[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 163 (Thursday, August 21, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49536-49537]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-19434]


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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.

Town of Ipswich, Massachusetts

[Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA-2008-0093]

    The Town of Ipswich, Massachusetts (Town) seeks a permanent waiver 
of compliance from certain provisions of FRA's regulations on the Use 
of Locomotive Horns at Highway-Rail Grade Crossings, 49 CFR Part 222. 
The Town intends to establish a Pre-Rule Quiet Zone to formalize 
existing restrictions on routine sounding of the locomotive horn that 
were previously continued under the provisions of 49 CFR 222.41(c)(1). 
The Town is seeking a waiver to extend the filing date for a Detailed 
Plan, as provided in 49 CFR 222.41(c)(2)(i)(B), which indicates that 
the Detailed Plan must be filed with FRA by June 24, 2008. The waiver 
petition requests that the Detailed Plan filed by the Town on July 28, 
2008 be accepted as a valid Detailed Plan even though it was filed 
after June 24, 2008.
    Initially, the Town of Ipswich submitted a Detailed Plan dated June 
23, 2008, which was not received by FRA until June 30, 2008. The 
original Detailed Plan stated that the Town intended to reassess the 
risk index for the Topsfield Road grade crossing after March 2009, 5 
years after an accident that occurred at the Topsfield Road location, 
to determine if additional safety improvements at this grade crossing 
would be required. FRA rejected this Detailed Plan because it was not 
received by the agency until June 30, 2008, and it did not include a 
detailed explanation of, and timetable for, the safety improvements 
that would be implemented as required by 49 CFR 222.41(c)(2)(i)(B). The 
Town, after discussion with representatives of FRA and the 
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), resubmitted the 
Detailed Plan on July 28, 2008, outlining the intended supplemental 
safety measures for the Topsfield Road grade crossing.
    The Town seeks the waiver in order to continue the restrictions on 
routine sounding of locomotive horns at the grade crossings identified 
in its Detailed Plan until June 24, 2010.
    The Town of Ipswich, the public authority, is filing this waiver 
request without the support of the MBTA, which is the railroad 
providing service over the five grade crossings identified in the 
Detailed Plan. However, the petition contains an explanation of the 
steps that the Town has taken to reach an agreement with the MBTA, in 
accordance with 49 CFR 222.15(b). As stated in the petition, the Town 
has made a written request to the MBTA to support its waiver request 
and the Detailed Plan. The Town also conducted a meeting of its Board 
of Selectmen on August 1, 2008, where an MBTA official in attendance 
stated that it is the policy of the MBTA to neither support nor oppose 
requests by municipalities to maintain quiet zones or obtain waivers 
from FRA regulations.
    The Town has also asserted in its waiver petition that the joint 
submission requirement contained in 49 CFR 222.15(a) would not be 
likely to contribute significantly to public safety in this instance, 
based on its plans to install a four-quadrant gate system with enhanced 
electronic monitoring at the Topsfield Road crossing, where an accident 
occurred in March 2004.
    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-
2008-0093) and may be submitted by any of the following methods:
     Web site: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Operations Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., W12-140, Washington, DC 
20590.
     Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal Holidays.
    Communications received within 20 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://www.regulations.gov.
    Anyone is able to search the electronic form of any written 
communications and comments

[[Page 49537]]

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).

    Issued in Washington, DC on August 18, 2008.
Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program 
Development.
[FR Doc. E8-19434 Filed 8-20-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P