Portland Terminal CompanyAbandonment Exemptionin Cumberland County, ME

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[STB Docket No. AB-268 (Sub-No. 15X)]

Portland Terminal Company--Abandonment Exemption--in Cumberland

County, ME

The Portland Terminal Company (PT) has filed a notice of exemption

under 49 CFR 1152 Subpart F--Exempt Abandonments and Discontinuances to

abandon an approximately 1.09-mile line of railroad on the Yard 3 Track

between Engineering Station 82+03 and Engineering Station 23+97, in

Portland, Cumberland County, ME. The line traverses United States

Postal Service Zip Code 04101.

PT has certified that: (1) No local traffic has moved over the line

for at least 2 years; (2) overhead traffic has been rerouted over other

lines; (3) no formal complaint filed by a user of rail service 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 complainant within the 2-year

period; and (4) the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7 (environmental

reports), 49 CFR 1105.8 (historic reports), 49 CFR 1105.11 (transmittal

letter), 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper publication), and 49 CFR

1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental agencies) have been met.

As a condition to this exemption, any employee adversely affected

by the abandonment shall be protected under Oregon Short Line R. Co.--

Abandonment--Goshen, 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, this exemption will be

effective on September 27, 1997, unless stayed pending reconsideration.

Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues,1

formal expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR

1152.27(c)(2),2 and trail use/rail banking requests under 49

CFR 1152.29 must be filed by September 8, 1997. Petitions to reopen or

requests for public use conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed

by September 17, 1997, with: Surface Transportation Board, Office of

the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC

20423.

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\1\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on

environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's

Section of Environmental Analysis in its independent investigation)

cannot be made before the exemption's effective date. See Exemption

of Out-of-Service 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.

\2\ Each offer of financial assistance must be accompanied by

the filing fee, which currently is set at $900. See 49 CFR

1002.2(f)(25).

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A copy of any petition filed with the Board should be sent to

applicant's representative: John R. Nadolny, Esq., General Counsel, Law

Department, Guilford Rail System, Iron Horse Park, No. Billerica, MA

01862.

If the verified notice contains false or misleading information,

the exemption is void ab initio.

PT has filed an environmental report which addresses the

abandonment's effects, if any, on the environment and historic

resources. The Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) will issue an

environmental assessment (EA) by September 2, 1997. Interested persons

may obtain a copy of the EA by writing to SEA (Room 500, Surface

Transportation Board, Washington, DC 20423) or by calling SEA, at (202)

565-1545. Comments on environmental and historic preservation matters

must be filed within 15 days after the 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), PT 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 PT's filing of a notice of consummation by August

28, 1998, and there are no legal or regulatory barriers to

consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically expire.

Decided: August 21, 1997.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of

Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97-22959 Filed 8-27-97; 8:45 am]

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