[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 166 (Friday, August 27, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52804-52807]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-21323]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Notice of Funding Availability Application Procedure and 
Deadlines for the Truck Parking Facilities Program

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice; solicitation of applications.

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SUMMARY: This notice solicits applications for the truck parking 
facilities initiative for which funding is available under section 1305 
of Public Law 109-59, 119 Stat. 1214-15, the Safe, Accountable, 
Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users 
(SAFETEA-LU). The SAFETEA-LU directed the Secretary to establish a 
pilot program to address the shortage of long-term parking for 
commercial motor vehicles (CMV) on the National Highway System. States, 
metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) and

[[Page 52805]]

local governments are eligible for the funding available for fiscal 
years (FY) 2006-2009. Section 411 of Title IV of Public Law 111-147, 
the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2010, 124 Stat. 78, 
extended funding for the Truck Parking Facilities program for FY 2010 
and the first quarter of FY 2011 (through December 31, 2010). The 
SAFETEA-LU section 1305 authorizes a wide range of eligible projects 
and activities, ranging from construction of commercial motor vehicle 
spaces and other capital improvements that facilitate CMV parking 
including the use of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) 
technology to increase information on the availability of both public 
and private CMV parking spaces. For purposes of this program, long-term 
parking is defined as parking available for 10 or more consecutive 
hours.

DATES: Applications must be received by the FHWA no later than October 
26, 2010.

ADDRESSES: The FHWA Office of Freight Management and Operations mailing 
address is FHWA-HOFM, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE.; MS E84-402, 
Washington, DC 20590.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Tom Kearney, Office of Freight 
Management and Operations, (518) 431-4125 ext. 218, 
[email protected]; for legal questions, Mr. Robert Black, Office of 
the Chief Counsel, (202) 366-1359, [email protected]; Federal 
Highway Administration, Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590. Office hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 
4:15 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

    An electronic copy of this notice may be downloaded from the Office 
of the Federal Register's home page at http://www.archives.gov and the 
Government Printing Office's Web site at http://www.access.gpo.gov.

I. Background

    The Truck Parking Facilities Program furthers the goals of the DOT 
in addressing congestion and safety concerns on the Nation's highways. 
By creating a program that provides funds to address long-term truck 
parking on the National Highway System (NHS), the DOT anticipates that 
commercial motor vehicles will be better able to plan rest stops and 
better time their transit or loading/unloading within urban areas, 
thereby reducing the urban area's congestion and supporting safe 
highway operations.
    The shortage of long-term truck parking on the NHS is a problem 
that needs to be addressed. Several States have completed truck parking 
needs analyses recently and have found that severe and pervasive 
shortages exist. Their recommendations include expansion or improvement 
of public rest areas; expansion or improvement of commercial truck 
stops and travel plazas; use of public-private partnerships; and 
educating or informing drivers about available spaces. This lack of 
available parking not only adds to congestion in urban areas, but also 
may affect safety by reducing the opportunities for drivers to obtain 
rest needed to comply with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Regulations, Hours of Service of Drivers (49 CFR 395.3(a)(1)). Further, 
parking areas are often designed or maintained for short-term parking 
only. Section 1305 of SAFETEA-LU directed the Secretary of 
Transportation to establish a pilot program to address the long-term 
parking shortages along the NHS. Eligible projects under section 1305 
include projects that:
    1. Promote the real-time dissemination of publicly or privately 
provided commercial motor vehicle parking availability on the NHS using 
ITS and other technology based solutions;
    2. Open non-traditional facilities to commercial motor vehicle 
parking, including inspection and weigh stations, and park and ride 
facilities;
    3. Make capital improvements to public commercial motor vehicle 
parking facilities currently closed on a seasonal basis to allow the 
facilities to remain open year round;
    4. Construct turnouts or connectors along the NHS (which must 
comply with appropriate design standards) to facilitate commercial 
motor vehicle access to parking facilities, and/or improve the 
geometric design of interchanges to improve access to commercial motor 
vehicle parking facilities. This should include improvements to the 
local street network or access to the proposed parking site. Applicable 
references, including standards, recommended industry practices, and 
references that provide technical guidance to assist State and local 
agencies in addressing truck parking issues, are listed below:

AASHTO (http://www.transportation.org)
    A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, 2004 (Green 
Book)
    A Policy on Design Standards Interstate System, January 2005
    Guide to Park and Ride Facilities, 2004
    Guide for Development of Rest Areas on Major Arterials and 
Freeways, Third Edition
Transportation Research Board (http://trb.org)
    Access Management Manual
Institute of Transportation Engineers (http://www.ite.org)
    Transportation Impact Analysis for Site Development: An ITE 
Proposed Recommended Practice, 2006

    5. Construct commercial motor vehicle parking facilities adjacent 
to commercial truck stops and travel plazas; and
    6. Construct safety rest areas that include parking for commercial 
motor vehicles.
    In FY 2008, FHWA awarded funding to two projects designed to 
disseminate information on the availability and/or location of public 
or private long-term parking spaces to provide the greatest opportunity 
to maximize the effectiveness of this pilot program. These projects, 
being developed on the I-95 Corridor in the Northeast and the I-5 
Corridor in California, employ a program based on improving the truck 
operator's awareness of truck parking opportunities. In June 2010, five 
additional awards were made by the DOT to projects in Utah, 
Mississippi, Oregon, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania. Work to be completed 
by these projects include expanding current truck parking facilities, 
converting a weigh station to a truck parking facility, and 
disseminating truck parking opportunities to drivers by using ITS and 
511 traveler information systems.
    The Secretary is authorized to provide Federal grant assistance for 
the Truck Parking Facilities pilot program on a discretionary basis. 
The FHWA will make recommendations to the Secretary toward projects 
that should be considered for funding. Accordingly, FHWA will give 
priority consideration to applications for Truck Parking projects from 
those States, MPO's, and local governments that have measurable safety, 
congestion reduction and air quality benefits. The FHWA seeks solutions 
at a corridor level and encourages multi-State cooperation in proposals 
for this program.
    The candidate projects must meet the eligibility criteria for the 
Truck Parking Facilities Program and will be evaluated on the selection 
criteria established for the program along with the safety and 
congestion criteria described below. Although funding for the Truck 
Parking Facilities Program is limited, large-scale corridor focused 
projects are encouraged

[[Page 52806]]

to apply for Truck Parking Facilities Program funding.
    Highway safety continues to remain a focus and priority for FHWA. 
Targeting discretionary funding, in a results-oriented comprehensive 
approach to safety, is a means of directing limited discretionary 
funding to those projects that will yield tangible transportation and 
safety benefits. With respect to safety, applicants should describe the 
safety benefits associated with the project or activity for which 
funding is sought, including whether the project, activity, or 
improvement:
     Will result in a measurable reduction in the loss of 
property, injury, or life;
     Incorporates innovative safety design techniques that 
support safe highway operations and advance the ``state-of-the 
practice'' in delivering highway safety projects focusing on commercial 
vehicle operations or other operational techniques;
     Incorporates innovative construction work zone strategies 
to improve safety;
     Is located on a rural road that is in need of priority 
attention based on analysis of safety experience; and/or
     Is located in an urban area of high injury or fatality, 
and is an initiative to improve the design, operation or other aspect 
of the existing facility that will result in a measurable safety 
improvement.
    Increasing national mobility and productivity while reducing 
congestion is also a priority for FHWA. In support of a high-velocity, 
global supply chain that supports competitiveness in the global 
economy, safe and efficient commercial vehicle operations are 
essential. Reliability of travel times and the sustainability of 
benefits generated through investments in the U.S. highway system are 
key objectives that FHWA is striving to achieve to support national 
economic competitiveness. The application of discretionary funding to 
improve mobility and reduce congestion will yield tangible 
transportation and economic benefits that should far exceed the limited 
amount of discretionary funding provided to the project. In furtherance 
of measuring the congestion reduction and mobility benefits associated 
with a project that qualifies for funding under the Truck Parking 
Facilities Program, within the application, the applicant should 
describe how the project, activity or improvement:
     Relieves congestion in an urban area or along a major 
transportation corridor;
     Employs operational and technological improvements that 
promote safety and congestion relief, and/or addresses major freight 
bottlenecks.
    Appropriate quantitative data should be provided to support the 
safety and congestion relief discussion.

