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Environmental Impact Statement: St. Charles, Jefferson and Orleans Parishes, Louisiana Agencies: Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Department of Transportation (DOT)
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: September 13, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 178)]
[Notices]
[Page 47722-47724]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13se01-100]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Federal Highway Administration
Environmental Impact Statement: St. Charles, Jefferson and
Orleans Parishes, Louisiana Agencies: Federal Transit Administration
(FTA) and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Department of
Transportation (DOT)
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare environmental documents, including
an environmental impact statement for highway component and an
environmental impact statement for transit rail component.
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SUMMARY: The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal
Transit Administration (FTA), in cooperation with the Louisiana
Department of Transportation and Development (LDOTD) and the Regional
Planning Commission (RPC) are issuing this notice to advise interested
agencies and the public that, in accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), an Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) will be prepared for the following projects in the East-West
Corridor in St. Charles, Jefferson and Orleans Parishes in Louisiana:
1. A rail transit connector between the New Orleans Central
Business District (CBD) and the Louis Armstrong New Orleans
International Airport (LANOIA); and
2. Extending the existing Earhart Expressway from its terminus at
LA 3154 (Dickory Avenue) to the vicinity of Interstate 310.
These proposed transportation projects were identified in a Major
Investment Study (MIS) completed in 1999. In addition to the proposed
improvements identified as the Locally Preferred Alternative in the
MIS, the No-Build Alternative and new alternatives generated through
the Scoping Process will be evaluated. Scoping will be accomplished
through coordination with interested persons, organizations and
federal, state and local agencies. Four (4) public scoping meetings and
one (1) interagency scoping meeting are currently planned.
Based on the results of the Scoping Process, FHWA and FTA will make
the following determinations regarding the preparation of environmental
documentation under NEPA:
1. Identification of environmental issues to be addressed;
2. Identification of appropriate alternatives for evaluation;
3. How cumulative environmental effects of the projects will be
addressed; and
4. The need for a separate Environmental Impact Statement for each
of the proposed projects, or for a single, combined Environmental
Impact Statement for both projects.
FHWA and FTA currently propose to proceed with the preparation of
separate environmental documents for each project. FHWA is serving as
the federal lead agency for the extension of the existing Earhart
Expressway. FTA is serving as the federal lead agency for the rail
transit connector between the CBD and the LANOIA. At the conclusion of
the Scoping Process, based on the agency and public comment received,
FHWA and FTA will either continue with the preparation of two
individual Environmental Impact Statements, will proceed with a single
Environmental Impact Statement for both projects, or may proceed with
an Environmental Assessment for either of the projects, if appropriate.
DATES: Interagency and public scoping and information meetings will be
held during the week of October 8th.
Interagency Scoping Meeting: Wednesday, October 10th, 2001 from 10
a.m. to noon, at the Regional Planning Commission's 21st Floor
Conference Room at 1340 Poydras Street in New Orleans, Louisiana 70122.
Public Scoping Meetings: Wednesday, October 10th, 2001 from 7 p.m.
to 9 p.m. at Xavier University Auditorium in the Xavier University
Administration Building at 1 Drexel Drive in New Orleans, Louisiana
70125; Thursday, October 11th, 2001 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Joseph
S. Yenni Building Council Chambers at 1221 Elmwood Park Boulevard in
Jefferson, Louisiana 70123; Saturday, October 13th, 2001 from 9 a.m. to
11 a.m. at the R.J. Bunche Middle School Gymnasium at 8101 Simon Street
in Metairie, Louisiana 70003; and Saturday, October 13th, 2001 from 11
a.m. to 1 p.m. at the R.J. Bunche Middle School Gymnasium at 8101 Simon
Street in Metairie, Louisiana 70003.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope should be sent by November 1,
2001, to either Mr. William Farr, Programs Operations Manager, Federal
Highway Administration, 5304 Flanders Drive, Suite A, Baton Rouge,
Louisiana 70808, or Mr. John Sweek, Community Planner, Federal Transit
Administration, Region VI, 819 Taylor Street, Fort Worth, Texas, 76102.
See DATES above for addresses of scoping meeting locations.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. William Farr, Programs Operations
Manager, Federal Highway Administration, 5304 Flanders Drive, Suite A,
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70808, Telephone: (225) 757-7600; or Mr. John
Sweek, Community Planner, Federal Transit Administration, Region VI,
819 Taylor Street, Fort Worth, Texas, 76102, Telephone: (817) 978-0571.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Scoping
The FHWA and FTA will hold a total of four public scoping meetings
on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, October 10, 11, and 13. Two
evening public scoping meetings will be held between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
on Wednesday and Thursday, October 10 and 11, in the Xavier University
Auditorium in New Orleans and Joseph
[[Page 47723]]
S. Yenni Building Council Chambers in Jefferson, respectively on these
dates. Two morning public scoping meeting sessions will be held on
Saturday, October 13, at 9 a.m. and at 11 a.m. in the R.J. Bunch Middle
School Gymnasium in Metairie. An Open House Session will be made
available in the R.J. Bunch Middle School Gymnasium from 1 p.m until 3
p.m., following the public scoping meeting sessions. All meeting
locations are accessible to individuals with disabilities. Individuals
with special needs should contact the project's public participation
coordinator at 504-488-6100.
