[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 28 (Monday, February 12, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Page 6663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-2249]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

[Docket Number: FTA-2007-27172]


Notice of Availability of Proposed Guidance on New and Small 
Starts Policies and Procedures

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of the Federal Transit 
Administration's (FTA) Proposed Guidance on New and Small Starts 
Policies and Procedures and requests your comments on it. The guidance 
explains proposed changes to the New and Small Starts programs that 
will become effective upon the issuance of Final Guidance, which will 
be announced in a subsequent Federal Register notice. FTA requests 
comments on the Proposed Guidance, which is available in DOT's 
electronic docket and on FTA's Web site.

DATES: Comments must be received by March 14, 2007. Late filed comments 
will be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments [identified by the DOT DMS Docket 
Number FTA-2007-27172] by any of the following methods:
    Web site: http://dms.dot.gov. Follow the instructions for 
submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site.
    Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, 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.
    Instructions: You must include the agency name (Federal Transit 
Administration) and the docket number (FTA-2007-27172). You should 
submit two copies of your comments if you submit them by mail. If you 
wish to receive confirmation that FTA received your comments, you must 
include a self-addressed stamped postcard. Note that all comments 
received will be posted without change to the Department Docket 
Management System (DMS) Web site located at http://dms.dot.gov. This 
means that if your comment includes any personal identifying 
information, such information will be made available to users of DMS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron Fisher, Office of Planning and 
Environment, telephone (202) 366-4033, Federal Transit Administration, 
U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, 
DC 20590 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Background

    On August 10, 2005, President Bush signed the Safe, Accountable, 
Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users 
(SAFETEA-LU). Section 3011 of SAFETEA-LU made a number of changes to 49 
U.S.C. 5309, which authorizes the Federal Transit Administration's 
(FTA) fixed guideway capital investment program known as ``New 
Starts'', and created a new program category known as ``Small Starts''. 
This notice announces the availability of FTA's Proposed Guidance on 
New and Small Starts Policies and Procedures and requests your comment 
as described below. The document is available in the docket, which can 
be accessed by going to http://dms.dot.gov at any time, or you can view 
the document on FTA's Web site at http://www.fta.dot.gov/15052_ENG-HTML.html.

A. Proposed Changes for the New and Small Starts Program

    The purpose of this policy guidance is to solicit comments on the 
policies and procedures for the New and Small Starts programs. The 
changes, once announced as final, will apply to all New and Small 
Starts submittals received after the effective date announced in the 
Notice of Availability published in the Federal Register for the Final 
Guidance. The proposed improvements include: Elimination of the 
reporting requirements for information on FTA's measures for operating 
efficiencies and environmental benefits; optional submission of 
information related to land use; reduction in number of projects 
required to submit information for the Annual Report on Funding 
Recommendations; request for grantees to allow FTA's reviews of 
descriptions of alternatives to be timely; requirement for travel 
models to be validated based on recent transit surveys; an approach for 
accounting for additional user benefits for new transit modes to an 
area; use of a five-tiered rating for a project's overall rating; 
consideration of overmatch for Small and Very Small Starts; new 
measures for mobility of transit dependents; consolidation of the 
subfactors used for the capital and operating components of the 
financial rating; rating credit for consideration of private 
contracting for operations and maintenance; treatment of FTA rating 
information in planning studies; and consideration of congestion 
management/pricing strategies and ``make-the-case'' document as ``other 
factors'' for project justification. Comments received will be used to 
develop the ratings, evaluations, and procedures for projects seeking 
funds from the New and Small Starts programs, and will be issued in 
spring of 2007. FTA will respond to comments received in response to 
this Notice in a second Federal Register notice to be published after 
the close of the comment period. The notice will announce the 
availability of the Reporting Instructions for the Section 5309 New 
Starts Criteria and the Interim Guidance for Small Starts, reflecting 
the changes implemented as a result of this policy guidance and 
comments received thereon.

    Issued in Washington, DC this 5th day February 2007.
James S. Simpson,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E7-2249 Filed 2-9-07; 8:45 am]
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