[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 170 (Thursday, September 2, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48228-48230]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-22926]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Major Investment Study/Draft Environmental Impact Statement for
the Metro-North Penn Station Access Study
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA)
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a Major Investment Study/Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (MIS/DEIS).
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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Metro-North
Commuter Railroad Company (Metro-North) intend to prepare a Major
[[Page 48229]]
Investment Study/Draft Environmental Impact Statement (MIS/DEIS) to
study transportation access improvements from the Metro-North service
territory on the New Haven, Harlem, and Hudson Lines (north of
Manhattan) to Pennsylvania Station, New York (Penn Station) on the West
Side of Manhattan in the City of New York. Current Metro-North service
terminates at Grand Central Terminal (GCT) on the East Side of
Manhattan, necessitating as many as two transfers on additional modes
to reach destinations on the West Side. The MIS/DEIS is being prepared
in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA), as amended, and implemented by the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), the FTA/Federal
Highway Administration's Environmental Impact regulations (23 CFR Part
771), and the FTA/FHWA Statewide Planning/Metropolitan Planning
regulations (23 CFR Part 450). This study will also comply with the
requirements of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as
amended, Section 4(f) of the 1966 U.S. Department of Transportation
Act, the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, the Executive Order 12898 on
Environmental Justice, and other applicable rules, regulations, and
guidance documents.
The Penn Station Access MIS/DEIS will examine alternative
strategies for improving access from the Metro-North service territory
to the West Side of Manhattan (Penn Station). New York-bound, Metro-
North trains currently terminate at GCT on Manhattan's East Side. The
study will also evaluate the possibility of station stops in Co-Op City
in the Bronx and on the West Side of Manhattan, and a new rail yard.
Consideration will also be given to other modes.
The Penn Station Access MIS/DEIS will develop alternatives for
study that could lead to a project which would (1) Be a feasible, cost-
effective, and beneficial transportation improvement that would enhance
connections to other regional rail services; (2) increase Metro-North
ridership and provide service flexibility for its customers; and (3)
support the region's economic vitality and quality of life. The MIS/
DEIS will evaluate a No-Build Alternative, a Transportation System
Management (TSM) Alternative, and Build Alternatives. Build
alternatives will take into consideration the use of Metro-North's
Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven Lines to provide access to Penn Station,
potential new stations on the West Side of Manhattan (somewhere from
approximately 57th Street to 86th Street) and at Co-Op City in the
Bronx, as well as other reasonable alternatives suggested through the
scoping process. The type, location and need for ancillary facilities
(such as new yards or shops) will also be considered for each
alternative.
DATES: Comment Due Date: Written comments on the scope of the MIS/DEIS
should be sent to Metro-North by October 22, 1999. See ADDRESSES below.
Scoping Meeting: Public scoping meetings for the Penn Station
Access MIS/DEIS will be held on:
September 28, 1999
6 pm-9 pm (sign-in begins at 5:30), MTA Headquarters, 5th Floor
Board Room, 347 Madison Avenue (btwn 44th St. & 45th St.), New York,
New York
September 30, 1999
7 pm-10 pm (sign-in begins at 6:30), Einstein Community Center; 135
Einstein Loop, Co-Op City, New York
October 5, 1999
7 pm-10 pm (sign-in begins at 6:30), The Warner Library, (corner of
Broadway St. and Wildey St.) Tarrytown, New York
October 7, 1999
7 pm-10 pm (sign-in begins at 6:30), Stamford Government Center, 888
Washington Blvd., 2nd Floor (Senior Center), Stamford, Connecticut
People with special needs should contact Todd DiScala at Metro-North at
the address below or by calling the study hotline at 1-877-MNR-PENN.
The buildings are accessible to people with disabilities. A sign
language interpreter will be available for the hearing impaired.
