00-16355. Petition for Waiver of Compliance

In accordance with Part 211 of Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), notice is hereby given that the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) received a request for a waiver of compliance with certain requirements of its safety standards. The individual petition is described below, including the party seeking relief, the regulatory provisions involved, the nature of the relief being requested, and the petitioner's arguments in favor of relief.

Columbia Business Center (Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA-2000-7301)

Columbia Business Center of Vancouver, Washington, seeks a permanent waiver of compliance from the requirements of 49 CFR part 223, Safety Glazing Standards, for its two locomotives. This request was formerly handled under FRA docket number RSGM-98-1. The subjects of this petition are a GE 80-ton center cab (940 HP) locomotive and a GE 25-ton (150 HP) locomotive. Both units currently have laminated glass throughout the cabs showing the following information:

Safety Duolite A52,95

Viracon-1 Lam.DOT129,16CFR,1201 M40 CAT. II/A5-1,09,88

Hi-test Safety Sheet AS,FV.

These locomotives are used exclusively by Columbia Business Center on 2.81 miles of Columbia Business Center owned track within the Columbia Business Center Industrial Park. The railroad has had no accidents, incidents, or acts of vandalism relative to the proposed relief.

Interested parties are invited to participate in these proceedings by submitting written views, data, or comments. FRA does not anticipate scheduling a public hearing in connection with these proceedings since the facts do not appear to warrant a hearing. If any interested party desires an opportunity for oral comment, they should notify FRA, in writing, before the end of the comment period and specify the basis for their request.

All communications concerning these proceedings should identify the appropriate docket number (e.g., Waiver Petition Docket Number 2000-7301) and must be submitted to the Docket Clerk, DOT Docket Management Facility, Room PL-401 (Plaza Level), 400 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590. Communications received within 45 days of the date of this notice will be considered by FRA before final action is taken. Comments received after that date will be considered as far as practicable. All written communications concerning these proceedings are available for examination during regular business hours (9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.) at the above facility. All documents in the public docket are also available for inspection and copying on the Internet at the docket facility's web site at http://dms.dot.gov.

Issued in Washington, DC on June 22, 2000.

Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program Development.