[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 119 (Thursday, June 19, 2008)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 34865-34866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-13864]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 117

[Docket No. USCG-2008-0478]


Drawbridge Operation Regulations; LaLoutre Bayou, Yscloskey, LA

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of temporary deviation from regulations; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: The Commander, Eighth Coast Guard District, has issued a 
temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the 
State Route 46 (LA 46) Bridge across LaLoutre Bayou, mile 22.9, at 
Yscloskey, St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana. This deviation will test a 
change to the drawbridge operation schedule to determine whether a 
permanent change to the schedule is needed. This deviation will allow 
more efficient use of personnel by requiring a 2 hour notice for night 
time openings.

DATES: This deviation is effective from 8 p.m. on June 19, 2008 through 
4 a.m. on December 16, 2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket 
number USCG-2008-0478 to the Docket Management Facility at the U.S. 
Department of Transportation. To avoid duplication, please use only one 
of the following methods:
    (1) Online: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Mail: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (3) Hand delivery: Room W12-140 on the Ground Floor of the West 
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The 
telephone number is 202-366-9329.
    (4) Fax: 202-493-2251.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this test 
deviation, call Kay Wade, Bridge Administration Branch, telephone 504-
671-2128. If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to 
the docket, call Renee V. Wright, Program Manager, Docket Operations, 
telephone 202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Public Participation and Request for Comments

    We encourage you to participate in this action by submitting 
comments and related materials. All comments received will be posted, 
without change, to http://www.regulations.gov and will include any 
personal information you have provided. We have an agreement with the 
Department of Transportation (DOT) to use the Docket Management 
Facility. Please see DOT's ``Privacy Act'' paragraph below.

Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
action (USCG-2008-0478), indicate the specific section of this document 
to which each comment applies, and give the reason for each comment. We 
recommend that you include your name and a mailing address, an e-mail 
address, or a phone number in the body of your document so that we can 
contact you if we have questions regarding your submission. You may 
submit your comments and material by electronic means, mail, fax, or 
delivery to the Docket Management Facility at the address under 
ADDRESSES; but please submit your comments and material by only one 
means. If you submit them by mail or delivery, submit them in an 
unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would 
like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, 
self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and 
material received during the comment period. We may change this 
proposed action in view of them.

Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as documents mentioned in this preamble 
as being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov at 
any time, click on ``Search for Dockets,'' and enter the docket number 
for this action (USCG-2008-0478) in the Docket ID box, and click enter. 
You may also visit the Docket Management Facility in Room W12-140 on 
the ground floor of the DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.

Privacy Act

    Anyone can 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 the Department of 
Transportation's Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register 
published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or you may visit http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov.

Background and Purpose

    The LA 46 vertical lift span bridge, located on LaLoutre Bayou at 
mile 22.9, in Yscloskey, St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, has a vertical 
clearance of 2 feet in the closed position and 53 feet in the open 
position. The bridge has a horizontal clearance of 45 feet. The draw of 
the LA 46 Bridge opens on signal as required by 33 CFR 117.5. However, 
the draw of the bridge has been inoperable since August 2005 due to 
damage sustained during Hurricane Katrina.
    Historically, the waterway at the bridge site has been transited by 
recreational boaters and fishing vessels. However, there has been no 
navigational traffic through the bridge site since it was damaged in 
2005.
    Repairs to the bridge have been completed and the Louisiana 
Department of Transportation and Development (LDOTD) will soon reopen 
the bridge to navigation. LDOTD has requested a change to the 
drawbridge operation schedule in order to make more efficient use of 
operating resources, while accommodating the flow of vehicular traffic.
    This deviation will test the following change to the drawbridge 
operation

[[Page 34866]]

schedule: The draw of the LA 46 Bridge, mile 22.9, at Yscloskey, shall 
open on signal; except that from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m., the draw shall open 
on signal if at least two hours notice is given.
    A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (USCG-2008-0478) will be issued to 
propose a permanent change to the schedule and obtain additional public 
comments. The Coast Guard will evaluate public comments from this 
Temporary Deviation and the above referenced Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking to determine if a permanent special drawbridge operation 
regulation is warranted. The Coast Guard will review bridge tender logs 
for requested bridge openings during the time of the Temporary 
Deviation. Navigation is not expected to be impacted during the test 
schedule period.

Additional Information

    Although this Temporary Deviation will require 2 hours advance 
notice for openings between 8 p.m. and 4 a.m., an alternate route, via 
Yscloskey Bayou, to the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet and Lake Borgne 
is available with no additional transit time. Additionally, most users 
of this waterway are able to give notice prior to transiting through 
the bridge. Vessels are not able to pass underneath the bridge when 
closed due to a vertical clearance of only 2 feet. Before the effective 
period, we will issue maritime advisories widely available to users of 
the waterway.
    In accordance with 33 CFR 117.35(e), the drawbridge must return to 
its regular operating schedule immediately at the end of the designated 
time period. This deviation from the operating regulations is 
authorized under 33 CFR 117.35.

    Dated: June 9, 2008.
David M. Frank,
Bridge Administrator, U.S. Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. E8-13864 Filed 6-18-08; 8:45 am]
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