[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 6 (Tuesday, January 10, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1551-1554]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-264]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on the
Bottineau Transitway Project From Minneapolis to Maple Grove in
Hennepin County, MN
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement
(EIS).
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SUMMARY: The FTA, as the lead federal agency, the Hennepin County
Regional Railroad Authority (HCRRA), and the Metropolitan Council
intend to prepare an EIS for the proposed Bottineau Transitway project
located along the Bottineau Transitway Corridor in Hennepin County,
Minnesota. The proposed transitway, approximately 13 miles long, would
connect downtown Minneapolis with North Minneapolis
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and the northwest suburbs of the Twin Cities. The transitway would
originate in Minneapolis near the existing Target Field Station, where
several existing transit lines converge, and would extend to the
following suburbs: Robbinsdale, Golden Valley, Crystal, New Hope,
Brooklyn Park, Maple Grove, and Osseo. The EIS will be prepared in
accordance with Section 102(2)C of the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (NEPA) and pursuant to the Council on Environmental
Quality's regulations (40 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] parts 1500-
08), as well as provisions of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible,
Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).
The purpose of this notice is to alert interested parties of the intent
to prepare the EIS; provide information on the proposed transit
project; invite public participation in the EIS process, including
comments on the scope of the EIS proposed in this notice; and serve as
an announcement of public and agency scoping meetings.
DATES: Written comments on the scope of the EIS should be sent to Brent
Rusco, Bottineau Transitway Project Manager, on or before February 17,
2012. See ADDRESSES below for the locations to which written comments
may be submitted. Public scoping meetings will be held on the following
dates, in order to solicit input on the scope of the EIS:
January 23, 2012, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., at the Theodore
Wirth Chalet, 1301 Theodore Wirth Parkway, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
January 24, 2012, from 6 to 8 p.m., at Brooklyn Park City
Hall, 5200 85th Avenue North, Brooklyn Park, Minnesota.
January 25, 2012, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at the Urban
Research and Outreach/Engagement Center (UROC), 2001 Plymouth Avenue
North, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
January 31, 2012, from 6 to 8 p.m., at the Robbinsdale
City Hall, 4100 Lakeview Avenue North, Robbinsdale, Minnesota.
An interagency scoping meeting for agencies with interest in the
project will be held on the following date:
January 19, 2012, from 9 to 11 a.m., at the Kimley-Horn
and Associates office, 2550 University Avenue West, Suite 238N, St.
Paul, Minnesota.
All the scoping meetings will be accessible to persons with
disabilities. If special translation or signing services or other
special accommodations are needed, please contact Brent Rusco (see
ADDRESSES below) at least 48 hours prior to the meeting. Project
information outlining the project purpose and need, as well as
alternatives proposed for analysis, will be available in the form of a
scoping information packet, at the meetings and on the project Web
site: http://bottineautransitway.org. Paper copies of the information
may also be obtained from Brent Rusco [see ADDRESSES below].
ADDRESSES: Comments on the scope of the EIS will be accepted at the
scoping meetings, or written comments should be sent to Brent Rusco,
Bottineau Transitway Project Manager, Hennepin County, 701 Fourth
Avenue South, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55415, Phone: (612) 543-0579,
Email: [email protected], Fax: (612) 348-9710.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lois Kimmelman, Environmental
Protection Specialist, FTA Region V, Chicago, Illinois, (312) 353-4060;
or Bill Wheeler, Community Planner, FTA Region V, Chicago, Illinois,
(312) 353-2639.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Scoping
The FTA, HCRRA, and the Metropolitan Council invite all interested
individuals and organizations, public agencies, and Native American
Tribes to comment on the scope of the EIS for the proposed Bottineau
Transitway, including the project's purpose and need, the alternatives
to be studied, the environmental impacts to be evaluated, and the
evaluation methods to be used. Comments should address: (1) Feasible
alternatives that may better achieve the project's purpose and need
with fewer adverse impacts, and (2) any significant impacts relating to
the alternatives.
