[Federal Register: October 8, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 195)] [Notices] [Page 54948] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr08oc99-182] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Highway Administration Environmental Impact Statement: Williamson, Travis, Caldwell and Guadalupe Counties, TX AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT. ACTION: Notice of intent. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public that an environmental impact statement will be prepared for a proposed new location highway/tollway facility, designated as State Highway 130, in Williamson, Travis, Caldwell and Guadalupe Counties, Texas. This notice supersedes any and all previous notices pertaining to proposed State Highway 130 (Segments A, B or C including Federal Register 172 [9-4- 98]; Federal Register 191 [10-2-98] Federal Register 230 [12-1-98]). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walter C. Waidelich, District Engineer, Federal Highway Administration, Room 850 Federal Building, 300 East 8th Street, Austin, Texas 78701 Telephone: (512) 916-5988. David C. Kopp, P.E., Texas Turnpike Authority Division, Texas Department of Transportation, 125 E. 11th Street, Austin Texas 78701- 2483 Telephone: (512) 936-0980. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: State Highway 130, as currently envisioned, is a proposed controlled access highway which will extend from IH 35 at State Highway 195 north of Georgetown in Williamson County, Texas, to IH 10 near Seguin in Guadalupe County, Texas. State Highway 130 will be located generally parallel to and east of Interstate Highway 35 and the urban areas of Austin, San Marcos, and New Braunfels. The total length of the proposed facility is approximately 90 miles. The proposed State Highway 130 facility is being developed by the FHWA in cooperation with the Texas Turnpike Authority Division (TTA) of the Texas Department of Transportation. Previous Notices for State Highway 130, which were published in the Federal Register, the Texas Register and newspapers having general circulation in the project area, indicated that State Highway 130 would be developed in three independent segments and that an environmental impact statement would be prepared for each of the three segments. Subsequent to publication of those notices, FHWA and TTA decided to prepare a single environmental impact statement addressing State Highway 130 in its entirety. This Notice serves to announce that recent decision and FHWA's intent to prepare, in cooperation with TTA, one environmental impact statement for State Highway 130 within the limits described above. All previous notices pertaining to State Highway 130 are hereby superseded. The purpose of proposed State Highway 130 is to relieve congestion on Interstate Highway 35 and other major transportation facilities within the Austin-San Antonio corridor, improve mobility, and increase accessibility to important public facilities. A major investment study, addressing the entire length of proposed State Highway 130, was endorsed in July 1997 by the Austin Transportation Study Policy Advisory Committee (now known as the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization), the metropolitan planning organization for the Austin, Texas area. The proposed facility is being planned as a toll road candidate; thus, in conjunction with the EIS and selection of a preferred alternative, TTA will conduct a toll feasibility study to evaluate the viability of developing the selected alternative as a toll road and financing it, in whole or in part, through the issuance of revenue bonds. The toll road designation will not influence the selection of a preferred alternative. Proposed alternatives, including alternative alignments, will be evaluated for how well they meet the stated purpose and need for the proposed action. Any impacts owing to the toll road designation will be discussed in the environmental impact statement. The draft EIS will address a build alternative including multiple alternative alignments along existing and new location rights-of-way. Taking no action, or the ``no build'' alternative, will also be evaluated in the EIS. Impacts caused by construction of and operation of State Highway 130 will vary according to the alternative selected. Generally, the project may include construction impacts, socio-economic impacts and impacts to the natural and built environment. Letters describing the proposed action and soliciting comments have been sent to appropriate Federal, State and local agencies, and to private organizations and citizens who have previously expressed interest in the proposal. Numerous public meetings have been held for State Highway 130. The most recent meetings were held on February 3, 1998, at Hopewell Middle School in Round Rock, Texas; November 5, 1998, at Barbara Jordan Elementary School in Austin, Texas; December 2, 1998, at the Seguin Coliseum in Seguin, Texas; and on December 8, 1998, at Plum Creek Elementary School in Lockhart, Texas. At these and previous meetings, public comments on the proposed action and alternatives were requested. Public hearings on the proposed action will be held after publication of the Draft EIS. Public notice will be given of the time and place of the hearings. The Draft EIS will be available for public and agency review and comment prior to the public hearings. To ensure that the full range of issues related to proposed State Highway 130 are addressed and all significant issues identified, comments and suggestions are invited from all parties. Comments or questions concerning this proposed action and the EIS should be directed to the FHWA or TTA at the addresses provided above. (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, Highway Research, Planning and Construction. The regulations implementing Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation of Federal programs and activities apply to this program) Walter C. Waidelich, District Engineer, Austin, Texas. [FR Doc. 99-26241 Filed 10-7-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910-22-M