[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 170 (Wednesday, September 3, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52407-52409]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-20919]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Notice of Final Federal Agency Actions on Proposed Highway in 
West Virginia and Maryland

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of limitations on Claims for Judicial Review of Actions 
by FHWA and Other Federal Agencies.

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[[Page 52408]]

SUMMARY: This notice announces actions taken by the FHWA and other 
Federal Agencies that are final within the meaning of 23 U.S.C. 
139(l)(1). The actions relate to a proposed highway project, US 220 NHS 
Corridor between Interstate 68 (I-68) and Corridor H in Allegany 
County, Maryland and Grant, Hardy, Hampshire and Mineral Counties, West 
Virginia. The Federal actions, taken as a result of a tiered 
environmental review process under the National Environmental Policy 
Act, 42 U.S.C. 4321-4351 (NEPA), and implementing regulations on 
tiering, 40 CFR 1502.20, 40 CFR 1508.28, and 23 CFR Part 771, 
determined certain issues relating to the proposed projects. Those Tier 
1 decisions will be used by Federal agencies in subsequent proceedings, 
including decisions whether to grant licenses, permits, and approvals 
for highway and transit projects. Tier 1 decisions also may be relied 
upon by State and local agencies in proceedings on the proposed 
projects.

DATES: By this notice, the FHWA is advising the public that it has made 
decisions that are subject to 23 U.S.C. 139(l)(1) and are final within 
the meaning of that law. A claim seeking judicial review of the Tier 1 
Federal agency decisions on the proposed highway will be barred unless 
the claim is filed on or before February 2, 2015. If the Federal law 
that authorizes judicial review of a claim provides a time period of 
less than 150 days for filing such claim, then that shorter time period 
still applies.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jason Workman, Director, Office of 
Program Development, Federal Highway Administration, 700 Washington 
Street E., Charleston, WV 25301; telephone: (304) 347-5928; email: 
[email protected] or Ben Hark, Environmental Section Head, 
Engineering Division, West Virginia Department of Transportation, 
Division of Highways (WVDOH), State Capitol Complex, Building 5, 1900 
Kanawha Boulevard, East, Charleston, WV 26305; telephone: (304) 558-
2885; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby given that the FHWA has 
approved a Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) and 
issued a Record of Decision (ROD) in connection with a proposed highway 
project in Maryland and West Virginia: US 220 NHS Corridor between I-68 
and Corridor H in Allegany County, Maryland and Grant, Hardy, Hampshire 
and Mineral Counties, West Virginia. The project will provide a four-
lane, partially controlled highway that begins south of I-68 near 
LaVale, Maryland and extends southwest to connect with Corridor H near 
Scherr, West Virginia. It would connect the communities of LaVale, 
Cresaptown and McCoole in Maryland and Keyser and New Creek in West 
Virginia. The proposed highway will be on both new and existing 
alignment.
    Decisions in the FHWA Tier 1 ROD that have final approval include, 
but are not limited to, the following:
    a. Project Purpose and Need--Discussed in FEIS Chapter 1.0, 
Sections 1.3 and 1.4.
    b. Range of Alternatives for Analysis--Discussed in FEIS Chapter 
2.0, Section 2.2.
    c. Selection of the Preferred Corridor to be Carried Forward into 
Tier 2--Corridor B with the possibility of using the northern spur of 
Corridor D that connects I-68 in Maryland has been identified as the 
Preferred Corridor that will be carried forward into Tier 2. The 
northern spur of Corridor D begins on US 220 just south of Maryland 
State Route 53 (MD 53) and terminates at I-68. Both these termini will 
be carried forward into Tier 2 to determine which would best meet the 
project's purpose and need, be the least environmentally damaging and 
operate most efficiently. Advancing the northern spur of Corridor D in 
Maryland as part of the Preferred Corridor's possible connection to I-
68 will allow flexibility in developing a new I-68 Interchange while 
providing additional opportunities for avoiding socioeconomic, natural 
and cultural resources and minimizing the potential impacts of future 
alignments (see FEIS Chapter 2.0, Section 2.11; FEIS Chapter 6.0, 
Section 6.1; and ROD Sections 1.0, 1.3, and 2.7).
    d. Alternatives Eliminated from Further Study--The alternatives 
that will not be considered any further include, but are not limited 
to, those identified in the Tier 1 FEIS as Corridors A, C, D, E and the 
Crossover Corridors which combined portions of Corridors B, C and D 
(see FEIS Chapter 2.0, Sections 2.9 and 2.10; and ROD Section 2.0).
    e. The project may result in a program of individual transportation 
improvement projects throughout the US 220 Preferred Corridor, with 
several projects having independent utility and serving different 
logical termini. However, the design criteria to be carried forward 
into Tier 2 will be based on a four-lane, partially controlled highway. 
The WVDOH and Maryland State Highway Administration (MDSHA) will 
independently advance Tier 2 NEPA within their respective states. In 
West Virginia, a typical section will require a minimum width of 136 
feet and, in Maryland, the typical section will require a minimum width 
of 140.5 feet. The highway width may increase to approximately 300 feet 
to accommodate construction of the four-lane facility in mountainous 
terrain (see ROD Section 1.3).
    Interested parties may consult the ROD and FEIS for further 
information on each of the decisions described above.
    The Tier 1 actions by the Federal agencies, and the laws under 
which such actions were taken, are described in the FEIS approved April 
2, 2014, the ROD approved July 21, 2014, and in other documents in the 
FHWA project records. The scope and purpose of the Tier 1 FEIS are 
described in Chapter 1.0 of the FEIS. The FEIS, ROD, and other 
documents in the FHWA project file are available by contacting the FHWA 
or the WVDOH at the addresses provided above. The FEIS and ROD also are 
available online at http://www.transportation.wv.gov/highways/engineering/comment/us220/Pages/default.aspx. OR http://apps.roads.maryland.gov/WebProjectLifeCycle/ProjectInformation.aspx?projectno=AL613111#.
    This notice applies to all Federal agency Tier 1 decisions that are 
final within the meaning of 23 U.S.C. 139(l)(1) as of the issuance date 
of this notice and all laws under which such actions were taken, 
including but not limited to:
    1. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) [42 U.S.C. 4321-4351].
    2. Federal-Aid Highway Act [23 U.S.C. 109 and 23 U.S.C. 128].
    3. Endangered Species Act [16 U.S.C. 1531-1544].
    4. National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended [16 
U.S.C. 470(f) et seq].
    5. Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act of 1966 [49 
U.S.C. 303 and 23 U.S.C. 138].
    6. Clean Air Act [42 U.S.C. 7401-7671(q)].

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, 
Highway Planning and Construction. The regulations implementing 
Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation on 
Federal programs and activities apply to this program.)


    Authority: 23 U.S.C. 139(l)(1), as amended by Moving Ahead for 
Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), Public Law 112-141, Sec.  
1308, 126 Stat. 405 (2012).


[[Page 52409]]


    Issued on August 27, 2014.
Thomas J. Smith,
Division Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, Charleston, 
West Virginia.
[FR Doc. 2014-20919 Filed 9-2-14; 8:45 am]
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