``Scoping,'' as described in the regulations implementing NEPA
(Title 40 of CFR 1501.7) has specific and fairly limited objectives,
one of which is to identify the significant issues associated with
alternatives that will be examined in detail in the document, while
simultaneously limiting consideration and development of issues that
are not truly significant. It is during the NEPA scoping process that
potentially significant environmental impacts--those that give rise to
the need to prepare an EIS--should be identified. Impacts that are
deemed not to be significant need not be developed extensively in the
context of the EIS, thereby keeping the EIS focused on impacts of
consequence consistent with the ultimate objectives of the NEPA
implementing regulations: ``to make the environmental impact statement
process more useful to decision makers and the public; and to reduce
paperwork and the accumulation of extraneous background data, in order
to emphasize the need to focus on real environmental issues and
alternatives * * * [by requiring] impact statements to be concise,
clear, and to the point, and supported by evidence that agencies have
made the necessary environmental analyses.'' (Executive Order 11991 of
May 24, 1977.)
Once the scope of the EIS is defined, and significant environmental
issues to be addressed have been identified, an annotated outline of
the EIS will be prepared that: (1) Documents the results of the scoping
process, (2) contributes to the transparency of the process, and (3)
provides a clear roadmap for concise development of the EIS.
Purpose and Need for the Project
The purpose of the Bottineau Transitway is to provide transit
service which will satisfy the long-term regional mobility and local
accessibility needs for businesses and the traveling public. Residents
and businesses in the Bottineau Transitway project area need access to
the region's activity centers to fully participate in the region's
economy. Access to jobs in Minneapolis, St. Paul, the University of
Minnesota, and the growing Minneapolis suburbs is crucial. Traffic
congestion is expected to intensify in the Twin Cities Metropolitan
Area through 2030 and beyond, and it cannot be addressed by highway
construction alone. Current transit service in the Bottineau Transitway
offers a limited number of viable alternatives to personal vehicles.
Without major transit investments, it will be difficult to effectively
meet the transportation needs of people and businesses in the corridor,
manage highway traffic congestion in the project area, and achieve the
region's 2030 Transportation Policy Plan (TPP) goal of doubling transit
ridership by 2030.
Five factors contribute to the need for the Bottineau Transitway
project:
Growing travel demand resulting from continuing growth in
population and employment.
Increasing traffic congestion and limited funding.
Growing numbers of people who depend on transit.
Limited transit service to suburban jobs (reverse commute
opportunities) and travel-time competitive transit options.
Regional objectives for growth.
Project Location of Environmental Setting
The project is located in Hennepin County, Minnesota, and includes
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downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, and its northwest suburbs, including
Robbinsdale, Golden Valley, Crystal, New Hope, Brooklyn Park, Maple
Grove, and Osseo.
Possible Alternatives
The Bottineau Transitway Alternatives Analysis (AA) Study was
completed by HCRRA in March 2010. The AA Study evaluated a no-build
alternative and a broad range of build alternatives, including an
enhanced bus/transportation system management alternative, as well as
commuter rail, light rail transit (LRT), and bus rapid transit (BRT)
alternatives. The study progressively narrowed down the build
alternatives to a set of 21 alternatives which underwent detailed
evaluation. The AA Study is posted on the project Web site.
The following alternatives are currently under consideration for
further study in the EIS:
No-Build Alternative. The No-Build alternative serves as the
baseline against which environmental effects of the Bottineau
Transitway build alternatives are measured. It is defined as the
existing transportation system in the Bottineau Transitway Corridor,
plus any committed transportation improvements in the region, i.e.,
those roadway, transit facility, and service improvements that are
planned, programmed, and included in the TPP, and that are to be
implemented by the year 2030. The No-Build Alternative does not include
the Bottineau Transitway project. It does include major regional
transit projects such as the Green Line (Central Corridor LRT and
Southwest Transitway LRT), Red Line (Cedar Avenue BRT), and the Orange
Line (I-35W BRT), as well as minor transit service expansions and/or
adjustments in order to continue existing Metropolitan Council service
policies.
Enhanced Bus/Transportation Systems Management (TSM) Alternative.
The TSM alternative is defined as enhancements and upgrades to the
existing transportation system in the Bottineau Transitway Corridor,
such that the project's purpose and need would be met as much as
possible without a major capital investment. The TSM alternative could
include bus route restructuring, scheduling improvements, new express
and limited-stop services, intersection improvements, and other focused
infrastructure improvements that would heighten the functioning of the
current transit system. The specific combination of improvements to be
incorporated into this alternative will be developed during EIS
process.