II. Funding Information

    The FHWA expects that approximately $7.3 million will be available 
to award under this solicitation for projects. Projects funded under 
this section shall be treated as projects on a Federal-aid System under 
Chapter 1 of Title 23, United States Code (U.S.C.).
    Grants may be funded at an 80 to 100 percent funding level based on 
the criteria specified in sections 120(b) and 120(c) of Title 23, 
U.S.C.

III. Application Submission

    This notice will also be posted on the FHWA Office of Freight 
Management and Operations Web site, http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight. Electronic versions of project applications in .pdf file 
format should be attached to an e-mail and submitted to 
[email protected]. Alternatively, hard copies of project 
applications may be submitted; in that case, an original and 10 copies 
of each application can be submitted. Please note electronic 
submissions in .pdf file format are encouraged in place of hard copy 
submissions. Awarded projects will be administered by the applicable 
State Department of Transportation as a Federal-aid grant.
    In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, we have received 
clearance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for this 
action (OMB Control number 2125-0610, April 30, 2013).

IV. Proposal Content

    All proposals should include the following:
    1. A detailed project description, which would include a 
description of the severity and extent of the long-term truck parking 
shortage in the corridor to be addressed, along with contact 
information for the project's primary point of contact, and whether 
funds are being requested under 23 U.S.C. 120(b) or 120(c). Data 
helping to define the shortage may include truck volume (Average Daily 
Truck Traffic--ADTT) in the corridor to be addressed, current number of 
long-term commercial motor vehicle parking spaces, use of current long-
term parking spaces, driver surveys, observational field studies, 
proximity to freight loading/unloading facilities, and proximity to the 
NHS.
    2. The rationale for the project should include an analysis and 
demonstration of how the proposed project will positively affect truck 
parking, safety, economic competitiveness and sustainability, traffic 
congestion, or air quality in the identified corridor.
    3. The scope of work should include a complete listing of 
activities to be funded by the request, including technology 
development, information processing, information integration 
activities, developmental phase activities (planning, feasibility 
analysis, environmental review, engineering or design work, and other 
activities), construction, reconstruction, acquisition of real property 
(including land related to the project and improvements to land), 
environmental mitigation, construction contingencies, acquisition of 
equipment, and operational improvements.
    4. Stakeholder identification should include evidence of prior 
consultation and/or partnership with affected MPOs, local governments, 
community groups, private providers of commercial motor vehicle 
parking, and motorist and trucking organizations. Also include a 
listing of all public and private partners, and the role each will play 
in the execution of the project. Commitment/consultation examples may 
include: Memorandums of Agreement, Memorandums of Understanding, 
contracts, meeting minutes, letters of support/commitment, and 
documentation in a metropolitan transportation improvement program 
(TIP) or statewide transportation improvement program (STIP).
    5. A detailed quantification of eligible project costs by activity, 
an identification of all funding sources that will supplement the grant 
and be necessary to fully fund the project, and the anticipated dates 
on which the additional funds are to be made available. Public and 
private sources of funds (non-Federal commitment) will be considered by 
the FHWA as an in-kind match contributing to the project. Matching 
funds will be required for projects eligible under 23 U.S.C. 120(b).
    6. Applicants should provide a timeline that includes work to be 
completed and anticipated funding cycles. Gantt charts are preferred.
    7. Include a timeline for complying with National Environmental 
Policy Act requirements and the type of clearance received or 
anticipated.
    8. Include a project map that consists of a schematic illustration 
depicting the project and connecting transportation infrastructure. 
Digital maps should accompany all submissions, either hard copy or 
electronic submissions made in

[[Page 52807]]

.pdf file format. Please reference in the proposal if the maps are 
available.
    9. Describe a measurement plan to determine whether or not the 
project achieved its intended results. The measurement plan should 
continue for 3 years beyond the completion date of the project. After 
the 3-year period, a final report quantifying the results of the 
project should be submitted to the FHWA.
    10. Proposals should not exceed 20 pages in length.

