E8-1865. Railroad Safety Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

AGENCY:

Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION:

Announcement of Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) meeting.

SUMMARY:

FRA announces the 34th meeting of the RSAC, a Federal advisory committee that develops railroad safety regulations through a consensus process. The RSAC meeting topics will include opening remarks from the FRA Administrator, presentations on railroad bridge safety, the Volpe final report on private crossings, the FRA Research and Development Program, and the Risk Reduction Program. Status reports will be provided by the Passenger Safety, Locomotive Safety Standards, Medical Standards, Railroad Operating Rules, and Track Safety Standards Working Groups. The Committee will be asked to vote on recommendations on proposed Emergency Preparedness Rule text, a Vehicle Track Interaction Rule change, regulatory changes, and recommended practices related to the management of continuous welded rail, and station platform gap management guidance. Additionally, FRA may offer for RSAC vote a task on bridge safety. This agenda is subject to change.

DATES:

The RSAC meeting is scheduled to commence at 9:30 a.m., and will adjourn at 4 p.m., on Wednesday, February 20, 2008.

ADDRESSES:

The RSAC meeting will be held at the National Housing Center, 1201 15th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005. The meeting is open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis, and is accessible to individuals with disabilities. Sign and oral interpretation can be made available if requested 10 calendar days before the meeting.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Larry Woolverton, RSAC Coordinator, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Mailstop 25, Washington, DC 20590, [phone] or Grady Cothen, Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Mailstop 25, Washington, DC 20590, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Pursuant to Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), FRA is giving notice of a meeting of the RSAC. The RSAC was established to provide advice and recommendations to FRA on railroad safety matters. The RSAC is composed of 54 voting representatives from 31 member organizations, representing various rail industry perspectives. In addition, there are nonvoting advisory representatives from the agencies with railroad safety regulatory responsibility in Canada and Mexico, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the Federal Transit Administration. The diversity of the Committee ensures the requisite range of views and expertise necessary to discharge its responsibilities. See the RSAC Web site for details on pending tasks at http://rsac.fra.dot.gov/​.

Please refer to the notice published in the Federal Register on March 11, 1996, (61 FR 9740) for additional information about the RSAC.

Issued in Washington, DC on January 28, 2008.

Michael J. Logue,

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Compliance and Program Implementation.