[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 92 (Monday, May 13, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28012-28014]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-11307]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration


Tier One Environmental Impact Statement for the Rochester, 
Minnesota to Twin Cities, Minnesota Passenger Rail Corridor

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

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS).

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SUMMARY: FRA is issuing this notice to advise the public that FRA, the 
Olmsted County (Minnesota) Regional Railroad Authority (OCRRA), and the 
Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) will jointly prepare a 
Tier One Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to evaluate potential 
passenger rail alternatives for the Rochester, Minnesota to Twin 
Cities, Minnesota Passenger Rail Corridor (the Corridor) in Olmsted, 
Dodge, Goodhue, Rice, Dakota, Ramsey, and Hennepin Counties in 
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA).
    The Tier One EIS will analyze environmental impacts for reasonable 
corridor-level passenger rail route alternatives between Rochester and 
the Twin Cities. The Tier One EIS will also examine passenger rail 
service levels, including variations in train frequency, and trip time.
    FRA is issuing this Notice to invite interested parties, including 
the public and resource agencies, to comment about the proposed scope 
of the EIS; to provide information on the nature of the proposed 
action, including the purpose and need for the proposed action; and to 
invite public participation in the Tier One EIS process.

DATES: OCRRA and MnDOT will host a series of public scoping meetings 
beginning in Spring 2013. These meetings will occur at various 
locations within the Corridor and will be advertised through the 
project Web site, direct mailings, and press releases.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colleen Vaughn, Environmental 
Protection Specialist, Office of Railroad Policy and Development, 
Federal Railroad Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., (Mail Stop 
20), Washington, DC 20590, Phone: (202) 493-6096; or Dan Krom, 
Minnesota Department of Transportation, Passenger Rail Office, 395 John 
Ireland Boulevard, MS 480, St. Paul, MN 55155, Phone: (651) 366-3193. 
In addition, a project Web site has been established 
(www.goziprail.org), and is available to provide project related 
information to the general public.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FRA, in cooperation with OCRRA and 
MnDOT, will prepare a Tier One EIS to evaluate passenger rail service 
improvements from Rochester, Minnesota to Twin Cities, Minnesota. The 
agencies will use a tiered process, as provided for in 40 CFR 1508.28 
and in accordance with FRA's Procedures for Considering Environmental 
Impacts (64 FR 28546) (Environmental Procedures), in the completion of 
the environmental review. Tiering is a staged environmental review 
process applied to environmental reviews for

[[Page 28013]]

