Petition for Waiver of Compliance

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

Petition for Waiver of Compliance

In accordance with part 211 of Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations

(CFR), notice is hereby given that the Federal Railroad Administration

(FRA) received a request for a waiver of compliance from certain

requirements of its safety regulations. The individual petition is

described below including, the party seeking relief, the regulatory

provisions involved, the nature of the relief being requested, and the

petitioner's arguments in favor of relief.

Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railway

[Docket Number FRA-1999-5895]

Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railway (BNSF) seeks a permanent

waiver of compliance from certain provisions of the Safety Appliances

Standards, 49 CFR part 231, and Power Brakes and Drawbars regulations,

49 CFR part 232, concerning RoadRailer train operations

over their railroad system. Specifically, BNSF requests relief from the

requirements of: 49 CFR part 231, which specifies the number, location

and dimensional specifications for handholds, ladders, sill steps,

uncoupling levers, and handbrakes; and Sec. 232.2, which regulates

drawbar height.

The RoadRailer units, by design, cannot be subjected to

traditional switching or classification procedures, since they do not

have the required safety appliance arrangement and their coupler

assembly will only couple to another RoadRailer unit or to

a special designed adapter vehicle. In consideration of the unique way

RoadRailer units are assembled, there is no necessity for a

person to ride on this equipment. Furthermore, this vehicle has a

spring based parking brake (which has replaced the conventional

manually operated handbrake) that operates automatically in conjunction

with the train air brake system, so there is no need for an individual

to mount the vehicle to apply a handbrake. The spring activates the

parking brake when air pressure is reduced below a pre-determined value

and remains applied until air pressure is restored. The drawbar height

is not within the prescribed limits of 31\1/2\ to 34\1/2\ inches.

BNSF states that they will provide adequate training and

familiarization for their operating personnel and emphasize the fact

that employees must not attempt to mount or dismount RoadRailer

trailers because there are no safety appliances. BNSF would also advise

the FRA of any incidents or in-service problems with the RoadRailer

equipment. BNSF would restrict the trains to 125 RoadRailer units,

excluding the adapter unit, with a maximum of 4800 trailing tons. The

adapter unit, CouplerMate, will be used between the hauling locomotive

and the first RoadRailer unit in the train. BNSF would only haul

hazardous materials listed in Table 2 of 49 CFR 172.504, in RoadRailer

vehicles. Brake cylinder piston travel limits for the Mark V RoadRailer

equipment would be 1\1/4\ to 3\1/2\ inches at initial terminal, with

3\5/8\ inches being an ineffective brake.

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

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 (e.g., Waiver Petition Docket Number FRA-

1999-5895) and must be submitted in triplicate to the Docket Clerk, DOT

Central Docket Management Facility, Room PL-401, Washington, DC 20590-

0001. Communications received within 45 days of the date of this notice

will be considered by FRA before final action is taken. Comments

received after that date will be considered as far as practicable. All

written communications concerning these proceedings are available for

examination during regular business hours (9 a.m.-5 p.m.) at DOT

Central Docket Management Facility, Room PL-401 (Plaza Level), 400

Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC. All documents in the public docket

are also available for inspection and copying on the Internet at the

docket facility's web site at http://dms.dot.gov.

Issued in Washington, DC, on July 22, 1999.

Grady C. Cothen, Jr.,

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program

Development.

[FR Doc. 99-19407 Filed 7-28-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910-06-P