[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 203 (Tuesday, October 21, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63018-63021]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-24923]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Clifton Corridor Transit Initiative in DeKalb and Fulton Counties, 
Georgia

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI) To prepare an environmental impact 
statement (EIS) and section 4(f) evaluation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Metropolitan 
Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) issue this Notice of Intent 
(NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and an 
evaluation per 49 U.S.C. 303 and 23 CFR 774 (``Section 4(f)'') for a 
new Light Rail Transit (LRT) line in DeKalb and Fulton Counties, 
Georgia. The proposed LRT line would extend from Lindbergh MARTA 
station in the city of Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, southeast 
through the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) headquarters and Emory 
University and Emory Hospital campuses, to Avondale MARTA station in 
the City of Decatur, DeKalb County, Georgia. The EIS and Section 4(f) 
Evaluation will be prepared in accordance with regulations implementing 
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Section 4(f), as well as 
FTA's regulations and guidance implementing NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500 
through 1508 and 23 CFR 771.105).
    The purpose of this NOI is to: (1) Advise the public and agencies 
that FTA is preparing an EIS for the proposed project; (2) provide 
project information including previous planning studies and decisions, 
the project purpose and need, and alternatives being considered; and, 
(3) invite public and agency participation in the EIS process, which 
includes a review and written comments on the scope of the EIS.

DATES: Scoping Meeting Dates: Public scoping meetings will be held from 
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time on December 4 and 9, 2014 at 
locations within the study area. The scoping meeting locations are 
accessible by transit and to persons with disabilities. Confirmed times 
and locations will also be published in local notices and on the 
project Web site at http://www.itsmarta.com/Clifton-Corr.aspx.
    The dates, times, and locations of scoping meetings are:
     Scoping Meeting 1: Thursday, December 4, 2014 at the 
Westminster Presbyterian Church located at 1438 Sheridan Rd. NE., 
Atlanta, GA 30324. The meeting will be held from 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. 
Directional signage will be posted outside of the building and on the 
building's interior to inform participants of the meeting room number 
and location.
     Scoping Meeting 2: Tuesday, December 9, 2014 at the Emory 
University Student Activity and Academic Center (SAAC), Room 316, 
located at 1946 Starvine Way, Decatur, GA 30033. The meeting will be 
held from 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. Directional signage will be posted 
outside of the building and on the building's interior

[[Page 63019]]

to inform participants of the meeting room number and location.
    All meeting locations are considered private property. With the 
exception of on-duty law enforcement and/or security officials, weapons 
will not be allowed on the premises of any meeting location under any 
circumstances. The meeting locations are accessible to persons with 
disabilities. If there are questions concerning weapons policies for 
scoping meeting locations or if translation, signing services, or other 
special accommodations are needed, please contact MARTA's Office of 
External Affairs, Toni Thornton at [email protected] or 404-848-
5423 at least one week before the scoping meetings. Comment Due Date: 
Written comments on the scope of the EIS should be sent to Tameka 
Wimberly, AICP, MARTA Project Manager, by January 9, 2015. The address 
information for written comments and times and locations for all 
meetings are listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
    Written Comments: Written or electronic mail (email) comments 
should be sent to Tameka Wimberly, Project Manager, MARTA, 2424 
Piedmont Road NE., Atlanta, GA 30324-3330 or by email to 
[email protected]. If submitting an email comment, please type 
``Scoping Meeting Comment for MARTA'' in the subject line of the email. 
MARTA maintains a Facebook page for the Clifton Corridor project and 
will notify Facebook followers, in conjunction with publication of this 
notice, to submit comments to the aforementioned email address as well.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Stan Mitchell, Environmental 
Protection Specialist, FTA Region IV, 230 Peachtree Street NW., Suite 
800, Atlanta, GA 30303 or email: [email protected], telephone 
404-865-5643.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Scoping

    FTA and MARTA will undertake a scoping process that will allow the 
public and interested agencies to comment on the scope of the 
environmental review process. Scoping is the process of determining the 
scope, focus, and content of an EIS. NEPA scoping has specific 
objectives, identifying issues that will be examined in detail during 
the EIS, while at the same time limiting consideration and development 
of issues that are not truly significant to the purpose and need for 
the project. FTA and MARTA invite all interested individuals, members 
of the public, Native American tribes, and Federal, State, and local 
agencies to review and comment on the scope of the Draft EIS. To 
facilitate public and agency comment, a Scoping Information Packet will 
be prepared for review and will be available before each scoping 
meeting and for handout at each scoping meeting. This packet will 
include draft descriptions of the project purpose and need for the 
project, the alternatives considered, impacts to be assessed, early 
alternatives that are currently not being considered, and the public 
outreach and agency coordination process.

