Notice2021-18350
Re-Designation of the Primary Highway Freight System (PHFS)
Primary source
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Published
August 26, 2021
Issuing agencies
Transportation DepartmentFederal Highway Administration
Abstract
The FHWA is re-designating the PHFS to meet the statutory requirements of the authorizing law. The Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act designated the PHFS and provided for an update to the PHFS every 5 years. Beginning five years after the date of the enactment of the FAST Act, and every 5 years thereafter, using the designation factors described in FAST Act, the FHWA Administrator shall re-designate the primary highway freight system. Each re- designation may increase the mileage on the PHFS by not more than 3 percent of the total mileage of the system. The current PHFS consists of 41,518 centerline miles of roadway and is a component of the National Highway Freight Network (NHFN). The re-designation initiated through this RFI may add up to 1,246 miles of additional mileage to the current PHFS. State Freight Advisory Committees, represented by their States, are invited to submit comments. Other entities are encouraged to engage directly with their State Freight Advisory Committee or the State department of transportation (State DOT). Comments submitted by entities other than a State Freight Advisory Committee will be considered for general input into the process.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 163 (Thursday, August 26, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 163 (Thursday, August 26, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47705-47708]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-18350]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Highway Administration
[Docket No. FHWA-2020-0010]
Re-Designation of the Primary Highway Freight System (PHFS)
AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice; request for information (RFI).
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SUMMARY: The FHWA is re-designating the PHFS to meet the statutory
requirements of the authorizing law. The Fixing America's Surface
Transportation (FAST) Act designated the PHFS and provided for an
update to the PHFS every 5 years. Beginning five years after the date
of the enactment of the FAST Act, and every 5 years thereafter, using
the designation factors described in FAST Act, the FHWA Administrator
shall re-designate the primary highway freight system. Each re-
designation may increase the mileage on the PHFS by not more than 3
percent of the total mileage of the system. The current PHFS consists
of 41,518 centerline miles of roadway and is a component of the
National Highway Freight Network (NHFN). The re-designation initiated
through this RFI may add up to 1,246 miles of additional mileage to the
current PHFS. State Freight Advisory Committees, represented by their
States, are invited to submit comments. Other entities are encouraged
to engage directly with their State Freight Advisory Committee or the
State department of transportation (State DOT). Comments submitted by
entities other than a State Freight Advisory Committee will be
considered for general input into the process.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 25, 2021. Late
comments will be considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit comments identified
by DOT Docket ID FHWA-2020-0010 by any of the following methods:
Website: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments received, go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a>. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
Hand Delivery or Courier: U.S. Department of Transportation, West
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions may be addressed to Birat
Pandey, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a9cbc0dbc8dd87d9c8c7cdccd0e9cdc6dd87cec6df"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="03616a7162772d73626d67667a43676c772d646c75">[email protected]</span></a>, 202-366-2842, Office of Freight
Management & Operations (HOFM-1), Office of Operations, FHWA, U.S.
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590. Office hours are from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Congress established a National Highway Freight Program (NHFP) in
23 U.S.C. 167 to improve the efficient movement of freight on the NHFN
and support several goals. The NHFP required the FHWA Administrator to
establish a NHFN to strategically direct Federal resources and policies
toward improved performance of the network. The definition of the NHFN
is established under 23 U.S.C. 167(c) and consists of four separate
highway network components: The PHFS; Critical Rural Freight Corridors
(CRFCs); Critical Urban Freight Corridors (CUFCs); and those portions
of the Interstate System that are not part of the PHFS. The initial
designation of the PHFS was identified during the designation process
for the primary freight network under section 23 U.S.C. 167(d), as in
effect on the day before the date of enactment of the FAST Act.
The FHWA Administrator is required to re-designate the PHFS every 5
years. Each re-designation is limited to a maximum 3 percent increase
in total mileage of the system per 23 U.S.C. 167(d)(2)(B).
PHFS
Congress established the PHFS as a network of highways intended to
reflect the most critical highway portions of the U.S. freight
transportation system, determined by measurable and objective national
data. The network consists of 41,518 centerline miles, including 37,436
centerline miles of Interstate and 4,082 centerline miles of non-
Interstate roads. Maps and tables exhibiting roads currently included
in the PHFS of the NHFN are available by State here: <a href="https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/infrastructure/ismt/nhfn_states_list.htm">https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/infrastructure/ismt/nhfn_states_list.htm</a>.
PHFS and Use of NHFP Funds
Congress established a NHFP in 23 U.S.C. 167 to improve the
efficient movement of freight on the NHFN and support several goals.