complex projects. The proposed Tier One EIS described in this Notice is 
a service level analysis that will examine a range of reasonable 
corridor route alternatives between Rochester, Minnesota and Twin 
Cities, Minnesota. It is anticipated that the route alternative 
analysis will involve a screening process to identify reasonable and 
feasible alternatives for evaluation in the Tier One EIS. The study has 
recently begun to identify conceptual alternatives for consideration. 
Alternatives under preliminary consideration will include an alignment 
of the Trunk Highway 52 corridor from Rochester to the Twin Cities; an 
alternative running west from Rochester and then north in the vicinity 
of Trunk Highway 56; and multiple alignments in both the Rochester and 
the Twin Cities metro areas depending on the termini identified at both 
ends of the corridor. Alternatives will be analyzed and made available 
for public comment as they are refined and more precise information can 
be provided. The No-Action (or No-Build) Alternative will also be 
considered.
    The Tier One EIS will also appropriately address Section 106 of the 
National Historic Preservation Act (see 36 CFR part 800), Section 4(f) 
of the U.S. Department of Transportation Act of 1966 (49 U.S.C. 303) 
and other applicable Federal and state laws and regulations. The Tier 
One NEPA document addresses broad overall issues of concern for 
corridor decisions including, but not limited to:
     Describing the purpose and need for the proposed action.
     Describing the study area appropriate to assess reasonable 
alternatives.
     Describing the environment potentially affected by the 
proposed action.
     Developing evaluation criteria to identify route 
alternatives that meet the purpose and need of the proposed action and 
those that do not.
     Identifying the range of reasonable route alternatives 
that satisfy the purpose and need for the proposed action.
     Developing the no-build alternative to serve as a baseline 
for comparison.
     Describing and evaluating the potential environmental 
impacts and mitigation strategies associated with the reasonable route 
alternatives.
     Identifying component projects for Tier Two NEPA 
evaluation as described below.
    The Tier Two assessment(s) would address component projects of the 
overall rail corridor alternative selected in the Tier One EIS, and 
would incorporate by reference the data and evaluations included in the 
Tier One EIS. Subsequent Tier Two NEPA evaluations would: Concentrate 
on the site-specific issues and alternatives relevant to implementing 
component projects of the selected Tier One alternative; and identify 
the environmental consequences and measures necessary to mitigate 
environmental impacts at a site-specific level of detail.
    Project Background and Study Area: Based upon travel demand and 
growth between the two regional centers, previous feasibility studies 
for the proposed Corridor have supported its independent utility to 
support high speed intercity passenger rail. Currently, between 
Rochester and the Minneapolis/St. Paul Metropolitan Area (Twin Cities), 
the proposed Corridor has no existing rail infrastructure south of 
Dakota County. OCRRA would develop new rail infrastructure with an 
emphasis on existing public and railroad rights-of-way utilized to the 
maximum extent feasible and practicable. The Corridor would be planned 
to be consistent with an eventual high speed intercity passenger rail 
connection between the Twin Cities and Chicago.
    The Minnesota Comprehensive Statewide Freight and Passenger Rail 
Plan outlines steps that should be taken to accomplish the vision of a 
robust intrastate and interstate intercity passenger rail system. One 
of the steps includes developing an intrastate intercity passenger rail 
network connecting the Twin Cities with viable service to major 
outlying regional centers. The Corridor was identified as a Phase I 
corridor in the State Rail Plan for high-speed rail development. 
Significant growth in Rochester and Olmsted County has occurred over 
the past 50 years--long after the majority of existing rail corridors 
in the region had been established. The number of jobs currently 
supported by Rochester employers exceeds the available adult working 
population in the urban area, making it an economic driver for an area 
of roughly 2,300 square miles in southeast Minnesota, northeast Iowa, 
and western Wisconsin, and impacting employment as far away as the Twin 
Cities area. Based in Rochester, Mayo Clinic patients and visitors 
account for nearly 3 million visits per year, with many arriving via 
the Twin Cities, and travelling via US 52. Rochester also ranks as the 
fastest growing metropolitan area in the state, with a low unemployment 
rate and a relatively high per capita and household income compared to 
other regional centers in Minnesota.
    US 52 is the main highway that connects Rochester to the Twin 
Cities. Further to the west, I-35 is the closest interstate highway. A 
traveler would need to utilize an east-west route, such as US 14, to 
access I-35 to make the connection to the Twin Cities. A trip by 
automobile between the Twin Cities and Rochester is approximately 1 
hour and 30 minutes. The proposed Rochester--Twin Cities Passenger Rail 
service would need to offer intercity travelers a reasonable 
alternative to automobile travel.
    Project Purpose and Need: The purpose of the project is to provide 
a reliable and safe passenger rail transportation alternative that will 
meet forecasted population and economic growth mobility demands in the 
Southeast Minnesota corridor between Rochester and the Twin Cities 
area. The system is to connect the Twin Cities and Rochester providing 
convenient and cost effective transportation. The project is being 
developed to:

 Provide intercity passenger rail service linking the regional 
economic center of Rochester and the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area 
economic hub
 Provide options for the growing population and accessibility 
to population centers
 Improve safety, convenience and time of travel
 Complement the plans of the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative 
and Minnesota Comprehensive Statewide Freight and Passenger Rail Plan
    The need for expanded transportation options in this corridor is 
based on the following elements:

 Increase in population and employment in Rochester, the Twin 
Cities Metropolitan Area, and Southeast Minnesota
 Future travel demand
 Limited direct connection opportunities for the Corridor 
between Rochester and the Twin Cities
    The development of world-class and internally recognized medical 
facilities in Rochester, along with its agribusiness and high-tech 
industrial base, makes the city a significant economic engine in the 
north central United States. The Twin Cities, also a base of high-tech 
industry, and the main transportation hub in the north central states, 
marks the importance of economic intercourse between these cities. 
Transportation connecting these cities is primarily based on the 
private automobile with limited commercial transportation

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options. The Mayo Clinic in Rochester draws patients and their 
companions from around the nation and the world, and constitutes a 
primary need for transportation options not based on the private 
automobile. There is a growing need for travel, connectivity, and 
transportation capacity between Rochester and the Twin Cities from 
current and future economic growth.
    Scoping Process: To ensure issues related to this proposal are 
addressed and any significant impacts identified, comments and 
suggestions regarding the scope of the Tier One EIS are invited from 
all interested parties. Comments and suggestions concerning the 
proposed action and the Tier One EIS should be directed to MnDOT at the 
addresses above. Letters describing the proposed action and soliciting 
comments will be sent to the appropriate Federal, State and local 
agencies, Native American tribes and to private organizations who might 
have previously expressed or who are known to have an interest in this 
proposal. Federal agencies with jurisdiction by law or special 
expertise with respect to potential environmental issues will be 
invited to act as a Cooperating Agency in accordance with 40 CFR 
1501.6.
    MnDOT will lead the outreach activities, including public meetings, 
newsletters, advisory group meetings, a project Web site 
(www.goziprail.org), public open houses, stakeholder group meetings, 
and other methods to solicit and incorporate public input throughout 
the Tier One EIS process. Opportunities for public participation will 
be announced through the Web site, mailings, notices, advertisements, 
and press releases.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on: May 7, 2013.
Corey Hill,
Director, Passenger and Freight Programs, Federal Railroad 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2013-11307 Filed 5-10-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P