Scoping material will be available at the meetings and may also be
obtained in advance of the meetings by contacting Todd DiScala at the
address below or by calling the study hotline above. Oral and written
comments may be given at the scoping meetings; a stenographer will
record all comments.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the project scope should be sent to Todd
DiScala, Project Manager, Metro-North Railroad, 420 Lexington Avenue,
9th Floor, New York, New York 10017. The scoping meetings will be held
at the locations identified above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you wish to be placed on the
mailing list to receive further information as the study develops,
contact Todd DiScala at the above address or call the study hotline at
1-877-MNR-PENN. For further information you may also contact: Ms. Nancy
Danzig, Community Planner, Federal Transit Administration, Region II,
One Bowling Green, Room 429, New York, New York, 10004-1415; phone:
212-668-2170.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Scoping
The FTA and Metro-North invite all interested individuals and
organizations, and federal, state, and local agencies to provide
comments on the scope of the study. During the scoping process,
comments should focus on identifying specific social, economic, or
environmental issues to be evaluated and suggesting alternatives, which
may be less costly or have less environmental impacts, while achieving
the transportation objectives of enhancing regional connectivity,
providing service flexibility, and supporting the region's economic
vitality and quality of life. Comments should focus on the issues and
alternatives for analysis and not on a preference for a particular
alternative. Scoping materials will be available at the meetings or in
advance of the meetings by contacting Todd DiScala at Metro-North, as
indicated above.
The Penn Station Access Study will be closely coordinated with
major regional initiatives and studies that are related to this effort.
These include:
Hudson Line Extension MIS/DEIS, a study by Metro-North
to examine extending Hudson Line service further north in Dutchess
County from its current terminus in Poughkeepsie, New York;
Access to the Region's Core Study (ARC), a joint study
by New Jersey Transit, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey,
and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The ARC study
continues to study access to Midtown Manhattan from points east and
west;
East Side Access Study, a study by MTA Long Island Rail
Road of access to the East Side of Manhattan via Grand Central
Terminal;
Lower Manhattan Access Alternatives Study, a study by
the MTA to determine feasible alternatives for improving access to
Lower Manhattan;
Manhattan East Side Alternatives, a study by MTA New
York City Transit to examine alternatives for improving access in
the north-south corridor on the East Side of Manhattan;
Amtrak High Speed Rail, projects to (1) improve service
in the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston and (2) to
provide improved service in the Empire Corridor.
Amtrak Service to the Farley Post Office Building, a
project which will move Amtrak's New York City passenger operations
to the Farley Post Office Building; and
Conrail/CSX/Norfolk Southern Merger, a change in the
ownership of the freight network, dividing the former Conrail
holdings between CSX and Norfolk Southern.
[[Page 48230]]
Following the public scoping process, public outreach activities
will include meetings with a Community Liaison Committee (CLC)
established for the study and comprised of community leaders, and with
Community Boards; public meetings and hearings; distribution of study
fact sheets and newsletters; and use of other outreach mechanisms.
Every effort will be made to ensure that the widest possible range of
public participants has the opportunity to attend general public
meetings (e.g., scoping meetings and public hearing(s)) held by Metro-
North to solicit input on the Penn Station Access MIS/DEIS. Attendance
will be sought through mailings, notices, advertisements, and press
releases.
II. Description of Study Area and Transportation Needs
The study area includes: (1) The Penn Station vicinity on the West
Side of Manhattan, (2) the corridors of Metro-North's service
territory, including the Hudson Line (76 miles), Harlem Line (82 miles
[including Wassaic Extension]), and New Haven Line (132 miles)
[including the New Canaan Branch, Danbury Branch, and the Waterbury
Branch) extending through Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester, Bronx, and New
York (Manhattan) Counties in New York, and Fairfield and New Haven
Counties in Connecticut; and (3) the corridors of Amtrak's Empire Line
south of Spuyten Duyvil to Penn Station on the West Side of Manhattan,
and Amtrak's Hell Gate Line south of New Rochelle and through
Sunnyside, Queens. The study area also includes the vicinity of
possible new stations and storage yards on the Hudson and New Haven
Lines. Possible new station locations include the West Side of
Manhattan from 57th Street to 86th Street, and Co-Op City in the Bronx.
This study area description is generalized and considered flexible,
subject both to the outcome of the scoping process and the locations of
the alternatives studied in detail.