Additional details on the NHFP are available at: <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/fastact/factsheets/nhfpfs.cfm">https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/fastact/factsheets/nhfpfs.cfm</a>. A State shall obligate
funds apportioned to the State under section 104(b)(5) to improve the
movement of freight on the NHFN pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 167. A State with
PHFS mileage of less than 2 percent of the national total PHFS mileage
may obligate NHFP funds for projects on all portions of the NHFN. A
State with PHFS mileage greater than or equal to 2 percent of the
national PHFS total may use its NHFP funds for projects on the PHFS,
CRFCs, and CUFCs.
PHFS and Use of INFRA Grants
Congress established 23 U.S.C. 117, the Nationally Significant
Freight and Highway Projects program, currently known as Infrastructure
for Rebuilding America (INFRA). This discretionary grant program
provides Federal financial assistance to highway and freight projects
of national or regional significance. Eligibility for INFRA grant
funding for highway projects is limited to those existing or planned
roads that are or will become part of the NHFN or the National Highway
System (NHS). Additional details on INFRA Grants are available at:
https://
[[Page 47706]]
www.transportation.gov/buildamerica/infragrants.
Progression of PHFS
Section 1116 of the FAST Act (Pub. L. 114-94) repealed both the
Primary Freight Network (PFN) and National Freight Network from Moving
Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), and directed the
FHWA Administrator to establish an NHFN to strategically direct Federal
resources and policies toward improved performance of highway portions
of the U.S. freight transportation system.
The initial creation of the PHFS occurred during the designation
process for the MAP-21 highway-only PFN under 23 U.S.C. 167(d). The
MAP-21 limited the highway PFN to not more than 27,000 centerline miles
of existing roadways that are most critical to the movement of freight.
In addition, MAP-21 allowed an additional 3,000 centerline miles
(existing or planned roads) critical to the future efficient movement
of goods on the highway PFN. The MAP-21 instructed DOT to base the
highway-only PFN on an inventory of national freight volumes conducted
by the FHWA Administrator, in consultation with stakeholders, including
system users, transport providers, and States. The FHWA released a
larger ``Comprehensive PFN'' of 41,518 miles for consideration, to
accompany the designation of the PFN. This Comprehensive PFN was used
by Congress to establish the PHFS, and the PFN was sunset. Information
on the methodology and data used for these networks is described in the
October 23, 2015, Federal Register Notice Final Designation of the
Highway PFN at 80 FR 64477.
Methodology Used for the Designation of the Highway PFN
The FHWA developed the following methodology for generating a
network that could include as many of the MAP-21 criteria as
practicable. The FHWA undertook extensive research and numerous
approaches to better understand and model the criteria. This research
informed the finding that compliance with the mileage cap yields a
network that does not sufficiently accommodate the full set of
criteria. To comply with the mileage cap while still accommodating the
statutory criteria, FHWA developed a methodology that prioritized the
application of the criteria and set thresholds within the data sets.
The FHWA used the following methodology to develop the highway-only
PFN:
(1) Used the Freight Analysis Framework (FAF) and Highway
Performance Monitoring System (HPMS) data sets to generate the top
20,000 miles of road segments that qualified in at least two of the
following four factors: Value of freight moved by highway; tonnage of
freight moved by highway; Average Annual Daily Truck Traffic (AADTT) on
principal arterials; and percentage of AADTT in the annual average
daily traffic on principal arterials.
(2) Analyzed the segments identified in Step 1 and gaps between
segments for network connectivity. Created the network by connecting
segments if the gap between segments was equal to or less than 440
miles (440 miles being the distance a truck could reasonably travel in
1 day). Eliminated a segment if it was less than one-tenth of the
length of the nearest qualifying segment on the highway-only PFN.
(3) Identified land ports of entry with truck traffic higher than
75,000 trucks per year. Connected these land ports of entry to the
network created in Steps 1 and 2.
(4) Identified the NHS Freight Intermodal Connectors within urban
areas with a population of 200,000 or more.\1\ The NHS Freight
Intermodal Connectors included any connectors categorized as connecting
to a freight rail terminal, port, river terminal, or pipeline. In
addition, these NHS Freight Intermodal Connectors included routes to
the top 50 airports by landed weight of all cargo operations
(representing 89 percent of the landed weight of all cargo operations
in the United States). Connected the NHS Freight Intermodal Connectors
back to the network created in Steps 1 and 2 along the route with the
highest AADTT using HPMS data.
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\1\ The Census defined urban areas (UZA) were used rather than
the adjusted UZAs since these were not available at the time of the
analysis.
