[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 224 (Wednesday, November 20, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64181-64182]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-25138]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket Number FRA-2016-0086]


Petition for Waiver of Compliance

    Under part 211 of title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), this 
document provides the public notice that on October 3, 2019, CSX 
Transportation (CSX) petitioned the Federal Railroad Administration 
(FRA) for a waiver of compliance from certain provisions of the Federal 
railroad safety regulations contained at 49 CFR part 232, Brake System 
Safety Standards for Freight and Other Non-Passenger Trains and 
Equipment, and 49 CFR part 229, Railroad Locomotive Safety Standards. 
FRA assigned the petition Docket Number FRA-2016-0086.
    Specifically, CSX seeks relief with respect to the application of 
49 CFR 232.205(c)(1)(iii), Leakage test, and Sec.  229.29(b), Air brake 
system calibration, maintenance, and testing, for the calibration of 
locomotive air flow method (AFM) indicators. CSX requests to become a 
full test member of the existing FRA-2016-0086 test waiver (joining 
BNSF Railway), under the same conditions as BNSF, for testing 1,264 of 
CSX's New York Air Brake (NYAB) CCB II equipped locomotives (see FRA-
2016-0086-0006) to investigate whether the interval for calibration may 
be safely extended to 184 days. CSX also requests to form a test team 
operating under the current FRA-2016-0086 test committee to test all 
440 CSX Wabtec Fastbrake-equipped locomotives. CSX has been an active 
member of the FRA-2016-0086 test committee since its inception and is 
familiar with the work performed to date by this committee. On August 
29, 2019, the test committee extended a consensus recommendation for 
CSX to join the waiver as a testing member to

[[Page 64182]]

help assess Wabtec's Fastbrake systems, and to expand the scope of NYAB 
CCB II locomotives being evaluated under the waiver.
    A copy of the petition, as well as any written communications 
concerning the petition, is available for review online at 
www.regulations.gov and in person at the U.S. Department of 
Transportation's (DOT) Docket Operations Facility, 1200 New Jersey Ave. 
SE, W12-140, Washington, DC 20590. The Docket Operations Facility is 
open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
Holidays.
    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 parties 
desire an opportunity for oral comment and a public hearing, 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 and may be submitted by any of the following 
methods:
     Website: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Operations Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal Holidays.
    Communications received by December 20, 2019 will be considered by 
FRA before final action is taken. Comments received after that date 
will be considered if practicable. Anyone can search the electronic 
form of any written communications and comments received into any of 
our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or 
signing the document, if submitted on behalf of an association, 
business, labor union, etc.). Under 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits 
comments from the public to better inform its processes. DOT posts 
these comments, without edit, including any personal information the 
commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system 
of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at https://www.transportation.gov/privacy. See also https://www.regulations.gov/privacyNotice for the privacy notice of regulations.gov.

    Issued in Washington, DC.
John Karl Alexy,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, Chief Safety Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019-25138 Filed 11-19-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-06-P


