[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 80 (Monday, April 26, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22594-22595]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-9251]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Docket No. AB-6 (Sub-No. 410X)]


The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company--Abandonment 
Exemption--in Thurston County, WA

    The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) has filed a 
notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1152 Subpart F--Exempt Abandonments to 
abandon and discontinue service over a 5.80-mile line of railroad 
between milepost 3.27 in Quadlock and milepost 9.07 in Olympia, in 
Thurston County, WA. The line traverses United States Postal Service 
Zip Codes 98501, 98503, 98513 and 98516.
    BNSF has certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved over the 
line for at least 2 years; (2) there is no overhead traffic to be 
rerouted; (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

[[Page 22595]]

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 this exemption, any employee adversely affected 
by the abandonment and 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) must be 
filed. Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of 
financial assistance (OFA) has been received, this exemption will be 
effective on May 26, 2004, unless stayed pending reconsideration. 
Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues,\1\ formal 
expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),\2\ and 
trail use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by 
May 6, 2004.\3\ Petitions to reopen or requests for public use 
conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by May 17, 2004, with the 
Surface Transportation Board, 1925 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423-
0001.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 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 exemption's 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 exemption's 
effective date.
    \2\ Each offer of financial assistance must be accompanied by 
the filing fee, which currently is set at $1,100. See 49 CFR 
1002.2(f)(25).
    \3\ The City of Lacey and the City of Olympia (Cities) filed a 
request for imposition of a public use condition and for issuance of 
a notice of interim trail use for a portion of the line from 
milepost 3.27 at Quadlock near Union Mills Road, to milepost 6.73 
near Fones Road in Olympia, a distance of 3.46 miles, pursuant to 
section 8(d) of the National Trails System Act, 16 U.S.C. 1247(d). 
The Board will address the Cities' public use and trail use 
requests, and any others that may be filed, in a subsequent 
decision.
    \4\ Each trail use request and public use request must be 
accompanied by the filing fee, which is set at $150.00. See 49 CFR 
1002.2(f)(27). These fees are scheduled to increase to $200.00, 
effective April 28, 2004.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to 
BNSF's representative: Michael Smith, Freeborn & Peters, 311 S. Wacker 
Dr., Suite 3000, Chicago, IL 60606-6677.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio.
    BNSF has 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 
April 30, 2004. 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) 565-1539. [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), BNSF shall file 
a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has 
exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned its line. If 
consummation has not been effected by BNSF's filing of a notice of 
consummation by April 26, 2005, 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 Web site at http://www.stb.dot.gov.

    Decided: April 19, 2004.

    By the Board, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 04-9251 Filed 4-23-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P