June 14, 2019 FR Notice (60-Day)

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Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 115 / Friday, June 14, 2019 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket No. FRA–2019–0004–N–10]

Proposed Agency Information
Collection Activities; Comment
Request
Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), U.S. Department
of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of information collection;
request for comment.
AGENCY:

Under the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its
implementing regulations, FRA seeks
approval of the Information Collection
Request (ICR) abstracted below. Before
submitting this ICR to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
approval, FRA is soliciting public
comment on specific aspects of the
activities identified below.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to
submit comments on or before August
13, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Submit written comments
on these ICR activities by mail to either:
Mr. Robert Brogan, Information
Collection Clearance Officer, Office of
Railroad Safety, Regulatory Analysis
Division, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590; or
Ms. Kim Toone, Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Office of Information
Technology, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
Commenters requesting FRA to
acknowledge receipt of their respective
comments must include a self-addressed
stamped postcard stating, ‘‘Comments
on OMB Control Number 2130–NEW’’
(the relevant OMB control number for
the ICR is listed below) and should also
include the title of the ICR.
Alternatively, comments may be faxed
to (202) 493–6216 or (202) 493–6497, or
emailed to Mr. Brogan at
[email protected], or Ms. Toone at
[email protected]. Please refer to the
assigned OMB control number in any
correspondence submitted. FRA will
summarize comments received in
response to this notice in a subsequent
notice and include them in its
information collection submission to
OMB for approval.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Robert Brogan, Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Office of Railroad
Safety, Regulatory Analysis Division,
Federal Railroad Administration, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590 (telephone: (202) 493–6292) or

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SUMMARY:

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Ms. Kim Toone, Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Office of Information
Technology, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590
(telephone: (202) 493–6132).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The PRA,
44 U.S.C. 3501–3520, and its
implementing regulations, 5 CFR part
1320, require Federal agencies to
provide 60-days’ notice to the public to
allow comment on information
collection activities before seeking OMB
approval of the activities. See 44 U.S.C.
3506, 3507; 5 CFR 1320.8 through
1320.12. Specifically, FRA invites
interested parties to comment on the
following ICRs regarding: (1) Whether
the information collection activities are
necessary for FRA to properly execute
its functions, including whether the
activities will have practical utility; (2)
the accuracy of FRA’s estimates of the
burden of the information collection
activities, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used to
determine the estimates; (3) ways for
FRA to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information being
collected; and (4) ways for FRA to
minimize the burden of information
collection activities on the public,
including the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology. See 44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A); 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1).
FRA believes that soliciting public
comment may reduce the administrative
and paperwork burdens associated with
the collection of information that
Federal regulations mandate. In
summary, FRA reasons that comments
received will advance three objectives:
(1) Reduce reporting burdens; (2)
organize information collection
requirements in a ‘‘user-friendly’’ format
to improve the use of such information;
and (3) accurately assess the resources
expended to retrieve and produce
information requested. See 44 U.S.C.
3501.
The summary below describes the ICR
that FRA will submit for OMB clearance
as the PRA requires:
Title: Inquiry into Blocked HighwayRail Grade Crossings throughout the
United States.
OMB Control Number: 2130–NEW.
Abstract: FRA is interested in
obtaining more information regarding
the frequency, location, and impacts of
highway-rail grade crossings blocked by
slow-moving or idling trains. Currently,
there are no federal laws or regulations
that specifically address how long a
train may occupy a crossing, whether
idling or operating at slow speeds. Some
States and local municipalities have

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laws that vary in how long trains are
permitted to occupy crossings.
There are potential safety concerns
with crossings that are blocked by
trains. For instance, pedestrians may
crawl under or through idling trains.
Also, emergency response vehicles and
first responders may be significantly
delayed from responding to an incident
or transporting patients to a hospital. In
addition, drivers may take more risks,
such as driving around lowered gates at
a crossing or attempting to beat a train
through a crossing without gates, in
order to avoid a lengthy delay if they are
aware that trains routinely block a
crossing for extended periods of time.
There are also potential economic
impacts that affect businesses, such as
stores or restaurants not being accessible
to a customer base for an extended
period of time. Finally, highway-rail
grade crossings that are blocked for
extended periods of time may create
societal nuisances, such as roadway
congestion, late mail service and
deliveries, disrupted school and work
arrival and dismissal, or missed
appointments.
Over a recent two-year period, from
April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2019, FRA’s
Office of Railroad Safety received 669
email complaints about blocked
crossings through FRA’s ‘‘Contact Us’’
website. This web page is used by the
general public to submit any type of
comment/question to FRA’s Office of
Railroad Safety, not just reports of
blocked crossings. FRA proposes to add
new dedicated links to its existing
website and its existing phone
application (app) for users to report
blocked crossings. This would simplify
the reporting of blocked crossing
information and standardize the data
received about blocked crossings.
The proposed data collection would
be conducted using three methods:
1. A link would be added to FRA’s existing
website directing a user to a web-based form
to submit information about a blocked
crossing to FRA. Access to this web-based
form would be unrestricted and available to
the general public.
2. A link would be added to the existing
FRA phone app ‘‘FRA Crossing Locator App’’
that will direct users to an app-based form to
submit information about a blocked crossing
to FRA. Access to the form on the phone app
would be unrestricted and available to the
general public.
3. A link would be added to FRA’s existing
website directing law enforcement personnel
to submit information about a blocked
crossing to FRA. Access for law enforcement
personnel would be restricted to users with
a username and password and managed by
FRA.

