[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 135 (Thursday, July 14, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41558-41559]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-17713]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[Docket No. AB 6 (Sub-No. 474X)]


BNSF Railway Company--Abandonment Exemption--in Washington 
County, MN

    BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) filed a verified notice of exemption 
under 49 CFR Part 1152 subpart F--Exempt Abandonments to abandon a 
0.51-mile line of railroad between milepost 15.59 and milepost 16.10 in 
Washington County, MN.\1\ The line traverses United States Postal 
Service Zip Code 55038.
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    \1\ This transaction is related to a concurrently filed notice 
of exemption in Docket No. AB 882 (Sub-No. 3X), Minnesota Commercial 
Railway Company--Discontinuance of Service Exemption--in Washington 
County, Minnesota, in which Minnesota Commercial Railway Company 
seeks an exemption to discontinue its lease operations over the same 
0.51-mile rail line.
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    BNSF has certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved over the 
line for at least 2 years; (2) no overhead traffic has been handled on 
the line for at least 2 years; (3) no formal complaint filed by a user 
of rail service on the line (or by a state or local government entity 
acting on behalf of such user) regarding cessation of service over the 
line either is pending with the Surface Transportation Board (Board) or 
with any U.S. District Court or has been decided in favor of 
complainant within the 2-year period. As provided under 49 CFR 1105.11, 
BNSF has certified that it served its Environmental and Historic 
Reports as required under 49 CFR 1105.7 and 1105.8. BNSF also has 
certified that the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper 
publication) and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental agencies) 
have been met.
    As a condition to this exemption, any employee adversely affected 
by the abandonment shall be protected under Oregon Short Line 
Railroad--Abandonment Portion Goshen Branch Between Firth & Ammon, in 
Bingham & Bonneville Counties, Idaho, 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979). To address 
whether this condition adequately protects affected employees, a 
petition for partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) must be filed.
    All interested persons should be aware that, following abandonment 
of rail service and salvage of the line, the line may be suitable for 
other public use, including interim trail use. Provided no formal 
expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance (OFA) has 
been received, this exemption will be effective on August 13, 2011, 
unless stayed pending

[[Page 41559]]

reconsideration. Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental 
issues,\2\ formal expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 
1152.27(c)(2),\3\ and trail use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR 
1152.29 must be filed by July 25, 2011. Petitions to reopen or requests 
for public use conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by August 
3, 2011, with the Surface Transportation Board, 395 E Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20423-0001.
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    \2\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on 
environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's 
Office of Environmental Analysis (OEA) in its independent 
investigation) cannot be made before the exemption's effective date. 
See Exemption of Out-of-Serv. Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any 
request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible so that the 
Board may take appropriate action before the exemption's effective 
date.
    \3\ Each OFA must be accompanied by the filing fee, which is 
currently set at $1,500. See 49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25).
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    A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to 
BNSF's representative: Courtney Biery Estes, General Attorney, BNSF 
Railway Company, 2500 Lou Menk Drive, AOB-3, Fort Worth, TX 76131.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio.
    BNSF has filed environmental and historic reports that address the 
effects, if any, of the abandonment on the environment and historic 
resources. OEA will issue an environmental assessment (EA) by July 19, 
2011. Interested persons may obtain a copy of the EA by writing to OEA 
(Room 1100, Surface Transportation Board, Washington, DC 20423-0001) or 
by calling OEA at (202) 245-0305. Assistance for the hearing impaired 
is available through the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-
800-877-8339. Comments on environmental and historic preservation 
matters must be filed within 15 days after the EA becomes available to 
the public.
    Environmental, historic preservation, public use, or trail use/rail 
banking conditions will be imposed, where appropriate, in a subsequent 
decision.
    Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), BNSF shall file 
a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has 
exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned the line. If 
consummation has not been effected by BNSF's filing of a notice of 
consummation by July 14, 2012, and there are no legal or regulatory 
barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically 
expire.
    Board decisions and notices are available on our Web site at HTTP://WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.

    Decided: July 11, 2011.

    By the Board.
Rachel D. Campbell,
Director, Office of Proceedings.
Andrea Pope-Matheson,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2011-17713 Filed 7-13-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P