bridge and Landscape Corridor;
     Truxel Road (including new bridge);
     Highway 160 Bridge;

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     WAPA Power Line (in South Natomas);
     Northgate Boulevard (in South Natomas);
     Market Boulevard (in North Natomas); and
     Direct access to Arco Arena.

IV. Probable Effects

    The purpose of the EIS/EIR is to fully disclose the environmental 
consequences of building and operating a major capital investment in 
the DNA Corridor in advance of any decisions to commit substantial 
financial or other resources towards its implementation. The EIS/EIR 
will explore the extent to which study alternatives and alignment 
options result in environmental impacts and will discuss actions to 
reduce or eliminate such impacts.
    Environmental issues to be examined in the EIS/EIR include: 
potential changes to the physical environment (natural resources, air 
quality, noise, water quality, geology, visual); changes in the social 
environment (land use, development, business and neighborhood 
disruptions); changes in traffic and pedestrian circulation; changes in 
transit service and patronage; associated changes in traffic 
congestion; and impacts on parklands and historic sites. Impacts will 
be identified both for the construction period and for the long-term 
operation of the alternatives. The proposed evaluation criteria include 
transportation, social, economic, and financial measures, as required 
by current federal (NEPA) and state (CEQA) environmental laws and the 
implementing regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality and of 
FTA.
    To ensure that the full range of issues related to this proposed 
action will be addressed and all significant issues identified, 
comments and suggestions are invited from all interested parties. 
Comments or questions concerning this proposed action and the EIS/EIR 
should be directed to the RT Program Manager as noted in the DATES 
section above.

V. FTA Procedures

    To streamline the NEPA process and to avoid duplication of effort, 
the agencies involved in the scoping process will consider the results 
of any previous planning studies or financial feasibility studies 
prepared in support of a decision by the Sacramento Area Council of 
Governments to include a particular alternative in the regional 
transportation plan for metropolitan Sacramento. Prior transportation 
planning studies may be pertinent to establishing the purpose and need 
for the proposed action and the range of alternatives to be evaluated 
in detail in the EIS. The Draft EIS/EIR will be prepared simultaneously 
with conceptual engineering for the alternatives, including station and 
alignment options. The Draft EIS/EIR process will address the potential 
use of federal funds for the proposed action, including airport rleated 
funding opportunities, as well as assesses the social, economic, and 
environmental impacts of the station and alignment alternatives. 
Station designs and alignment alternatives will be refined to minimize 
and mitigate any adverse impacts.
    After publication, the Draft EIS/EIR will be available for public 
and agency review and comment, and a public hearing will be held. Based 
on the Draft EIS/EIR and comments received, RT will select a locally 
preferred alternative for further assessment in the Final EIS/EIR and 
will apply for FTA approval to initiate Preliminary Engineering of the 
preferred alternative.

    Issued on: December 5, 2001.
Leslie T. Rogers,
Region IX Administrator.
[FR Doc. 01-30640 Filed 12-11-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P