Upon accessing the form, a user
would be notified that there are no

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Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 115 / Friday, June 14, 2019 / Notices
federal laws or regulations that
specifically address the length of time a
train may occupy a highway-rail grade
crossing. The user would be notified
that the information submitted will not
be forwarded to a railroad, State, or
local agency, and is only being used for
data collection purposes to determine

Form(s): FRA F 6180.XXX.
Respondent Universe: General public
and national law enforcement
personnel.
Frequency of Submission: On
occasion; one-time.
Reporting Burden:

Form

Total estimated
annual responses

Average time per response

General Public via the unrestricted form on the FRA
website.
General Public via the FRA Crossing Locator Phone
Application.
Law Enforcement Personnel via the limited access form
on the FRA website.

335 responses ............................

15 minutes .........................

84 hours.

50 responses ..............................

15 minutes .........................

13 hours.

100 responses ............................

15 minutes .........................

25 hours.

Total ..........................................................................

485 responses ............................

15 minutes .........................

122 hours.

Total Estimated Annual Responses:
485.
Total Estimated Annual Burden: 122
hours.
Under 44 U.S.C. 3507(a) and 5 CFR
1320.5(b) and 1320.8(b)(3)(vi), FRA
informs all interested parties that it may
not conduct or sponsor, and a
respondent is not required to respond
to, a collection of information unless it
displays a currently valid OMB control
number.
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501–3520.
Brett A. Jortland,
Acting Chief Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2019–12572 Filed 6–13–19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket No. FRA–2019–0004–N–6]

Proposed Agency Information
Collection Activities; Comment
Request
Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), U.S. Department
of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of information collection;
request for comment.
AGENCY:

Under the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its
implementing regulations, FRA seeks
approval of the Information Collection
Requests (ICRs) abstracted below. Before
submitting these ICRs to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
approval, FRA is soliciting public
comment on specific aspects of the
activities identified below.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to
submit comments on or before August
13, 2019.
SUMMARY:

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the locations, times, and impacts of
blocked crossings. The questions asked
on each form will be identical for all
three methods of collection.
Type of Request: Approval of a new
collection of information.
Affected Public: Public individuals
and law enforcement personnel.

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Submit written comments
on the ICRs activities by mail to either:
Mr. Robert Brogan, Information
Collection Clearance Officer, Office of
Railroad Safety, Regulatory Analysis
Division, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590; or
Ms. Kim Toone, Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Office of Information
Technology, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
Commenters requesting FRA to
acknowledge receipt of their respective
comments must include a self-addressed
stamped postcard stating, ‘‘Comments
on OMB Control Number 2130–XXXX,’’
(the relevant OMB control number for
each ICR is listed below) and should
also include the title of the ICR.
Alternatively, comments may be faxed
to 202–493–6216 or 202–493–6497, or
emailed to Mr. Brogan at robert.brogan@
dot.gov, or Ms. Toone at kim.toone@
dot.gov. Please refer to the assigned
OMB control number in any
correspondence submitted. FRA will
summarize comments received in
response to this notice in a subsequent
notice and include them in its
information collection submission to
OMB for approval.

ADDRESSES:

Mr.
Robert Brogan, Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Office of Railroad
Safety, Regulatory Analysis Division,
Federal Railroad Administration, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590 (telephone: 202–493–6292) or Ms.
Kim Toone, Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Office of Information
Technology, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590
(telephone: 202–493–6132).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

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Total annual burden
hours

The PRA,
44 U.S.C. 3501–3520, and its
implementing regulations, 5 CFR part
1320, require Federal agencies to
provide 60-days’ notice to the public to
allow comment on information
collection activities before seeking OMB
approval of the activities. See 44 U.S.C.
3506, 3507; 5 CFR 1320.8 through
1320.12. Specifically, FRA invites
interested parties to comment on the
following ICRs regarding: (1) Whether
the information collection activities are
necessary for FRA to properly execute
its functions, including whether the
activities will have practical utility; (2)
the accuracy of FRA’s estimates of the
burden of the information collection
activities, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used to
determine the estimates; (3) ways for
FRA to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information being
collected; and (4) ways for FRA to
minimize the burden of information
collection activities on the public,
including the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology. See 44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A); 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1).
FRA believes that soliciting public
comment may reduce the administrative
and paperwork burdens associated with
the collection of information that
Federal regulations mandate. In
summary, FRA reasons that comments
received will advance three objectives:
(1) Reduce reporting burdens; (2)
organize information collection
requirements in a ‘‘user-friendly’’ format
to improve the use of such information;
and (3) accurately assess the resources
expended to retrieve and produce
information requested. See 44 U.S.C.
3501.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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