[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 28 (Monday, February 12, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Page 6663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-2249]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
[Docket Number: FTA-2007-27172]
Notice of Availability of Proposed Guidance on New and Small
Starts Policies and Procedures
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of the Federal Transit
Administration's (FTA) Proposed Guidance on New and Small Starts
Policies and Procedures and requests your comments on it. The guidance
explains proposed changes to the New and Small Starts programs that
will become effective upon the issuance of Final Guidance, which will
be announced in a subsequent Federal Register notice. FTA requests
comments on the Proposed Guidance, which is available in DOT's
electronic docket and on FTA's Web site.
DATES: Comments must be received by March 14, 2007. Late filed comments
will be considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments [identified by the DOT DMS Docket
Number FTA-2007-27172] by any of the following methods:
Web site: http://dms.dot.gov. Follow the instructions for
submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site.
Fax: 202-493-2251.
Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, PL-401,
Washington, DC 20590-0001.
Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on the plaza level of the Nassif
Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Instructions: You must include the agency name (Federal Transit
Administration) and the docket number (FTA-2007-27172). You should
submit two copies of your comments if you submit them by mail. If you
wish to receive confirmation that FTA received your comments, you must
include a self-addressed stamped postcard. Note that all comments
received will be posted without change to the Department Docket
Management System (DMS) Web site located at http://dms.dot.gov. This
means that if your comment includes any personal identifying
information, such information will be made available to users of DMS.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron Fisher, Office of Planning and
Environment, telephone (202) 366-4033, Federal Transit Administration,
U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington,
DC 20590 or [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Background
On August 10, 2005, President Bush signed the Safe, Accountable,
Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users
(SAFETEA-LU). Section 3011 of SAFETEA-LU made a number of changes to 49
U.S.C. 5309, which authorizes the Federal Transit Administration's
(FTA) fixed guideway capital investment program known as ``New
Starts'', and created a new program category known as ``Small Starts''.
This notice announces the availability of FTA's Proposed Guidance on
New and Small Starts Policies and Procedures and requests your comment
as described below. The document is available in the docket, which can
be accessed by going to http://dms.dot.gov at any time, or you can view
the document on FTA's Web site at http://www.fta.dot.gov/15052_ENG-HTML.html.
A. Proposed Changes for the New and Small Starts Program
The purpose of this policy guidance is to solicit comments on the
policies and procedures for the New and Small Starts programs. The
changes, once announced as final, will apply to all New and Small
Starts submittals received after the effective date announced in the
Notice of Availability published in the Federal Register for the Final
Guidance. The proposed improvements include: Elimination of the
reporting requirements for information on FTA's measures for operating
efficiencies and environmental benefits; optional submission of
information related to land use; reduction in number of projects
required to submit information for the Annual Report on Funding
Recommendations; request for grantees to allow FTA's reviews of
descriptions of alternatives to be timely; requirement for travel
models to be validated based on recent transit surveys; an approach for
accounting for additional user benefits for new transit modes to an
area; use of a five-tiered rating for a project's overall rating;
consideration of overmatch for Small and Very Small Starts; new
measures for mobility of transit dependents; consolidation of the
subfactors used for the capital and operating components of the
financial rating; rating credit for consideration of private
contracting for operations and maintenance; treatment of FTA rating
information in planning studies; and consideration of congestion
management/pricing strategies and ``make-the-case'' document as ``other
factors'' for project justification. Comments received will be used to
develop the ratings, evaluations, and procedures for projects seeking
funds from the New and Small Starts programs, and will be issued in
spring of 2007. FTA will respond to comments received in response to
this Notice in a second Federal Register notice to be published after
the close of the comment period. The notice will announce the
availability of the Reporting Instructions for the Section 5309 New
Starts Criteria and the Interim Guidance for Small Starts, reflecting
the changes implemented as a result of this policy guidance and
comments received thereon.
Issued in Washington, DC this 5th day February 2007.
James S. Simpson,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E7-2249 Filed 2-9-07; 8:45 am]
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