[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 96 (Monday, May 19, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27142-27143]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-12344]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Docket No. AB-33 (Sub-No. 163X)] and [STB Docket No. AB-364 (Sub-
No. 8X)]


Union Pacific Railroad Company--Abandonment Exemption--in Lamar 
and Fannin Counties, TX and Texas Northeastern Division, Mid-Michigan 
Railroad, Inc.--Discontinuance of Service Exemption--in Lamar and 
Fannin Counties, TX

    Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) and Texas Northeastern 
Division, Mid-Michigan Railroad, Inc. (TNER), have filed a notice of 
exemption under 49 CFR Part 1152 Subpart F--Exempt Abandonments and 
Discontinuances of Service for UP to abandon and TNER to discontinue 
service over a 33.5-mile portion of the Bonham Subdivision between 
milepost 94.0, near Paris, and milepost 127.5, east of Bonham, in Lamar 
and Fannin Counties, TX.\1\ The line traverses United States Postal 
Service Zip Codes 75418, 75421, 75446, 75460 and 75492.
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    \1\ TNER leases the line from UP.
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    UP and TNER have certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved 
over the line for at least 2 years; (2) any overhead traffic on the 
line can be 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 Surface Transportation Board 
(Board) or with any U.S. District Court or has been decided in favor of 
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 these exemptions, 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. 10502(d)

[[Page 27143]]

must be filed. Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer 
of financial assistance (OFA) has been received, these exemptions will 
be effective on June 18, 2003, unless stayed pending reconsideration. 
Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues,\2\ formal 
expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),\3\ and 
trail use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by 
May 29, 2003. Petitions to reopen or requests for public use conditions 
under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by June 9, 2003, with: Surface 
Transportation Board, 1925 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423-0001.
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    \2\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on 
environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's 
Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) in its independent 
investigation) cannot be made before the exemptions' effective date. 
See Exemption of Out-of-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). 
Any request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible so that 
the Board may take appropriate action before the exemptions' 
effective date.
    \3\ Each OFA must be accompanied by the filing fee, which 
currently is set at $1,100. See 49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25).
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    A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to 
applicants' representatives: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General 
Attorney, 101 North Wacker Drive, Room 1920, Chicago, IL 60606; and 
Louis E. Gitomer, Of Counsel, Ball Janik LLP, 1455 F St., NW., Suite 
225, Washington, DC 20005.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemptions are void ab initio.
    Applicants have filed an environmental report which addresses the 
effects, if any, of the abandonment and discontinuance on the 
environment and historic resources. SEA will issue an environmental 
assessment (EA) by May 23, 2003. Interested persons may obtain a copy 
of the EA by writing to SEA (Room 500, Surface Transportation Board, 
Washington, DC 20423-0001) or by calling SEA, at (202) 565-1552. 
[Assistance for the hearing impaired is available through the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.] 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.
    Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), UP shall file a 
notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has exercised 
the authority granted and fully abandoned the line. If consummation has 
not been effected by UP's filing of a notice of consummation by May 19, 
2004, and there are no legal or regulatory barriers to consummation, 
the authority to abandon will automatically expire.
    Board decisions and notices are available on our Website at 
WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.

    Decided: May 12, 2003.

    By the Board, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 03-12344 Filed 5-15-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-00-P