[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 49 (Monday, March 16, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11170-11172]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-5573]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration


Environmental Impact Statement for the California High-Speed 
Train Project From San Jose to Merced, CA

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: This notice is to advise the public that FRA and the 
California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) will jointly prepare a 
project Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and project Environmental 
Impact Report (EIR) for the San Jose to Merced section of the 
Authority's proposed California High-Speed Train (HST) System in 
compliance with relevant state and federal laws, in particular the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California 
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
    In 2005, the Authority and FRA completed the first tier California 
High Speed Train Program EIR/EIS and approved the statewide HST system 
for intercity travel in California between the major metropolitan 
centers of Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area in the north, 
through the Central Valley, to Los Angeles and San Diego in the south. 
The approved HST system would be about 800-miles long, with electric 
propulsion and steel-wheel-on-steel-rail trains capable of maximum 
operating speeds of 220 miles per hour (mph) on a mostly dedicated 
system of fully grade-separated, access-controlled steel tracks and 
with state-of-the-art safety, signaling, communication, and automated 
train control systems. In approving the HST system, the Authority and 
FRA also selected preferred corridor alignments and station location 
options throughout most of the system. In 2008, the Authority and FRA 
completed a second program EIR/EIS to evaluate alignments and station 
locations within the broad corridor between and including the Altamont 
Pass and the Pacheco Pass to connect the Bay Area and Central Valley 
portions of the HST system. The Authority and FRA selected the Pacheco 
Pass with San Francisco and San Jose termini network alternative, as 
well as preferred corridor alignments and station location options. The 
selected alignment uses the Caltrain rail right-of-way, between San 
Francisco and San Jose along the San Francisco Peninsula, through the 
Pacheco Pass and via Henry Miller Road, between San Jose and the 
Central Valley.
    The preparation of the San Jose to Merced HST Project EIR/EIS will 
involve development of preliminary engineering designs and assessment 
of environmental effects associated with the construction, operation, 
and maintenance of the HST system, including track, ancillary 
facilities and a Gilroy station, along the Caltrain/UPRR corridor from 
San Jose to Gilroy, through the Pacheco Pass, and via Henry Miller Road 
in the Central Valley.

DATES: Written comments on the scope of the San Jose to Merced HST 
Project EIR/EIS should be provided to the Authority by April 10, 2009. 
Public scoping meetings are scheduled from March 18, 2009 to March 26, 
2009, as noted below in Santa Clara and Merced Counties.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope of this EIR/EIS should be sent 
to Mr. Dan Leavitt, Deputy Director, ATTN: San Jose to Merced, 
California High-Speed Rail Authority, 925 L Street, Suite 1425, 
Sacramento, CA 95814, or via e-mail with subject line ``San Jose to 
Merced HST'' to: [email protected]. Comments may also be provided 
orally or in writing at the scoping meetings scheduled at the following 
locations:
     Merced Community Senior Center, 755 W. 15th Street, 
Merced, California, March 18 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. (joint meeting with 
the Bakersfield to Merced Section)
     Roosevelt Community Center, Community Room B, 901 E Santa 
Clara Street, San Jose, California, March 25, 2009 from 3 p.m. to 7 
p.m.
     Gilroy Hilton Garden Inn Harvest Room, 6070 Monterey Road, 
Gilroy, California, March 26, 2009 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. David Valenstein, Environmental 
Program Manager, Office of Railroad Development, Federal Railroad 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE. (Mail Stop 20), Washington, 
DC 20590; Telephone: (202) 493-6368, or Mr. Dan Leavitt, Telephone: 
(916) 324-1541 at the above noted address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Authority was established in 1996 and is 
authorized and directed by statute to undertake the planning and 
development of a proposed statewide HST network that is fully 
coordinated with other public transportation services. The Authority 
adopted a Final Business Plan in June 2000, which reviewed the economic 
feasibility of an 800-mile-long HST capable of speeds in excess of 200 
miles per hour on a dedicated, fully grade-separated state-of-the-art 
track. The Authority released an updated Business Plan in November 
2008.
    The FRA has responsibility for oversight of the safety of railroad 
operations, including the safety of any proposed high-speed ground 
transportation system. For the proposed HST, it is anticipated that FRA 
would need to take certain regulatory actions prior to operation.
    In 2005, the Authority and FRA completed a Final Program EIR/EIS 
for the Proposed California High Speed Train System (Statewide Program 
EIR/EIS), as the first phase of a tiered environmental review process. 
The Authority certified the Final Program EIR under CEQA and approved 
the proposed HST System, and FRA issued a Record of Decision under NEPA 
on the Final Program EIS. This statewide program EIR/EIS established 
the purpose and need for the HST system, analyzed an HST system, and 
compared it with a No Project/No Action Alternative and a Modal 
Alternative. In approving the statewide program EIR/EIS, the Authority 
and FRA selected the HST Alternative, selected certain corridors/
general alignments and general station locations for further study, 
incorporated mitigation strategies and design practices, and specified 
further measures to guide the development of the HST system at the 
site-specific project level of environmental review to avoid and 
minimize potential adverse environmental impacts. In the subsequent Bay 
Area to Central Valley HST Final Program EIR/EIS, the Authority and FRA 
selected as the preferred alternative the Caltrain/UPRR corridor 
between San Jose and Gilroy to connect with the San Francisco to San 
Jose section, and the Pacheco Pass and Henry Miller Road corridor from 
Gilroy to Merced to connect with the Central Valley section of the HST 
system.
    The San Jose to Merced HST Project EIR/EIS will tier from the Final 
Statewide Program EIR/EIS and the Final Bay Area to Central Valley HST 
Program EIR/EIS in accordance with Council on Environmental Quality 
(CEQ) regulations, (40 CFR 1508.28) and State CEQA Guidelines (14 
C.C.R. Sec. 15168[b]). Tiering will ensure that the San Jose to Merced 
HST Project EIR/EIS builds upon all previous work prepared for and 
incorporated in the Statewide