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(5) Identified road segments within urban areas with a population
of 200,000 or more that have an AADTT of 8,500 trucks/day or more.
Connected segments to the network established in Steps 1 and 2 if they
were equal to or greater than one-tenth of the length of the nearest
qualifying segment on the highway-only PFN. Removed segments not
meeting this rule as they were more likely to represent discrete local
truck movement unrelated to the national system.
(6) Analyzed the network to determine the relationship to
population centers, origins and destinations, ports, river terminals,
airports, and rail yards and added minor network connectivity
adjustments.
(7) Analyzed the road systems in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico
using HPMS data. These routes would not otherwise qualify under a
connected network model but play a critical role in the movement of
products from the agriculture and energy sectors, as well as
international import/export functions for their States and urban areas
and added roads connecting key ports to population centers.
(8) Analyzed the network to determine the relationship to energy
exploration, development, installation, or production areas. Since the
data points for the energy sector are scattered around the United
States, often in rural areas, and because some of the related freight
may move by barge or other maritime vessel, rail, or even pipeline,
FHWA did not presume a truck freight correlation.
(9) Steps 1 through 8 resulted in a network of 41,518 centerline
miles, including 37,436 centerline miles of Interstate and 4,082
centerline miles of non-Interstate roads.\2\ In order to obtain the
27,000 centerline miles, FHWA identified those connected segments with
the highest AADTT. These road segments represented on the final
highway-only PFN map comprise 26,966 miles of centerline roads.
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\2\ The 2011 HPMS database and the current FAF database differ
in the delineation and exact geo-location of the NHS. This may
result in 1-2 percent plus or minus variation on the total mileage
because the mileage is based on the geospatial network and actual
mileage reported by States may vary due to vertical and horizontal
curves that are not always accurate in the geographic information
system databases.
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Criteria for PHFS Re-Designation
In re-designating the PHFS, to the maximum extent practicable the
FHWA Administrator must use measurable data to assess the significance
of goods movement, including consideration of points of origin,
destinations, and linking components of the United States global and
domestic supply chains. 23 U.S.C. 167(d)(2)(C). In re-designating the
PHFS, the Administrator shall provide an opportunity for State freight
advisory committees, as applicable, to submit additional miles for
consideration. 23 U.S.C. 167(d)(2)(D). In re-designating the PHFS the
Administrator shall consider the factors outlined in 23 U.S.C.
167(d)(2)(E). Those factors include: Changes in the origins and
destinations of U.S. freight movement; changes in the percentage of
annual daily truck traffic on principal arterials; changes in the
location of key facilities; land and water ports of entry; access to
energy exploration, development, installation, or production areas;
access to other freight intermodal facilities, including rail, air,
water, and pipeline
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facilities; the total freight tonnage and value moved on highways;
significant freight bottlenecks; the significance of goods movement on
principal arterials, including consideration of global and domestic
supply chains; critical emerging freight corridors and critical
commerce corridors; and network connectivity. 23 U.S.C. 167(d)(2)(E).
Preliminary Analysis for PHFS Re-Designation
As calculated according to the statutory allowance, this re-
designation may include up to 1,246 miles of additional PHFS mileage.
The FHWA does not recommend removing previously designated routes from
the PHFS unless they are no longer eligible for use by trucks. The
rationale for retaining the existing routes is to ensure continued
alignment with the State Freight Plans completed by all States and the
District of Columbia pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 70202, which were based in
part on the existing PHFS network and funding eligibilities of PHFS
routes. Consideration for re-designation, therefore, focuses on
technical corrections and the assignment of the additional 1,246 miles.
An assessment of changes in HPMS \3\ data for the PHFS resulted in
an increase of approximately 286 centerline miles from years 2012 to
2017. The FHWA proposes to add these miles to improve the accuracy of
the network. This addition reduces the miles available for the re-
designation, leaving 960 miles for consideration. Several options for
designating these 960 miles have been considered.
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\3\ The HPMS is a national-level highway information system that
includes data on the extent, condition, performance, use, and
operating characteristics of the Nation's highways.
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One option would be to provide an equal allocation of these 960
miles to each State; however, this would yield only 18 miles of
potential new PHFS for each State, the District of Columbia, and Puerto
Rico. This additional mileage might be useful for CUFC or CRFC
designation but may be too short to yield meaningful additions when one
of the core features of the existing PHFS is that the components
comprise a connected network--one of the statutory criteria for
consideration.
