[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 137 (Monday, July 19, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 43049]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-16249]


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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.

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

(Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA-2004-18063)

    Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) seeks a waiver of 
compliance with the Passenger Equipment Safety Standards, 49 CFR Part 
238. Section 231(b), as it pertains to ``The brake system design of 
passenger equipment ordered after September 8, 2000, or placed in 
service for the first time on or after September 9, 2002, shall not 
require an inspector to place himself on, under, or between components 
of the equipment to observe brake actuation and release''. MBTA is in 
the process of receiving twenty-eight new bi-level passenger coaches 
equipped with tread brakes and inboard disk brakes. Placement of the 
inboard disk brake equipment does not allow for an inspector to observe 
the brake actuation or release without placing themself on, under, or 
between components of the equipment.
    MBTA proposes that it be allowed to perform all brake inspections 
to the extent possible on a daily basis. The twenty-eight cars would 
also be equipped with brake indicators, two per truck, that are fed 
down stream of the truck air brake cut out valves. MBTA proposes that 
these brake indicators' functionality would be tested at the required 
one-hundred-eighty day periodic inspection. In addition the twenty-
eight new cars would receive an under car inspection to be performed by 
a ``Qualified Maintenance Person'' over a pit not less often than every 
five days. MBTA indicates that the pit inspection will allow for a full 
and complete inspection of all brake system components.
    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 communications concerning these proceedings should identify the 
appropriate docket number (FRA-2004-18063) 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.
    Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477-78). The Statement 
may also be found at http://dms.dot.gov.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on July 7, 2004.
Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,
Acting Associate Administrator for Safety.
[FR Doc. 04-16249 Filed 7-16-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P