[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 235 (Monday, December 8, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72757-72758]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-28658]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[Docket No. AB 1068 (Sub-No. 3X); Docket No. AB 1070 (Sub-No. 3X)]


Missouri Central Railroad Company--Abandonment Exemption--in 
Cass, Pettis, Benton, Morgan, Miller, Cole, Osage, Maries, Gasconade, 
and Franklin Counties, Mo.; Central Midland Railway Company--
Discontinuance of Service Exemption--in Cass, Pettis, Benton, Morgan, 
Miller, Cole, Osage, Maries, Gasconade, and Franklin Counties, Mo.

    Missouri Central Railroad Company (MCRR) and Central Midland 
Railway Company (CMR) (collectively, applicants) have jointly filed a 
verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR part 1152 subpart F--Exempt 
Abandonments and Discontinuances of Service for MCRR to abandon, and 
for CMR to discontinue service over, approximately 144.3 miles of rail 
line in two segments: (1) Between mileposts 263.5 and 262.906 near 
Pleasant Hill, in Cass County, Mo., and (2) between milepost 215.325 
near Windsor, in Pettis County, Mo., and milepost 71.6 near Beaufort, 
in Franklin County, Mo. The line traverses United States Postal Service 
Zip Codes 64080, 65360, 65335, 65325, 65078, 65084, 65011, 65026, 
65032, 65040, 65075, 65058, 65085, 65048, 65001, 65035, 65013, 65014, 
65066, 63091, 63037, 63056, and 63013.
    Applicants have certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved over 
the line for at least two years; (2) there is no overhead traffic on 
the line; (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 
two-year period; and (4) the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7(c) 
(environmental report), 49 CFR 1105.11 (transmittal letter), 49 CFR 
1105.12 (newspaper publication), and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to 
governmental agencies) have been met.
    As a condition to these exemptions, any employee adversely affected 
by the abandonment or discontinuance 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,

[[Page 72758]]

a petition for partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) must be 
filed.
    Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of 
financial assistance (OFA) has been received, these exemptions will be 
effective on January 7, 2015, unless stayed pending reconsideration. 
Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues,\1\ formal 
expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),\2\ and 
trail use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by 
December 18, 2014. Petitions to reopen or requests for public use 
conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by December 29, 2014, 
with the Surface Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW., Washington, DC 
20423-0001.
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    \1\ 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.
    \2\ Each OFA must be accompanied by the filing fee, which is 
currently set at $1,600. See 49 CFR 1002.2 (f)(25).
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    A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to 
applicants' representatives: Sandra L. Brown, Thompson Hine LLP, 1919 M 
St. NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036, and Lon Van Gemert, 21778 
Highview Ave., Lakeville, MN 55044.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemptions are void ab initio.
    Applicants have filed a combined environmental and historic report 
which addresses the effects, if any, of the abandonment and 
discontinuance on the environment and historic resources. OEA will 
issue an environmental assessment (EA) by December 12, 2014. 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), MCRR 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 MCRR's filing of a notice of 
consummation by December 8, 2015, 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 
WWW.STB.DOT.GOV

    Decided: November 26, 2014.

    By the Board, Joseph H. Dettmar, Acting Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2014-28658 Filed 12-5-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P