The purpose of the Penn Station Access MIS/DEIS is to thoroughly
examine the demand for, and the opportunities and constraints related
to, improving access to Penn Station from the Metro-North service
territory to the West Side of Manhattan, and to identify a preferred
study alternative that addresses the forecasted demand in a cost-
effective, environmentally sound, and equitable way. The MIS/DEIS will
be conducted in coordination with a regional framework of
transportation studies; it will consider the findings, conclusions, and
recommendations of other recent and ongoing regional transportation
studies. The MIS/DEIS will examine and document the social, economic,
and environmental impacts of implementing identified study
alternatives.
Provision of service to the Penn Station area would address the
following needs:
Commutation to Manhattan's West Side (Penn Station and
Upper West Side areas);
Commutation to Long Island and New Jersey (via transfer
at Penn Station to Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) or New Jersey
Transit (NJT) service);
Commutation to workplaces in the vicinity of possible
new stations on the West Side of Manhattan and Co-Op City in the
Bronx.
Reverse commutation from the West Side and Co-Op City
to communities in the Metro-North service area;
Discretionary (non-work-related) travel to Long Island
and New Jersey in peak periods, off-peak periods, and on weekends;
and
Discretionary (non-work-related) travel to Manhattan's
West Side in peak periods, off-peak periods, and on weekends for
visits to shops, shows and museums.
III. Alternatives
The alternatives proposed for evaluation include: (1) The No-Build
Alternative, which involves the current infrastructure of highways,
train, bus, and subway service, in addition to all ongoing, committed
and funded roadway and transit projects outlined in the State
Transportation Improvement Program (STIP); (2) the Transportation
System Management (TSM) Alternative, which includes all elements of the
No-Build alternative in addition to roadway and traffic improvements
and improvements to existing transit services that address the defined
purpose and need for Penn Station access. The TSM Alternative is a low
cost alternative that uses existing facilities to the greatest extent
possible to meet the study area needs. The TSM Alternative also
provides the baseline against which the cost-effectiveness of other
capital transit investments can be evaluated; and (3) the Build
Alternatives, which include commuter rail service between Penn Station
and stations on the Hudson, Harlem, and/or New Haven Lines; shuttle
train service between key Metro-North stations and Penn Station,
enabling riders from Grand Central Terminal-bound trains to transfer to
Penn Station trains; potential new intermediate stations on the West
Side of Manhattan (from 57th Street to 86th Street) and at Co-Op City
in the Bronx; and potential new yard locations for storage of
equipment.
Rail alternatives using the Hudson and New Haven Lines to provide
access to Penn Station would use existing rail infrastructure by
connecting to Amtrak's Empire Connection and Hell Gate Line,
respectively. Alternatives using the Harlem Line to provide access to
Penn Station may require track reconstruction at potential merge
locations (e.g. Spuyten Duyvil in the Bronx).
Additional reasonable Build alternatives suggested during the
scoping process, including those involving other modes, may be
considered.
IV. Probable Effects
The FTA and Metro-North will evaluate all potential changes to the
social, economic, and physical environment, including land acquisition
and displacements; land use, zoning and economic development;
parklands; community disruption; aesthetics; historic and archeological
resources; traffic and parking; air quality; noise and vibration; water
quality; wetlands; ecologically sensitive areas; endangered species;
energy requirements and potential for conservation; hazardous waste;
environmental justice; safety and security; and cumulative impacts. Key
areas of environmental concern would be in the areas of potential new
construction (e.g. new stations, track connections, etc.). The impacts
will be evaluated both for the construction period and for the long-
term period of operation of each alternative. Measures to mitigate any
significant adverse impacts will be identified.
V. FTA Procedures
The DEIS will be prepared in conjunction with a major investment
study and will document the results of that study, including an
evaluation of the potential social, economic, and environmental impacts
of the alternatives. Upon completion, the MIS/DEIS will be available
for public and agency review and comment. Public hearing(s) will be
held within the study area. On the basis of the MIS/DEIS and the public
and agency comments received, a locally preferred alternative will be
selected, to be further detailed in the final EIS.
Issued On: August 30, 1999.
Letitia Thompson,
Regional Administrator, TRO-II, Federal Transit Administration.
[FR Doc. 99-22926 Filed 9-1-99; 8:45 am]
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