[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 222 (Tuesday, November 18, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Page 61583]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-30303]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[STB Docket Nos. AB-535X and STB Docket No. AB-536X]
West Central Ohio Port Authority--Abandonment Exemption--in Clark
County, OH; The Indiana and Ohio Central Railroad Company, Inc.--
Discontinuance of Service Exemption--in Clark County, OH
West Central Ohio Port Authority (Westco) and The Indiana and Ohio
Central Railroad Company, Inc. (IOCR), have filed a notice of exemption
under 49 CFR 1152 Subpart F--Exempt Abandonments and Discontinuances
for Westco to abandon and IOCR to discontinue service over a 5.6-mile
line of railroad between milepost 123.86 at or near Glen Echo and
milepost 129.46 at the north edge of Warder Street in Springfield,
Clark County, OH. The line traverses United States Postal Zip Code
45502.1
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\1\ Westco acquired the involved line from Consolidated Rail
Corporation in West Central Ohio Port Authority--Acquisition
Exemption--Consolidated Rail Corporation, Finance Docket No. 32443
(ICC served Jan. 28, 1994).
IOCR's lease and operation of the involved line was approved in
The Indiana & Ohio Central Railroad Company, Inc.--Lease and
Operation--West Central Ohio Port Authority, Finance Docket No.
32602 (ICC served Mar. 15, 1995).
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Westco and IOCR have certified that: (1) no local traffic has moved
over the line for at least 2 years; (2) overhead traffic has been
rerouted over other lines; (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 2-year period; and (4) the requirements at 49
CFR 1105.7 (environmental reports), 49 CFR 1105.8 (historic reports),
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 this exemption, any employee adversely affected
by the abandonment shall be protected under Oregon Short Line R. Co.--
Abandonment--Goshen, 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) has been received, this exemption will be effective on December
18, 1997, unless stayed pending reconsideration. Petitions to stay that
do not involve environmental issues,2 formal expressions of
intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),3 and trail
use/rail banking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by
November 28, 1997. Petitions to reopen or requests for public use
conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by December 8, 1997,
with: Office of the Secretary, Case Control Unit, Surface
Transportation Board, 1925 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20423.
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\2\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on
environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's
Section of Environmental Analysis in its independent investigation)
cannot be made before the exemption's effective date. See Exemption
of Out-of-Service 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.
\3\ Each offer of financial assistance must be accompanied by
the filing fee, which currently is set at $900. 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' representative: Thomas F. McFarland, Jr., McFarland &
Herman, 20 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1330, Chicago, IL 60606-2902.
If the verified notice contains false or misleading information,
the exemption is void ab initio.
Westco and IOCR have filed an environmental report which addresses
the effects of the abandonment and discontinuance, if any, on the
environment and historic resources. The Section of Environmental
Analysis (SEA) will issue an environmental assessment (EA) by November
21, 1997. Interested persons may obtain a copy of the EA by writing to
SEA (Room 500, Surface Transportation Board, Washington, DC 20423) or
by calling SEA, at (202) 565-1545. 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), Westco 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 Westco's filing of a notice of
consummation by November 18, 1998, and there are no legal or regulatory
barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically
expire.
Decided: November 12, 1997.
By the Board, Beryl Gordon, Acting Director, Office of
Proceedings.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-30303 Filed 11-17-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-00-P
