81 FR 48974 - [Docket No. FTA-2016-0030] HEADTransit Asset Management: Proposed Guidebooks

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 143 (July 26, 2016)

FTA has placed in the docket and on its Web site proposed guidance in the form of two FTA guidebooks to facilitate implementation of FTA's Transit Asset Management program: (1) ``Guideway Performance Restriction Calculation'' and (2) ``Facility Condition Assessment.'' The purpose of the proposed guidebooks is to inform the transit community of calculation methodologies for state of good repair performance measures for infrastructure and facilities. By this notice, FTA seeks public comment on the proposed guidebooks.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 143 (Tuesday, July 26, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48974-48975]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-17076]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


[Docket No. FTA-2016-0030]

Transit Asset Management: Proposed Guidebooks

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of availability of proposed guidebooks and request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: FTA has placed in the docket and on its Web site proposed 
guidance in the form of two FTA guidebooks to facilitate implementation 
of FTA's Transit Asset Management program: (1) ``Guideway Performance 
Restriction Calculation'' and (2) ``Facility Condition Assessment.'' 
The purpose of the proposed guidebooks is to inform the transit 
community of calculation methodologies for state of good repair 
performance measures for infrastructure and facilities. By this notice, 
FTA seeks public comment on the proposed guidebooks.

[[Page 48975]]


DATES: Comments must be submitted by September 26, 2016. Late-filed 
comments will be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Please submit your comments by only one of the following 
methods, identifying your submission by DOT Docket Number FTA-2016-
0030. All electronic submissions must be made to the U.S. Government 
electronic site at http://www.regulations.gov.
    Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and 
follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility: U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern time, 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Instructions: You must include the agency name (Federal Transit 
Administration) and Docket number (FTA-2016-0030) for this notice at 
the beginning of each submission of your comments. Submit two copies of 
your comments if you submit them by mail. For confirmation that FTA 
received your comments, include a self-addressed stamped postcard. All 
comments received will be posted without change to www.regulations.gov 
including any personal information provided and will be available to 
internet users. You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement 
published in the Federal Register on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477) or 
http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents and 
comments received, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or to the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Docket 
Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, 
DC 20590 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For program matters, contact John 
Giorgis, FTA Office of Budget and Policy, at (202) 366-5430, or 
[email protected]. For legal matters, contact Charla Tabb, FTA 
Attorney-Advisor, Office of Chief Counsel, at (202) 366-5152 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. Overview of Guidebooks
A. Facility Condition Assessment
B. Guideway Performance Restriction Calculation

I. Background

    The proposed documents incorporate changes to FTA's programs due to 
the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21); the 
publication of the final rule for FTA's National Transit Asset 
Management (TAM) System and amendments to the National Transit Database 
(NTD) regulations; and changes in terminology used in the 2012 Asset 
Management Guide. The proposed documents reflect these changes, propose 
policies, and add information.
    In today's Federal Register, FTA has issued its final rule for the 
National Transit Asset Management (TAM) System and the final notice for 
the National Transit Database Asset Inventory Module. The final rule 
includes four (4) state of good repair (SGR) performance measures for 
capital assets: (1) Equipment: (non-revenue) service vehicles; The 
performance measure for non-revenue, support-service and maintenance 
vehicles equipment is the percentage of those vehicles that have met or 
exceeded their useful life benchmark (ULB); (2) Rolling stock. The 
performance measure for rolling stock is the percentage of revenue 
vehicles within a particular asset class that have either met or 
exceeded their ULB; (3) Infrastructure: rail fixed-guideway, track, 
signals, and systems. The performance measure for rail fixed-guideway, 
track, signals, and systems is the percentage of track segments with 
performance restrictions; and (4) Facilities. The performance measure 
for facilities is the percentage of facilities within an asset class, 
rated below condition 3 on the TERM scale.
    This notice announces the availability of proposed guidebooks for 
calculating infrastructure and facilities performance measures: 
``Guideway Performance Restriction Calculation'' (Infrastructure) and 
``Facility Condition Assessment'' (Facilities).
    The proposed guidebooks are not included in this notice; instead, 
electronic versions are available on FTA's Web site, at 
www.transit.dot.gov/TAM, and in the docket, at www.regulations.gov. 
Paper copies of the proposed guidebooks may be obtained by contacting 
FTA's Administrative Services Help Desk at (202) 366-4865.
    FTA seeks comment on the proposed guidebooks. FTA will publish a 
second notice in the Federal Register after the close of the comment 
period. The second notice will respond to comments received and 
announce the availability of the final guidebooks.

II. Overview of Guidebooks

    The final rule includes performance measures for infrastructure and 
facilities categories; however it was silent with regard to calculation 
methodologies. The guidebooks referenced herein provide both standard 
terminology and calculation options for transit providers to conform to 
the proposed SGR performance measures for infrastructure and 
facilities. Specifically the guidebooks describe how to measure and 
report the Infrastructure and Facility performance measures to the NTD.
    Each guidebook is organized into four main sections:
    Section 1 describes the scope and provides a brief policy 
background, linking it to the requirements of the NTD.
    Section 2 outlines data requirements and definitions relating to 
reporting guideway performance restriction or facility condition data.
    Section 3 details procedures for specific measurement of each 
performance measure.
    Section 4 presents a set of appendices, including a glossary of 
terms, example forms, and references.

A. Performance Restriction Calculation

    This guidebook provides an objective definition of a performance 
restriction and step-by-step procedures for calculating guideway under-
performance restrictions.

B. Facility Condition Assessment

    This guidebook details facility components and sub-components, and 
provides instructions on how to assess their condition.
    FTA encourages interested stakeholders to carefully review the 
proposed guidebooks in their entirety, particularly the definitions, 
calculations, and templates, and provide comments to the docket.

    Issued in Washington, DC, this 14th day of July 2016.
Carolyn Flowers,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2016-17076 Filed 7-25-16; 8:45 am]
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