Another potential option would be to accommodate States that have
greater restrictions on the use of Interstate Highway System routes to
gain eligibility for funding under the NHFP and INFRA. Currently, there
are 18 States (AK, AZ, CA, FL, GA, IL, IN, MO, MT, NM, NY, NC, OH, PA,
TN, TX, UT, VA) with PHFS mileage greater than or equal to 2 percent of
the total PHFS mileage in all States. These States may obligate funds
for projects on the PHFS, the CRFCs, and the CUFCs. Remaining States
with the PHFS mileage of less than 2 percent may obligate funds for
projects on all portions of the NHFN, including any portion of the
Interstate Highway System in that State. Equal allocation of 960 miles
of PHFS to these 18 high-mileage States would result in 53 miles of new
PHFS for these States.
A third option for consideration would be to add to the PHFS any
routes newly flagged as Interstate Highway System since the development
of the Comprehensive PFN (built in 2015 from 2011 data). That concept,
however, would not fit within the constraints of the 1,246 miles
available, as 1,500 miles of new Interstate have been designated
between 2011 and 2018.
This network is intended to provide the foundation for the United
States' domestic supply chain and global economic competitiveness. Road
projects using NHFP funds must be located on the NHFN (which includes
the PHFS). The routing of freight is not static, however, and it
changes in response to the factors previously listed. In light of this,
the network of routes with eligibility for investment should include
components that support flexibility and resilience in the freight
system.
State Freight Plans provide insight into the impact of 23 U.S.C.
167(d)(2)(E), and future freight system needs. States with a State
Freight Advisory Committee (SFAC) have insights into the planning,
investment, and operations priorities for the public and private
sector. For this reason and in response to the statutory requirement,
FHWA is particularly interested in the input of SFACs regarding the
routes to be considered in this re-designation.
Data Submission Criteria for Modification to PHFS Re-Designation
The FHWA seeks comments from interested parties, and in particular
from SFACs, on suggestions for the PHFS re-designation, including
comments on the potential options identified above. A State submitting
routes or feedback for consideration in the PHFS re-designation should
provide a letter of support from or on behalf of their SFAC. States
that have not yet convened a SFAC could do so for the purpose of
responding to this RFI.
Guidance on State Freight Plans and SFACs can be found at: <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/10/14/2016-24862/guidance-on-state-freight-plans-and-state-freight-advisory-committees">https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/10/14/2016-24862/guidance-on-state-freight-plans-and-state-freight-advisory-committees</a>.
Submissions should specifically address at least one of the
statutory criteria of 23 U.S.C. 167(d)(2)(E) as justification for
inclusion, data to support the justification, and the mileage needed to
address the requirement. Any additions or deletions proposed for PHFS
re-designation regarding a specific roadway facility should include
location details and roadway attribute data of the proposed segments
for updating the existing PHFS geospatial network. Maps and tables
showing roads currently included in the PHFS of the NHFN are available
by State at: <a href="https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/infrastructure/ismt/nhfn_states_list.htm">https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/infrastructure/ismt/nhfn_states_list.htm</a>. Roadway facility specific data should be
submitted using either of the options listed below: Option 1: Tabulate
proposed PHFS changes by including roadway specific information listed
on Table 1 as a part of comments to this RFI through Federal Register
comments procedures listed above in Addresses section (website, hand
delivered, or courier); or Option 2: Upload geospatial data of proposed
PHFS changes utilizing the State's linear referenced network data set
consistent with spatial route information in HPMS 2018 with attributes
listed in Table 2.
The FHWA encourages respondents to provide only that portion of
geospatial data needed to identify proposed PHFS changes compatible
with the State's linear referenced network data set submitted as the
spatial route information in HPMS 2018 8.0 software. The FHWA will
receive geospatial data only through FHWA Secure Large File Transfer
Service (SLFTS). Please contact Birat Pandey (<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ec8e859e8d98c29c8d82888995ac888398c28b839a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="74161d0615005a04151a10110d34101b005a131b02">[email protected]</span></a>) to
request access to the SLFTS. Further details on HPMS can be found in
the HPMS Field Manual at <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/hpms.cfm">https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/hpms.cfm</a>.
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Respondents are requested to provide a narrative description of how
the proposed changes support goods movement by addressing applicable
re-designation factors as found in of 23 U.S.C. 167(d)(2)(E).
Other entities wishing to provide comment are encouraged to engage
with a State Freight Advisory Committee. Comments submitted by entities
separate from the input of a State Freight Advisory Committee will be
considered for general input into the process.
Authority: 23 U.S.C. 167(d).
Stephanie Pollack,
Acting Administrator, Federal Highway Administration.
[FR Doc. 2021-18350 Filed 8-25-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-P
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