[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 179 (Monday, September 16, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48701-48702]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-19938]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. AB 1020 (Sub-No. 2X)]


East Penn Railroad, LLC--Discontinuance of Service and Lease 
Operations--in Northeast Philadelphia, Pa.

    East Penn Railroad, LLC (ESPN), has filed a verified notice of 
exemption under 49 CFR 1152 subpart F--Exempt Abandonments and 
Discontinuances of Service to discontinue service and terminate its 
lease operations over approximately 1.8 miles of rail line owned by 
Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NSR) between milepost VE 0.00 and 
milepost VE 1.80 in Northeast Philadelphia, Pa. (the Line). The Line 
traverses U.S. Postal Service Zip Codes 19004 and 19127.
    ESPN has certified that: (1) It has not moved any local or overhead 
traffic over the Line for at least two years; (2) overhead traffic, if 
there were any, could be rerouted over other lines; (3) no formal 
complaint filed by a user of rail service on the Line (or by a state or 
local

[[Page 48702]]

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 applicable 
requirements at 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper publication), and 49 CFR 
1152.50(d)(l) (notice to governmental agencies) have been met.
    Any employee of ESPN adversely affected by the discontinuance of 
service 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.
    Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of 
financial assistance (OFA) \1\ to subsidize continued rail service has 
been received, this exemption will be effective on October 16, 2019, 
unless stayed pending reconsideration. Petitions to stay that do not 
involve environmental issues and formal expressions of intent to file 
an OFA to subsidize continued rail service under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2) 
\2\ must be filed by September 26, 2019. \3\ Petitions for 
reconsideration must be filed by October 7, 2019, with the Surface 
Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20423-0001.
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    \1\ Persons interested in submitting an OFA to subsidize 
continued rail service must first file a formal expression of intent 
to file an offer, indicating the intent to file an OFA for subsidy 
and demonstrating that they are preliminarily financially 
responsible. See 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2)(i).
    \2\ The filing fee for OFAs can be found at 49 CFR 
1002.2(f)(25).
    \3\ Because this is a discontinuance proceeding and not an 
abandonment, trail use/rail banking and public use conditions are 
not appropriate. Because there will be an environmental review 
during abandonment, this discontinuance does not require 
environmental review.
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    A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to 
ESPN's representatives, William A. Mullins and Crystal M. Zorbaugh, 
Baker & Miller PLLC, 2401 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 300, Washington, 
DC 20037.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio.
    Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.

    Decided: September 11, 2019.

    By the Board, Allison C. Davis, Director, Office of Proceedings.
Andrea Pope-Matheson,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2019-19938 Filed 9-13-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4915-01-P