II. Study Area Description

    The project study area is located in both DeKalb and Fulton 
Counties, Georgia, including a small portion of the city of Atlanta. 
The project study area extends approximately 8.8 miles from Lindbergh 
MARTA station southeastward through central DeKalb County to Avondale 
MARTA station and encompassing the CDC and Emory University and Emory 
Hospital campuses.

III. Purpose and Need for the Proposed Project

    FTA and MARTA invite comments on the following preliminary 
statement of the project's purpose and need:
    The purpose of the Clifton Corridor Project is to provide reliable, 
high-capacity transit service with competitive travel times to, from, 
and within the Clifton Corridor, which is home to Emory University and 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC is the 
largest employment center not served by the MARTA rail system or other 
high-capacity mode of transportation. Currently, significant volumes of 
trips are made through the Clifton Corridor as well as on connecting 
roadways; therefore, high-capacity transit service would help 
accommodate the high trip volumes within an already constrained roadway 
network. Consequently, a high-capacity transit service would also help 
enhance and support land use initiatives that help foster economic 
development and neighborhood revitalization.
    The following needs for the proposed project stem from existing 
conditions and deficiencies in the project study area:
    (1) Need to provide a high-capacity transit service for the under-
served yet growing employment center and population in the Clifton 
Corridor study area.
    (2) Need to provide an alternative transportation mode to vehicular 
travel that provides reliable and competitive travel times.
    (3) Need for fixed-guideway transit service that provides regional 
connectivity.
    (4) Need to provide a transit service that improves mobility of 
residents and employees in the Clifton Corridor.
    (5) Need to provide a transportation mode that helps reduce vehicle 
miles traveled (VMT) and related vehicular emissions.
    (6) Need to provide a transportation alternative that helps spur 
economic development and maximizes land use densities.
    (7) Need to provide a transportation mode that enables the 
evacuation of Federal employees and local area residents during an 
emergency at the CDC facilities.

V. Alternatives Analysis and Results

    In 2009, MARTA and Clifton Corridor Transportation Management 
Association (CCTMA) partnered to conduct the Clifton Corridor Transit 
Initiative--Alternatives Analysis (AA) study. The AA study process 
identified ways to enhance transportation choices, improve transit 
services and access to job and activity centers for the commuters and 
residents in the Clifton Corridor. MARTA and the study partners 
examined a broad range of alternatives for fixed-guideway transit 
investments that would connect Lindbergh City Center (Lindbergh MARTA 
station) with employment and activity centers along Clifton Road and 
the city of Decatur. Over the course of the AA study, the set of 
potentially viable alternatives was reduced through a multilayered 
screening methodology that eventually established the technical basis 
for the selection of the locally preferred alternative (LPA) for the 
Clifton Corridor project. The AA process also documented public and 
agency support and endorsement for the LPA.
    The AA study process resulted in the selection of a new LRT 
alignment from Lindbergh MARTA station through central DeKalb County to 
Avondale MARTA station. The MARTA Board of Directors adopted the LRT 
transit concept as the LPA for the Clifton Corridor on April 9, 2012. 
The LRT alternative received the strongest public support throughout 
the study process due to its ability to better integrate into the 
topography and the existing communities within the Clifton Corridor. 
The results of the AA study are available at http://www.itsmarta.com/clifton-corr-documents.aspx, under ``Locally Preferred Alternative 
Report.''

[[Page 63020]]

VI. EIS Alternatives Considered

    Based on previous planning work and studies and previous feedback 
received from the public and stakeholders regarding the Clifton 
Corridor, the following proposed alternatives, along with a brief 
description for each, will be evaluated during the EIS:
    No-Build Alternative: The No-Build Alternative includes all 
transportation improvement projects within the Clifton Corridor project 
area that are programmed in the Atlanta Regional Commission's Regional 
Transportation Plan (RTP) with the exception of the Clifton Corridor 
LRT project. The No-Build Alternative serves as a comparison baseline 
for the project build alternatives.
    Build Alternative 1: Build Alternative 1 is a new LRT line that was 
previously referred to as the LPA following the 2009 AA study and 
includes segments that are at-grade, tunnel, and on aerial structure. 
From Lindbergh MARTA station, the alignment for Build Alternative 1 
would parallel the existing MARTA heavy rail transit (HRT) line to the 
CSX railroad corridor, then continues eastward adjacent to the CSX 
railroad right-of-way, then along Clifton Road, adjacent to and under 
the CSX railroad corridor and Clairmont Road. The alignment would then 
proceed along Scott Boulevard, North Decatur Road, DeKalb Industrial 
Way, and North Arcadia Avenue to Avondale MARTA station.
    Build Alternative 2: Build Alternative 2 is a new LRT line that 
includes at-grade and aerial segments only. From Lindbergh MARTA 
station, the alignment would parallel the existing MARTA HRT line to 
the CSX railroad corridor, then continues adjacent to the CSX railroad 
right-of-way and then along Clifton Road, N. Decatur Road, DeKalb 
Industrial Way, and North Arcadia Avenue and finally on to Avondale 
MARTA station.