Light Rail Transit (LRT) Alternatives. All LRT alternatives would
include several station stops between downtown Minneapolis and the
Maple Grove/Brooklyn Park area. These alternatives, which would follow
West Broadway, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) rail corridor,
and Olson Memorial Highway and/or Penn Avenue, would include tracks,
stations and support facilities, as well as transit service for LRT and
connecting bus routes.
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Alternative. The BRT alternative would
include a busway in its own dedicated space (guideway) with several
stations between downtown Minneapolis and the Brooklyn Park area. This
alternative, which would follow West Broadway, the BNSF rail corridor,
and Olson Memorial Highway, would include all facilities associated
with the construction and operation of BRT, including right-of-way,
travel lanes, stations, and support facilities, as well as transit
service for BRT and connecting bus routes.
Possible Effects
The purpose of the EIS process is to study, in a public setting,
the potentially significant effects of the proposed project on the
quality of the human environment. Primary areas of investigation for
this project include, but are not limited to: Land use and economic
development; land acquisition, displacements, and relocation;
neighborhood cohesion and environmental justice; historic resources;
parklands; visual and aesthetic qualities; air quality; water quality,
wetlands, and floodplains; wildlife/endangered species and ecosystems;
noise; vibration; hazardous materials affected by demolition and
construction activities; traffic circulation and transportation
linkages; parking; pedestrian and bicycle connections; energy use; and
safety and security. Effects will be evaluated in the context of both
short-term construction and long-term operation of the proposed
project. Direct project effects as well as indirect and cumulative
effects on the environment will be addressed. The environmental
analysis may reveal that the proposed project will not affect, or
affect substantially, many of the primary areas of investigation.
However, if any adverse impacts are identified, measures to avoid,
minimize, or mitigate those adverse effects will be proposed.
Procedures for Public and Agency Involvement
The regulations implementing NEPA, as well as provisions of
SAFETEA-LU, call for public involvement in the EIS process. Section
6002 of SAFETEA-LU (23 U.S.C. 139) requires that FTA, HCRRA, and the
Metropolitan Council do the following: (1) Extend an invitation to
other federal and non-federal agencies and Native American tribes that
may have an interest in the proposed project to become ``participating
agencies;'' (2) provide an opportunity for involvement by participating
agencies and the public to help define the purpose and need for
proposed project, as well as the range of alternatives for
consideration in the EIS; and (3) establish a plan for coordinating
public and agency participation in, and comment on) the environmental
review process. An invitation to become a participating or cooperating
agency, with scoping materials appended, will be extended to other
federal and non-federal agencies and Native American tribes that may
have an interest in the proposed project. It is possible that FTA,
HCRRA, and the Metropolitan Council will not be able to identify all
federal and non-federal agencies and Native American tribes that may
have such an interest. Any federal or non-federal agency or Native
American tribes interested in the proposed project that does not
receive an invitation to become a participating agency should notify at
the earliest opportunity the Project Manager identified above under
ADDRESSES.
A comprehensive public involvement program for public and agency
involvement will be developed for the project and posted on the project
Web site. The public involvement program includes a full range of
activities including maintaining the project Web site, and outreach to
local officials, community and civic groups, and the general public.
Paperwork Reduction
The Paperwork Reduction Act seeks, in part, to minimize the cost to
the taxpayer of the creation, collection, maintenance, use,
dissemination, and disposition of information. Consistent with this
goal and with principles of economy and efficiency in government, it is
FTA policy to limit insofar as possible distribution of complete
printed sets of environmental documents. Accordingly, unless a specific
request for a complete printed set of environmental documents is
received before the document is printed, at the latest, FTA and its
grantees will distribute only the executive summary of environmental
documents in printed form together with a compact disc (CD) that
contains the complete environmental document. A complete
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printed set of the environmental documents will be available for review
at the grantee's offices and elsewhere; an electronic copy of the
complete environmental document will also be available on the grantee's
Web site.
Other
The EIS will be prepared in accordance with NEPA and its
implementing regulations issued by the Council on Environmental Quality
(40 CFR parts 1500-1508), and with the FTA/Federal Highway
Administration regulations ``Environmental Impact and Related
Procedures'' (23 CFR part 771).
Issued on: January 5, 2012.
Marisol Simon,
Regional Administrator, FTA, Region V.
[FR Doc. 2012-264 Filed 1-9-12; 8:45 am]
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