80 FR 61883 - Petition for Waiver of Compliance

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 198 (October 14, 2015)

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 198 (Wednesday, October 14, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61883-61884]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-26001]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket Number FRA-2015-0105]


Petition for Waiver of Compliance

    In accordance with part 211 of Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations 
(CFR), this document provides the public notice that by a document 
dated September 22, 2015, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) 
has 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 224, Reflectorization of Rail 
Freight Rolling Stock. FRA assigned the petition Docket Number FRA-
2015-0105.
    AAR seeks a waiver of compliance from 49 CFR 224.111, Renewal, 
which requires retroreflective sheeting to be replaced with new 
sheeting no later than 10 years after the date of initial installation, 
regardless of the sheeting's condition. The final rule for the 
reflectorization of rail freight rolling stock went into effect on 
November 28, 2005, making November 28, 2015, the replacement deadline 
for all initially applied retroreflective materials on rail freight 
rolling stock. The 10-year renewal period was based on most 
manufacturers' stated useful life of retroreflective materials at the 
time of the rulemaking. However, FRA indicated it would monitor the 
retroreflective qualities of various fleet segments over time and would 
consider extending the 10-year interval.
    AAR and Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) conducted testing 
and evaluation of retroreflective sheeting on 920 freight cars and 120 
locomotives in service and found that much of that material tested 
meets or exceeds reflectivity requirements set forth in the regulation. 
This data, collected in 2012 and 2014, shows that the performance of 
the retroreflective sheets on rail cars and locomotives is more a 
function of material condition and cleanliness than it is of the date 
applied. In particular, the FRA-224 stamped material has demonstrated 
that, after more than 9 years in service, it is in good condition and 
can remain in service if properly maintained. Therefore, this petition 
is being made to permit well-performing material to remain in service 
and to be evaluated using a performance-based approach.
    The AAR Equipment Engineering Committee presently favors the 
Federal Highway Administration Comparison Panel Method; however, some 
additional time is needed to develop a ``standard panel'' and the 
related training that would be used with this method. An alternative 
performance-based method is to use a hand-held device similar to the 
RoadVista 922 Retroreflectometer that AAR and TTI used during testing 
and evaluation. However, at approximately $10,000 per unit, this device 
is substantially more expensive and is not feasible for regular use in 
a railroad-shop environment. AAR is requesting a waiver to extend the 
renewal requirement for at least 3 years while work on a performance-
based evaluation procedure is completed.
    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 
Avenue 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

[[Page 61884]]

the facts do not appear to warrant a hearing. If any interested party 
desires an opportunity for oral comment, 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:
     Web site: 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 Avenue SE., W12-140, Washington, DC 
20590.
     Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal Holidays.
    Communications received by November 13, 2015 will be considered by 
FRA before final action is taken. Comments received after that date 
will be considered as far as practicable.
    Anyone is able to 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.). 
In accordance with 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 www.dot.gov/privacy. 
See also http://www.regulations.gov/#!privacyNotice for the privacy 
notice of regulations.gov.

     Issued in Washington, DC, on October 5, 2015.
Ron Hynes,
Director, Office of Technical Oversight.
[FR Doc. 2015-26001 Filed 10-13-15; 8:45 am]
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