[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 168 (Wednesday, August 30, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51547-51548]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-14462]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 392

[Docket No. FMCSA-2006-25660]
RIN 2126-AB04


Railroad-Highway Grade Crossing; Safe Clearance; Public Meeting

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The FMCSA announces that a public meeting will be held to 
discuss the problem of railroad-highway grade crossing crashes in which 
a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) is struck by a train because the 
driver of the CMV, for whatever reason, stops the vehicle prior to 
clearing the railroad track. The meeting is intended to promote the 
sharing of information between interested parties and FMCSA, the 
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and the Federal Railroad 
Administration (FRA) to ensure motor carriers and drivers are prepared 
to achieve full compliance with a forthcoming, statutorily mandated 
Federal rule to prohibit drivers from entering a railroad grade 
crossing unless there is sufficient room to clear the tracks completely 
without stopping. The meeting will provide all interested parties with 
an opportunity to voice their concerns about the potential costs and 
safety benefits of such a rule.

DATES: The meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 20, 2006, from 
9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Individuals who wish to make a formal 
presentation must contact Ms. Ryan Thompson at (703) 934-3432 or e-mail 
her at [email protected] no later than 5 p.m., e.t., September 15, 
2006. Comments to the docket should be submitted no later than October 
20, 2006.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held in Room 2230, Nassif Building, DOT 
Headquarters, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. You may 
also submit comments to the DOT Docket Management System (DMS), 
referencing Docket Number FMCSA-2006-25660, using any of the following 
methods:
     Web Site: http://dmses.dot.gov. Follow the instructions 
for submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building,

[[Page 51548]]

Room PL-401, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     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.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and 
docket numbers for this notice. Note that all comments received will be 
posted without change to http://dms.dot.gov, including any personal 
information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading for further 
information.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time or 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. The DMS is available 24 hours each day, 365 
days each year. If you want us to notify you that we received your 
comments, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope or postcard 
or print the acknowledgement page that appears after submitting 
comments on-line.
    Privacy Act: Anyone may search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or of the person signing the comment, if 
submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). 
You may review the Department of Transportation's complete Privacy Act 
Statement in the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 
19477; Apr. 11, 2000). This information is also available at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Thomas Yager, Driver and Carrier 
Operations, Office of Bus and Truck Standards and Operations, (202) 
366-4009, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (MC-PSD), 400 
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590; or [email protected]. Office 
hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    Information on Services for Individuals with Disabilities: For 
information on facilities or services for individuals with disabilities 
or to request special assistance at the meeting, contact Tom Yager at 
202-366-4009.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On July 30, 1998, the FHWA published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM) (63 FR 40691) to prohibit CMV operators from driving 
onto a railroad grade crossing without having sufficient space to drive 
completely through without stopping, thus leaving a portion of the CMV 
across the tracks. The rulemaking was required by section 112 of the 
Hazardous Materials Transportation Authorization Act of 1994 (HMTAA) 
(Pub. L. 103-311, 108 Stat. 1673, at 1676, August 26, 1994).
    As stated in the report by the Senate Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation (December 9, 1993), the goal of the 
provision in Senate Bill 1640, which later became section 112, was to: 
``* * * improve safety at highway-railroad crossings in response to 
fatalities that have occurred from accidents involving commercial motor 
vehicle operators who failed to use proper caution while crossing * * * 
[T]he Committee believes that imposing a Federal statutory obligation 
on drivers of all commercial motor vehicles to consider whether they 
can cross safely and completely * * * will help to reduce the number of 
tragedies associated with grade-crossing accidents'' [S. Rep. No. 103-
217, at 11 (1994), reprinted in 1994 U.S.C.C.A.N. 1763, 1773].
    The FHWA asked the States for information on the number and 
location of highway-railroad grade crossings with inadequate storage 
space \1\--and on alternative crossings--as the first step in 
estimating the costs and benefits of the rule required by section 112. 
Many State agencies, however, assumed that they were required to 
provide the information. State agencies were concerned that a potential 
rule would require them to reconstruct, rewire, reroute, or otherwise 
correct every inadequate crossing and that FHWA was indifferent to the 
costs of such an undertaking. In fact, the time, difficulty, and cost 
involved in collecting reliable data on highway-railroad grade 
crossings became a primary focus of the comments in that rulemaking 
proceeding.
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    \1\ Inadequate storage space means the roadway is too short in 
length on the opposite side of the railroad tracks to allow the 
vehicle to stand or wait to proceed at the traffic control device 
(e.g., traffic signal or stop sign) on that side. For example, the 
storage space of a particular highway-railroad grade crossing near a 
highway intersection measures 50 feet in length between the stopping 
line marker on the pavement at the traffic signal of the highway 
intersection and the railroad's grade crossing gate. A CMV driver is 
operating a tractor-trailer combination measuring 65 feet in overall 
length. Thus, the storage space of 50 feet is inadequate to 
accommodate a tractor-trailer combination measuring more than 50 
feet in length.
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    Therefore, on April 28, 2006 (71 FR 25128), FMCSA withdrew the 1998 
NPRM, and will soon initiate a new rulemaking, less burdened by 
previous misunderstandings, to implement section 112 of HMTAA. An NPRM 
to address the requirements of section 112 will be published when a 
current, on-going study of grade crossing crashes associated with the 
CMV stopping prior to clearing the tracks completely has been 
completed.
    The FMCSA believes that holding a public meeting before publishing 
the NPRM will be helpful for the Agency and stakeholders. The public 
meeting will establish dialogue among Federal and State agencies, motor 
and rail carriers, safety advocacy groups, and other interested parties 
concerning practical approaches for reducing the incidence of CMV 
crashes with trains because the driver of the CMV, for whatever reason, 
stops the vehicle before clearing the railroad track.

Meeting Information

    The meeting will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., e.t., on 
Wednesday, September 20, 2006, in Room 2230, Nassif Building, 400 
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC. Because access to the DOT building 
is controlled, all visitors must sign in with the security office 
located at the southwest entrance of the building, present 
identification with a picture on it, be escorted, and wear a visitor's 
badge at all times while in the building.
    Individuals who wish to make a formal presentation must contact Ms. 
Ryan Thompson at (703) 934-3432 or e-mail her at [email protected] no 
later than 5 p.m., e.t., September 15, 2006, to ensure that sufficient 
time is allotted for the presentation and to identify any audio-visual 
equipment needed for the presentation.
    Individuals who are unable to attend the meeting may submit written 
comments to the docket identified at the beginning of this notice.

    Issued on: August 25, 2006.
David H. Hugel,
Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. E6-14462 Filed 8-29-06; 8:45 am]
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