VII. Potential Effects

    FTA and MARTA will evaluate project-specific direct, indirect, and 
cumulative effects, including benefits, to the existing human and 
natural environmental setting in which the Build Alternatives could be 
located. The permanent or long-term effects to be investigated during 
this study include effects to public parks and recreation lands 
(Section 4(f) Evaluation), traffic and transportation, land use and 
socioeconomic, visual character and aesthetics, noise and vibration, 
historical and archaeological resources, community effects, and natural 
resources. Temporary effects during construction may include effects to 
transportation and traffic, air quality, water quality, noise and 
vibration, natural resources and encounters with hazardous materials 
and contaminated soils.
    The analysis will be undertaken in conformity with Federal 
environmental laws, regulations, and executive orders applicable to the 
proposed project during the environmental review process to the maximum 
extent practicable. These requirements include but are not limited to 
NEPA, Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations, FTA guidance 
and relevant environmental planning guidelines, Section 106 of the 
National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), Section 4(f) of the 
Department of Transportation Act, Executive Order 12898 regarding 
minority and low-income populations, Executive Order 11990 regarding 
the protection of wetlands, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973, and the Clean Air Act of 1970 along with other applicable 
Federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Opportunities for 
review and comment on the potential effects will be provided to the 
public and agencies. Comments received will be considered in the 
development of the final scope and content of the EIS. The final scope 
and content of the EIS will be documented in the Scoping Summary Report 
and the Annotated Outline for the EIS.

VIII. FTA's Public and Agency Involvement Procedures

    The regulations implementing NEPA and FTA guidance call for public 
involvement in the EIS process. In accordance with these regulations 
and guidance, FTA and MARTA will: (1) Extend an invitation to other 
Federal and non-Federal (state and/or local) agencies and Native 
American Tribes that may have an interest in the proposed project to 
become participating agencies (any interested agency that does not 
receive an invitation can notify any of the contact persons listed 
earlier in this NOI); (2) provide opportunity for involvement by 
participating agencies and the public to help define the purpose and 
need for the proposed project, as well as the range of alternatives for 
consideration in the EIS; and (3) establish a plan for coordinating 
public and agency participation in, and comment on, the environmental 
review process.
    Input on a Public Involvement Plan will be solicited at the scoping 
meeting and on the project Web site. The documents will outline public 
and agency involvement for the project. Once completed, these documents 
will be available on the project Web site or through written request to 
the MARTA Project Manager.

IX. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act seeks, in part, to minimize the cost of 
the taxpayer of the creation, collection, maintenance, use, 
dissemination, and disposition of information. Consistent with this 
goal and with the principles of economy and efficiency in government, 
it is FTA's policy to limit, insofar as possible, distribution of 
complete printed sets of NEPA documents. Accordingly, unless a specific 
request for a complete printed set is received before the document is 
printed, FTA and its grant applicants (including MARTA) will only 
distribute electronic copies of the NEPA document. A complete printed 
set of the environmental documents produced for this project will be 
available for review at the grant applicant's office (MARTA 
Headquarters office listed in ADDRESSES above) and in other possible 
locations within the project corridor. An electronic copy of the 
complete environmental documents will be available on the grant 
applicant's project Web site at http://www.itsmarta.com/Clifton-Corr.aspx.

X. Summary and next steps?

    With the publication of this NOI, the scoping process and the 
public comment period for the project begins allowing the public to 
offer input on the scope of the EIS until January 9, 2015. In 
accordance with the Federal regulations, this date is at least 45 days 
following the publication of this NOI. Public comments will be received 
through those methods explained earlier in this NOI and will be 
incorporated into a Scoping Summary Report. The Scoping Summary Report 
will detail the scope of the EIS and the potential environmental 
effects that will be considered during the study period. After the 
completion of the Draft EIS, a public and agency review period will 
allow for input on the Draft EIS and these comments will be 
incorporated into the Final EIS for this project. In accordance with 
Section 1319 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act 
(MAP-21), Accelerated Decision-making in Environmental Reviews, FTA may 
consider the use of errata sheets attached to the DEIS in place of a 
traditional Final EIS and/or development a single environmental 
decision document that consists of a Final EIS and a Record of Decision 
(ROD), if certain conditions exist following the conclusion of the 
public

[[Page 63021]]

and agency review period for the project's Draft EIS.

Yvette G. Taylor,
Regional Administrator, FTA Region IV.
[FR Doc. 2014-24923 Filed 10-20-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P