[[Page 11171]]

Program EIR/EIS and the Bay Area to Central Valley HST Program EIR/EIS.
    This Project EIR/EIS will describe site-specific environmental 
impacts; will identify specific mitigation measures to address those 
impacts; and will incorporate design practices to avoid and minimize 
potential adverse environmental impacts. The FRA and the Authority will 
assess the site characteristics, size, nature, and timing of proposed 
site-specific projects to determine whether the impacts are potentially 
significant and whether impacts can be avoided or mitigated. This 
project EIR/EIS will identify and evaluate reasonable and feasible 
site-specific alignment alternatives, and evaluate the impacts from 
construction, operation, and maintenance of the HST system. Information 
and documents regarding this HST environmental review process will be 
made available through the Authority's Internet site: http://www.cahighspeedrail.gov/.
    Purpose and Need: The purpose of the proposed HST system is to 
provide a new mode of high-speed intercity travel that would link major 
metropolitan areas of the state; interface with international airports, 
mass transit, and highways; and provide added capacity to meet 
increases in intercity travel demand in California in a manner 
sensitive to and protective of California's unique natural resources. 
The need for a high-speed train (HST) system is directly related to the 
expected growth in population, and increases in intercity travel demand 
in California over the next twenty years and beyond. With the growth in 
travel demand, there will be an increase in travel delays arising from 
the growing congestion on California's highways and at airports. In 
addition, there will be negative effects on the economy, quality of 
life, and air quality in and around California's metropolitan areas 
from a transportation system that will become less reliable as travel 
demand increases. The intercity highway system, commercial airports, 
and conventional passenger rail serving the intercity travel market are 
currently operating at or near capacity, and will require large public 
investments for maintenance and expansion to meet existing demand and 
future growth.
    Alternatives: The San Jose to Merced HST Project EIR/EIS will 
consider a No Action or No Project Alternative and an HST Alternative 
for the San Jose to Merced corridor.
    No Action Alternative: The No Action Alternative (No Project or No 
Build) represents the conditions in the corridor as it existed in 2007, 
and as it would exist based on programmed and funded improvements to 
the intercity transportation system and other reasonably foreseeable 
projects through 2035, taking into account the following sources of 
information: State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), Regional 
Transportation Plans (RTPs) for all modes of travel, airport plans, 
intercity passenger rail plans, city and county plans.
    HST Alternative: The Authority proposes to construct, operate and 
maintain an electric-powered steel-wheel-on-steel-rail HST system, 
about 800 miles long, capable of operating speeds of 220 mph on mostly 
dedicated, fully grade-separated tracks, with state-of-the-art safety, 
signaling, and automated train control systems. The San Jose to Merced 
HST corridor selected by the Authority and FRA and the subject of this 
Project EIR/EIS generally follows the Caltrain/UPRR corridor from San 
Jose to Gilroy. From Gilroy, the corridor extends east through the 
Pacheco Pass generally following State Route 152 and then along Henry 
Miller Road across the valley floor to connect with the Merced to 
Bakersfield section of the HST system.
    Further engineering studies will be undertaken as part of this EIR/
EIS process that will examine design options along the Caltrain/UPRR 
corridor and possible use of portions of parallel transportation 
corridors. Alignment refinements in the Pacheco Pass area potentially 
locating the HST line closer to State Route 152 will be reviewed to 
determine their practicality and their ability to reduce environmental 
impacts. Alignment variations along Henry Miller Road (both to the 
north and south) will be identified and evaluated for the purpose of 
minimizing or avoiding impacts to resources in the Grasslands 
Ecological Area (GEA).
    The entire alignment would be grade separated. The options to be 
considered for the design of grade-separated roadway crossings would 
include (1) depressing the street to pass under the rail line; (2) 
elevating the street to pass over the rail line; (3) leaving the street 
as-is and constructing rail line improvements to pass over or under the 
local street; and (4) street closure, if appropriate. In addition, 
alternative sites for right-of-way maintenance, train storage 
facilities and a train service and inspection facility will be 
evaluated in the San Jose to Merced HST project area.
    The preferred station location in the City of Gilroy is the current 
Caltrain Station. This location was selected by the Authority and FRA 
through the Bay Area to Central Valley HST Final Program EIR/EIS 
considering the project purpose and need, and the program objectives. 
Alternative station sites at or near the preferred location may be 
identified and evaluated in this Project EIR/EIS. There will be no 
station between Gilroy and Merced and no maintenance and storage 
facilities considered in the Los Banos area (or in the vicinity of the 
GEA).
    Probable Effects: The purpose of the EIR/EIS process is to explore 
in a public setting the effects of the proposed project on the 
physical, human, and natural environment. The FRA and the Authority 
will continue the tiered evaluation of all significant environmental, 
social, and economic impacts of the construction and operation of the 
HST system. Impact areas to be addressed include transportation 
impacts; safety and security; land use and zoning; agricultural land 
impacts, land acquisition, displacements, and relocations; cumulative 
and secondary impacts; cultural resource impacts, including impacts on 
historical and archaeological resources and parklands/recreation areas; 
neighborhood compatibility and environmental justice; and natural 
resource impacts including air quality, wetlands, water resources, 
noise, vibration, energy, wildlife and ecosystems, including endangered 
species. Measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate adverse impacts will 
be identified and evaluated.
    The San Jose to Merced HST Project EIR/EIS will be prepared in 
accordance with FRA's Procedures for Considering Environmental Impacts 
(64 FR 28545 [May 26, 1999]) and will address not only NEPA and CEQA 
but also other applicable statutes, regulations, and executive orders, 
including the Clean Air Act, Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, 
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, Section 
4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act, the Endangered Species 
Act, and Executive Order 12898 on Environmental Justice.
    This EIR/EIS process will continue the NEPA/Clean Water Act Section 
404 integration process established through the Statewide Program EIR/
EIS process. The EIR/EIS will evaluate project alignment alternatives, 
station and maintenance facility locations to support a determination 
of the Least Environmentally Damaging Practicable Alternative 
(``LEDPA'') by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
    Scoping and Comments: FRA encourages broad participation in the EIS 
process during scoping and review of the resulting environmental 
documents. Comments are invited from all interested agencies and the 
public to

