Notice2022-25068
Pioneer Valley Railroad Company, Inc.-Abandonment Exemption-in Hampshire County, Mass.
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
November 17, 2022
Issuing agencies
Surface Transportation Board
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 221 (Thursday, November 17, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 221 (Thursday, November 17, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69075-69076]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-25068]
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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD
[Docket No. AB 531 (Sub-No 3X)]
Pioneer Valley Railroad Company, Inc.--Abandonment Exemption--in
Hampshire County, Mass.
Pioneer Valley Railroad Company, Inc. (PVRR), has filed a verified
notice of exemption under 49 CFR part 1152 subpart F--Exempt
Abandonments to abandon approximately 4.25 miles of rail line from the
northern terminus at Coleman Road (approximate milepost 69.70 in PVRR's
original track chart) to the southern terminus at Brickyard Road, near
its intersection with Valley Road (approximate milepost 73.95 in PVRR's
original track chart), in the Town of Southampton, Hampshire County,
Mass. (the Line). The Line traverses U.S. Postal Service Zip Code
01073.
PVRR has certified that: (1) no local traffic has moved over the
Line for over two years; (2) there is no overhead traffic on the Line;
(3) no formal complaint filed by a user of rail service
[[Page 69076]]
on the Line (or by a state or local government entity acting on behalf
of such user) regarding cessation of service over the Line either is
pending with the Surface Transportation Board (Board) or with any U.S.
District Court, or has been decided in favor of a complainant within
the two-year period; and (4) the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7(b) and
1105.8(c) (notice of environmental and historic reports), 49 CFR
1105.12 (newspaper publication), and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to
government agencies) have been met.
As a condition to this exemption, any employee adversely affected
by the abandonment shall be protected under Oregon Short Line
Railroad--Abandonment Portion Goshen Branch Between Firth & Ammon, in
Bingham & Bonneville Counties, Idaho, 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979). To address
whether this condition adequately protects affected employees, a
petition for partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) must be filed.
Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of
financial assistance (OFA) has been received,\1\ this exemption will be
effective on December 17, 2022, unless stayed pending reconsideration.
Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues must be
filed by November 25, 2022.\2\ Formal expressions of intent to file an
OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2) and interim trail use/rail banking
requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by November 28, 2022.\3\
Petitions to reopen or requests for public use conditions under 49 CFR
1152.28 must be filed by December 7, 2022.
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\1\ Persons interested in submitting an OFA must first file a
formal expression of intent to file an offer, indicating the type of
financial assistance they wish to provide (i.e., subsidy or
purchase) and demonstrating that they are preliminarily financially
responsible. See 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2)(i).
\2\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on
environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's
Office of Environmental Analysis (OEA) in its independent
investigation) cannot be made before the exemption's effective date.
See Exemption of Out-of-Serv. Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any
request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible so that the
Board may take appropriate action before the exemption's effective
date.
\3\ Filing fees for OFAs and trail use requests can be found at
49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25) and (27), respectively.
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All pleadings, referring to Docket No. AB 531 (Sub-No. 3X), must be
filed with the Surface Transportation Board either via e-filing on the
Board's website or in writing addressed to 395 E Street SW, Washington,
DC 20423-0001. In addition, a copy of each pleading must be served on
PVRR's representative, Michael S. Schneider, Doherty, Wallace,
Pillsbury, & Murphy, P.C., One Monarch Place, 1414 Main Street, Floor
19, Springfield, MA 01144.
If the verified notice contains false or misleading information,
the exemption is void ab initio.
PVRR has filed a combined environmental and historic report that
addresses the potential effects, if any, of the abandonment on the
environment and historic resources. OEA will issue a Draft
Environmental Assessment (Draft EA) by November 22, 2022. The Draft EA
will be available to interested persons on the Board's website, by
writing to OEA, or by calling OEA at (202) 245-0294. Assistance for the
hearing impaired is available through the Federal Relay Service at
(800) 877-8339. Comments on environmental or historic preservation
matters must be filed within 15 days after the Draft EA becomes
available to the public.
Environmental, historic preservation, public use, or trail use/rail
banking conditions will be imposed, where appropriate, in a subsequent
decision.
Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), PVRR shall file
a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has
exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned the Line. If
consummation has not been effected by PVRR's filing of a notice of
consummation by November 17, 2023, and there are no legal or regulatory
barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically
expire.
Board decisions and notices are available at <a href="http://www.stb.gov">www.stb.gov</a>.
Decided: November 14, 2022.
By the Board, Mai T. Dinh, Director, Office of Proceedings.
Brendetta Jones,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2022-25068 Filed 11-16-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on November 17, 2022.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.