[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 160 (Tuesday, August 19, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49841-49842]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-21219]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA 2003-15644; Notice 1]


Freightliner LLC; Receipt of Application for Determination of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance

    Freightliner LLC (Freightliner), on behalf of Thomas Built Buses, 
Inc. (Thomas) of High Point, North Carolina, has applied to be exempted 
from the notification and remedy requirements of the 49 U.S.C. chapter 
301 ``Motor Vehicle Safety'' for a noncompliance with Federal Motor 
Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 205, ``Glazing Materials,'' on the 
basis that the noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle 
safety. Freightliner has filed a report of noncompliance pursuant to 49 
CFR part 573, ``Defect and Noncompliance Reports.''
    This notice of receipt of the application is published under 49 
U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any agency decision or 
other exercise of judgment concerning the merits of the application. 
See 49 U.S.C. 30118 (d) and 30120 (h).
    Freightliner submitted the following information in accordance with 
the requirements of 49 CFR part 556, ``Exemption for Inconsequential 
Defect or Noncompliance.''

Summary of the Petition

    Freightliner has determined that approximately 700 Thomas Built 
Conventional, MPV-EF, and HDX buses manufactured between September 22, 
2002, and February 24, 2003, do not meet the labeling requirements of 
Paragraph S6 of FMVSS No. 205, ``Glazing Materials,'' specifically 
section 6 of ANSI Z26 as incorporated by reference. The driver side 
windows were not marked with the DOT symbol, manufacturer's number, and 
the AS 2

[[Page 49842]]

code mark. According to Freightliner, the glazing otherwise met all the 
material, performance, and marking requirements of FMVSS No. 205, and 
it supplied a supporting compliance test report.
    Freightliner believes that there is no safety risk associated with 
the glazing. The buses containing this glazing are maintained by 
professional transportation facilities and personnel that would be 
expected to correctly replace this glazing because they have experience 
in such maintenance. Freightliner maintains that, although this failure 
to label the driver side windows with the DOT number and AS2 code 
constitutes a noncompliance with the marking requirements of FMVSS No. 
205, it is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. Therefore, 
Freightliner believes Thomas should be exempted from the notification 
and remedy requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle 
Safety Act.

Availability of the Petition and Other Documents

    The petition and other relevant information are available for 
public inspection in NHTSA Docket No. NHTSA-2003-15644. You may call 
the Docket at (202) 366-9324 or you may visit the Docket Management in 
Room PL-401, 400 7th Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590 (10 a.m. 
to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday). You may also view the petition and 
other relevant information on the internet. To do this, do the 
following:
    (1) Go to the Docket Management System (DMS) Web page of the 
Department of Transportation (http://dms.dot.gov/).
    (2) On that page, click on ``Simple Search.''
    (3) On the next page (http://dms.dot.gov/searchform.simple.cfm/), 
type in the docket number, ``15644.'' After typing the docket number, 
click on ``Search.''
    (4) On the next page, which contains docket summary information for 
the docket you selected, click on the desired comments. You may 
download the comments and other materials.
    Comments: You may submit comments by DOT DMS Docket Number NHTSA 
2003-15644, by any of the following methods:
    [sbull] Web Site: http://dms.dot.gov. Follow the instructions for 
submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site.
    [sbull] Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
    [sbull] Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, Room PL-401, 
Washington, DC 20590-001
    [sbull] Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on the plaza level of the Nassif 
Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    [sbull] Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    All comments received before the close of business on the closing 
date indicated below will be considered. The application and supporting 
materials, and all comments received after the closing date, will also 
be filed and will be considered to the extent practicable. When the 
application is granted or denied, the notice will be published in the 
Federal Register pursuant to the authority indicated below.
    Comment closing date: September 18, 2003.

(49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and 
49 CFR 501.8)
    Issued on: August 13, 2003.
Stephen R. Kratzke,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 03-21219 Filed 8-18-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P