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ensure the full range of issues related to the proposed action and 
reasonable alternatives are addressed and all significant issues are 
identified. In particular, FRA is interested in determining whether 
there are areas of environmental concern where there might be a 
potential for significant site-specific impacts. Public agencies with 
jurisdiction are requested to advise FRA and the Authority of the 
applicable permit and environmental review requirements of each agency, 
and the scope and content of the environmental information that is 
germane to the agency's statutory responsibilities in connection with 
the proposed project. Public agencies are requested to advise FRA if 
they anticipate taking a major action in connection with the proposed 
project and if they wish to cooperate in the preparation of the Project 
EIR/EIS. Public scoping meetings have been scheduled as an important 
component of the scoping process for both the State and Federal 
environmental review. The scoping meetings described in this Notice 
will also be the subject of additional public notification.
    FRA is seeking participation and input of all interested Federal, 
State, and local agencies, Native American groups, and other concerned 
private organizations and individuals on the scope of the EIR/EIS. 
Implementation of the San Jose to Merced section of the HST system is a 
federal undertaking with the potential to affect historic properties. 
As such, it is subject to the requirements of section 106 of the 
National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 470f). In 
accordance with regulations issued by the Advisory Council on Historic 
Preservation, 36 CFR part 800, FRA intends to coordinate compliance 
with section 106 of this Act with the preparation of the EIR/EIS, 
beginning with the identification of consulting parties through the 
scoping process, in a manner consistent with the standards set out in 
36 CFR 800.8.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on March 9, 2009.
Ray LaHood,
Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation.
 [FR Doc. E9-5573 Filed 3-13-09; 8:45 am]
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