[Federal Register: April 19, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 75)]
[Notices]
[Page 20155-20157]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr19ap06-156]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Environmental Impact Statement on New Transit Operations in
Madison, WI
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.
ACTION: Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the City of
Madison, WI (Madison) intend to prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA) for a proposal by Madison to implement new transit
operations in an approximately 13-mile travel corridor extending from
the City of Middleton on the west, through the campus of the University
of Wisconsin-Madison to the Isthmus of Madison, WI to the American
Parkway interchange on US 151, southwest of Sun Prairie, WI and
encompassing the surrounding urbanized areas.
Growing mobility challenges coupled with very limited opportunity
for highway capacity expansion has prompted the communities in the area
to consider investment in transportation improvements, both to
supplement and enhance existing Metro bus service and
[[Page 20156]]
to extend service to new markets throughout the corridor and in the
region.
Alternatives proposed to be considered in the draft EIS include No
Build, the Transportation System Management (TSM) Alternative and
various Build Alternatives.
DATES: Comment Due Date: Written comments on the scope of alternatives
and impacts to be considered should be sent to Madison by May 29, 2006.
Scoping Meetings: An agency scoping meeting will be held at 1 p.m. on
Wednesday, April 26, 2006, at Monona Terrace, One John Nolen Drive, in
Madison, WI. A public scoping meeting open house will be held at the
same location on Wednesday, April 26, 2006, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The scoping meeting sites are accessible to mobility-impaired
individuals. If you need an interpreter, materials in alternate
formats, or other accommodations to access this service, activity or
program, please contact the City of Madison, Department of Planning and
Development at (608) 266-4635, TDD (608) 266-4747. Please do so at
least 48 hours prior to the meeting so that the proper arrangements can
be made.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments on the project scope to David M.
Trowbridge, Transport 2020 Project Manager, City of Madison Department
of Planning and Development, 215 MLK Jr. Blvd., Madison, WI 53703-3348
or dtrowbridge@cityofmadison.com (608) 267-1148.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Victor Austin, Federal Transit
Administration, Region 5 at (312) 886-1625.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Scoping
The FTA and the City of Madison invite all interested individuals,
organizations, businesses, and federal, state, and local agencies to
comment on the purpose and need, project alternatives, and scope of the
EIS. During the scoping process, comments should focus on the purpose
and need for a project, identifying specific transportation problems to
be evaluated, or on proposing transportation alternatives that may be
less costly, more effective, or have fewer environmental impacts while
improving mobility in the corridor.
Following the public scoping process, public outreach activities
with interested parties or groups throughout the duration of work on
the EIS will continue. The project Web site, http://www.transport2020.net
, will be updated periodically to reflect the
status of the project. Additional opportunities for public
participation will be announced through mailings, notices, and press
releases. Those wishing to be placed on the project mailing list may do
so by contacting David M. Trowbridge, Transport 2020 Project
Administrator at (608) 267-1148 or signing up at http://transport2020.net/Mailing.htm
.
II. Description of Study Area and Project need
The Study Area includes the Isthmus, the University of Wisconsin
and the most densely developed commercial and residential areas of
central Dane County, extending from the city of Middleton on the west,
through the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison to the
Isthmus of Madison, WI to the American Parkway interchange on US 151,
southwest of Sun Prairie, WI. This area contains the most serious
congestion and mobility challenges in the region. The area also
contains existing rail and roadway facilities that can support the
proposed transportation strategies and systems.
Worsening mobility problems in Dane County's primary regional
center, the central area of Madison which includes the city's
commercial core, the University of Wisconsin Madison and major special
events destinations, threatens to damage the region's high quality of
life and the regional center's ability to absorb desirable residential
and commercial growth.
Because of geographical constraints of the isthmus, environmental
concerns primarily with area lakes, and quality-of-life issues
presented by the public, the possibility of addressing the area's
transportation problems through roadway capacity expansion is limited.
Given growing mobility challenges, coupled with very limited
opportunity for highway capacity expansion to address them, a
potentially promising alternative is investment in transit to
supplement and enhance existing Metro bus service and to extend service
to new markets throughout this regional corridor.
III. Alternatives
A Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) emerged from the evaluation
and public involvement process conducted previously (Transport 2020).
The alternatives analyzed in that study are fully described in the
Transport 2020 Transportation Alternatives Analysis for the Dane
County/Greater Madison Metropolitan Area final report dated August 23,
2002. The DEIS will assess the environmental impacts of a range of
alternatives including (1) The No Build Alternative; (2) the
Transportation System Management (TSM) Alternative; and (3) the Build
Alternatives using existing rail corridors, with possible street-
running alternative alignments.
The No-Build Alternative will include existing transit services and
facilities and those planned and programmed as new transportation
services, facilities, and system management improvements that are
already included in the 2035 Regional Transportation System Plan for
Southeastern Wisconsin.
The TSM Alternative will include operational and low cost capital
investments to the existing transit services in the corridor, providing
a level of capital investment that is greater than the No-Build
Alternative but significantly less than other Build Alternatives.
Build Alternatives would include both street-running and rail
alternatives using either bus or rail technology. The Build
Alternatives will include but not be limited to the refinement of the
initial Start-Up System, or Minimum Operable Segment (MOS) identified
in the Locally Preferred Alternative from the prior Alternatives
Analysis. The MOS includes: (1) Expanding the Madison Metro local bus
system; (2) Adding new express bus routes running inbound during a.m.
peak periods and outbound during p.m. peak periods; (3) Adding new park
and ride lots, primarily at express bus route terminal locations; and
(4) Adding commuter rail service running approximately 13 miles between
Middleton and East Towne using FRA-compliant, self-propelled vehicles
(DMUs). In addition to these initially identified alternatives, other
alternatives generated by the scoping process may be considered.
IV. Potential Impacts for Analysis
The EIS will evaluate the impacts of all reasonable alternatives on
land use, zoning, displacements, parklands, economic development,
community disruptions, environmental justice, aesthetics, air quality,
noise and vibration, wildlife, vegetation, threatened and endangered
species, farmland, water quality, wetlands, waterways, floodplains,
hazardous materials, and cultural, historic, and archaeological
resources.
The EIS will take into account both positive and negative impacts,
direct and indirect impacts, short-term and long-term impacts and site-
specific and corridor wide impacts. Evaluation criteria will be
consistent with all Federal, State of Wisconsin and local criteria,
regulations and policies. The EIS will identify measures to avoid or
[[Page 20157]]
mitigate significant adverse environmental impacts.
To ensure that all significant issues related to this proposed
action are identified and addressed, scoping comments and suggestions
are invited from all interested parties. Comments and questions should
be directed to Madison as noted in the ADDRESSES section above.
V. FTA Procedures
In accordance with FTA policy, all federal laws, regulations and
executive orders affecting project development, including but not
limited to, the regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality (40
CFR parts 1500-1508 and 23 CFR part 771), the 1990 Clean Air Act
Amendments, Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, Executive Order 12898
regarding environmental justice, the National Historic Preservation
Act, the Endangered Species Act, and Section 4(f) of the Department of
Transportation Act, will be addressed to the maximum extent possible
during the NEPA process.
A DEIS will be prepared and made available for public and agency
review and comment. A public hearing will be held on the DEIS. Based on
the DEIS and the public and agency comments received, the preferred
alternative will be further refined as necessary and the Final
Environmental Impact Statement will be prepared.
Issued on: April 12, 2006.
Don Gismondi,
Deputy Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 06-3715 Filed 4-18-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-M