02-21924. Notice of Application for Approval of Discontinuance or Modification of a Railroad Signal System or Relief From Requirements

Pursuant to Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) parts 235 and 49 U.S.C. 20502(a), the following railroads have petitioned the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) seeking approval for the discontinuance or modification of the signal system or relief from the requirements of 49 CFR Part 236 as detailed below.

Applicant: New Jersey Transit, Mr. William R. Knapp, Vice President and General Manager, Rail Operations, One Penn Plaza East, Newark, New Jersey 07105-2246.

New Jersey Transit (NJT) seeks temporary relief from the requirements of Part 236, Section 236.566, of the Rules, Standard and Instructions, to the extent that NJT be permitted to operate non-equipped New York Susquehanna and Western (NYS&W) steam locomotive number 142, in automatic train control territory on NJT's Raritan Valley Line between Cranford, New Jersey, milepost 15.0 and High Bridge, New Jersey, milepost 52.2, on Saturday and Sunday, September 7 and 8, 2002, in celebration of the City of Dunellen, New Jersey's event, “Dunellen Railroad Days.” In addition, NJT seeks temporary relief from the requirements of Section 236.566 to the extent that NJT be permitted to operate non-equipped NYS&W steam locomotive number 142, in automatic train control territory, on NJT's Boonton and Morristown Lines between Jersey City, New Jersey, milepost 3.0 and Hackettstown, New Jersey, milepost 56.9, on Saturday and Sunday, September 28 and 29, 2002, in celebration of the Borough of Lincoln Park, New Jersey's event, “Lincoln Park Days.”

Applicant's justification for relief: The three NJT lines are equipped with automatic block signals and operate under NORAC Rules 251 and 261, and the steam excursion train movements for each event would be limited to no more than four trips daily, would not exceed 50 mph, and would establish an absolute block ahead of each movement.

Any interested party desiring to protest the granting of an application shall set forth specifically the grounds upon which the protest is made, and contain a concise statement of the interest of the party in the proceeding. Additionally, one copy of the protest shall be furnished to the applicant at the address listed above.

All communications concerning this proceeding should be identified by the docket number and must be submitted to the Docket Clerk, DOT Central Docket Management Facility, Room PI-401, Washington, DC 20590-0001. Communications received within 30 days of the date of this notice will be considered by the 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 a.m.—5 p.m.) at DOT Central Docket Management Facility, Room PI-401 (Plaza Level), 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001. 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.

FRA expects to be able to determine these matters without an oral hearing. However, if a specific request for an oral hearing is accompanied by a showing that the party is unable to adequately present his or her position by written statements, an application may be set for public hearing.

Issued in Washington, DC on August 20, 2002.

Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program Development.