[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 89 (Tuesday, May 9, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27035-27036]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-7051]


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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 favour of relief.

TTX Company

[Docket Number FRA-2005-21832]

    The TTX Company (TTX), seeks a waiver of compliance from the 
requirements of Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 215. 
203(a)(1) Restricted Cars, for two series of sixty-foot long, seventy-
ton capacity general service flat cars. These cars were built by two 
manufacturers, Pullman-Standard, car numbers 90000-94217 and Thrall car 
numbers 97100-98225. The subject cars were originally built as wood 
deck, general service cars, but some were modified by TTX for 
intermodal service. The modified cars had no changes made to their 
underframe structure, but they did have the required transverse 
crossmembers applied to permit loading of twenty-foot and forty-foot 
intermodal containers.
    None of the cars covered by this petition have reached an age of 
fifty years, measured from the date of original construction, as of 
this date. However, TTX requests that these two series of cars be 
permitted to operate in revenue service, up to a maximum of sixty-five 
years as measured from the date of original construction.
    To ensure the safety of these cars, for their extended service 
life, TTX is conducting a rigorous analysis and testing program to 
validate that the carbody structure of these sixty-foot cars is capable 
of a maximum sixty-five year life. Typical cars from the subject series 
were placed in service with on-board instrumentation to record the 
service environment over various routes. This data will be used by the 
Transportation Technology Center, Incorporated (TTCI) to develop the 
test protocol for the Simuloader (hydraulic test apparatus) to simulate 
the additional years of service. At the end of testing, TTCI will 
prepare a final report, and submit the results to FRA for evaluation; 
therefore, TTX requests a waiver from the requirements of 49 CFR 215. 
203(a)(1) to allow for the submission of the design analysis and test 
data to support an increased service life of the subject cars from 
fifty to sixty-five years, prior to obtaining an age of fifty years 
from the date of original construction.
    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 (e.g., Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA-
2005-21832) and must be submitted in triplicate to the Docket Clerk, 
DOT Central Docket Management Facility, Room Pl-401, Washington, DC. 
20590-0001. 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 DOT 
Central Docket Management Facility, Room Pl-401 (Plaza Level), 400 
Seventh Street SW., Washington. All documents

[[Page 27036]]

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 19377-78). The statement 
may also be found at http://dms.dot.gov.

    Issued in Washington, DC on May 3, 2006
Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program 
Development.
 [FR Doc. E6-7051 Filed 5-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P