    Special Note:  A description of the project management approach 
that will guide advancement of the project must be included for 
project applications proposing ITS or other technology based truck 
parking solutions. The FHWA encourages in the project management 
approach a minimum of a communications plan, a risk management plan 
and a work breakdown structure.

V. Application Review Information

    Grant applications that contain the elements detailed in this 
notice will be scored competitively according to the soundness of their 
methodology and subject to the criteria listed below. Sub-factors 
listed under each factor are of equal importance unless otherwise 
noted.

A. Scoring Criteria

    1. Demonstration of severe shortage (number of spaces, access to 
existing spaces or information/knowledge of space availability) of 
commercial motor vehicle parking capacity/utilization in the corridor. 
(Multi-State highway corridors are the focus of these projects. 
Consider the business requirements of getting the goods to market, 
while also considering the government regulations associated with hours 
of service.) (20 percent)
    Examples used to demonstrate severe shortage may include:
    [cir] ADTT in proposal area.
    [cir] Average daily shortfall of truck parking in proposal area.
    [cir] Ratio of ADTT to average daily shortfall of truck parking in 
proposal area.
    [cir] Proximity to NHS.
    2. The extent to which the proposed solution resolves the described 
shortage. (35 percent)
    Examples should include:
    [cir] Number of truck parking spaces per day that will be used as a 
result of the proposed solution.
    [cir] The effect on highway safety, economic competitiveness and 
sustainability, traffic congestion, and/or air quality.
    3. Cost effectiveness of proposal. (25 percent)
    Examples should include:
    [cir] How many truck parking spaces will be used per day per dollar 
expended.
    [cir] Total cost of project, including all non-Federal funds that 
will be contributed to the project.
    4. Scope of proposal. (20 percent)
    Examples should include:
    [cir] Evidence of a wide range of input from affected parties, 
including State and local governments, community groups, private 
providers of commercial motor vehicle parking, and motorist and 
trucking organizations.
    [cir] For projects that are ITS-based, the project management plan 
presented in the application should demonstrate the project will 
successfully be delivered.
    [cir] Whether the principles outlined in the proposal can be 
applied to other locations/projects and possibly serve as a model for 
other locations.

B. Review Standards

    1. All applications for grants should be submitted to the e-mail 
address or mailing address provided in this Notice by the date 
specified in this notice.
    2. Applicants should ensure that the project proposal is compatible 
with or documented on their planning documents (TIP and STIP). They 
should also validate, to the extent they can, any analytic data.
    3. Each application will be reviewed for conformance with the 
provisions in this notice.
    4. Applications lacking any of the mandatory elements or arriving 
after the deadline for submission will not be considered. To assure 
full consideration, proposals should not exceed 20 pages in length.
    5. Applicants may be contacted for additional information or 
clarification.
    6. Applications complying with the requirements outlined in this 
notice will be evaluated competitively by a review panel, and will be 
scored as described in the scoring criteria.
    7. If the FHWA determines that the project is technically or 
financially unfeasible, FHWA will notify the applicant, in writing.
    8. The FHWA reserves the right to partially fund or request 
modification of projects.
    9. All information described in the submitter's proposal elements 
should be quantifiable and sourced.

VI. Award Administration Information

    The Secretary recognizes that each funded project is unique, and 
therefore may attach conditions to project award documents. The FHWA 
will send an award letter with a grant agreement that contains all the 
terms and conditions for the grant. These successful applicants must 
execute and return the grant agreement, accompanied by any additional 
items required by the grant agreement.

    Authority: Section 1305, Pub. L. 109-59, 119 Stat. 1214, Aug. 
10, 2005; Section 411, Pub. L. 111-147, 124 Stat. 78.

    Issued on: August 17, 2010.
Victor M. Mendez,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2010-21323 Filed 8-26-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-P