Interested individuals, organizations, and public agencies are
invited to attend the scoping meetings and participate in identifying
any important environmental issues related to the proposed alternatives
and suggesting alternatives which are more economical or which have
less environmental effects while achieving similar transportation
objectives. An information packet, referred to as the Scoping Booklet,
will be distributed to all public agencies and interested individuals
and will be available at the meetings. Others may request the Scoping
Booklet by contacting Mr. William Farr or Mr. John Sweek at the
addresses listed above in ADDRESSES. Comments regarding preferences for
a particular alternative should be reserved for the comment period for
the draft environmental documentation. Comments during the scoping
period should focus on the issues and alternative for analysis and not
on a preference for a particular alternative.
Scoping comments may be made a the scoping meetings or directed to
Mr. William Farr on Mr. John Sweek at the addresses listed above in
ADDRESSES by November 1, 2001.
II. Description of the Project Area and Need
The East-West Corridor is located in St. Charles, Jefferson and
Orleans Parishes, Louisiana. It extends approximately 17 miles from the
vicinity of I-310 in St. Charles Parish to the New Orleans CBD, serving
an area that contains more than one million residents, including
several neighborhoods with large numbers of transit-dependent
residents. Major destinations within the Corridor include LANOIA,
Louisiana Technical College, Zephyr Stadium, Elmwood Industrial Area,
and Xavier University. Key destinations in the CBD include the
Louisiana Superdome, the Ernest Morial Convention Center, the New
Orleans Arena, and the New Orleans Regional Medical Center. The
corridor is currently served by taxi service and one bus transit route
from the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Jefferson
Parish to the New Orleans CBD.
The East-West Corridor has the highest volume of travel demand and
bus ridership within the New Orleans metropolitan area. The major east-
west arteries (I-10 and US 61) have serious congestion, and Earhart
Expressway abruptly ends at LA 3154 (Dickory Avenue), a minor arterial
at its western terminus, rendering it ineffective as a viable east-west
route. The existing bus route is not sufficient to address the mobility
needs in the corridor and the large numbers of transit-dependent riders
and commuters. As a result, travelers in the East-West Corridor often
experience excessive travel times and delay. These travel times are
expected to increase as travel demand increases in the East-West
Corridor.
A Major Investment Study (MIS) completed in 1999 for the RPC
identified a (LPA) locally preferred alternative with two primary
components: A rail transit system linking the LANOIA to downtown New
Orleans; and (2) extending LA Route 3139, also known as Earhart
Expressway, west to the vicinity of Interstate 310. Both of the
proposed projects were deemed necessary to alleviate congestion within
the corridor. However, each project has its own unique objectives.
The objectives of the proposed rail transit component include:
Address the increasing mobility needs within the corridor
Increase and improve mobility choice for New Orleans, East
Jefferson parish, and River Parishes commuters
Increase access to and from major regional trip generators
and attractions
Promote compatible land use
Increase and improve the mobility access opportunities to
disadvantaged populations
Promote economic development by increasing labor
productivity through travel efficiencies
Decrease local dependence on automobiles and reduce energy
usage
Provide flexibility in future regional planning transit
efforts
Improve access to and from the airport
The objectives of the proposed roadway expansion are to:
Improve East-West Corridor system linkage for roadway
passenger traffic
Improve the efficiency of commercial vehicle operations
within the New Orleans metro region
Promote economic development and associated with goods
movement
Improve efficiency in modal relationships in the region by
improving bus transit times, shuttle vehicle transit times, and overall
travel costs
Improving access to transit park-n-ride
III. Alternatives
It is anticipated that several alternatives will be identified
during the scoping and environmental analysis processes. However, at
this time, alternatives to be considered for the rail transit include:
A ``no-build'' alternative. There will be no changes in
transportation services or facilities in the Corridor beyond already
committed projects. This includes only those transit improvements
defined in the appropriate agencies' Long Range Transportation Plans
and Transit Development Plans for which funding has been committed.
Transportation Systems Management Alternative--Low cost
infrastructure and bus transit improvements, Intelligent Transportation
Systems (ITS), bus operations, and Transportation Systems Management
improvements will be included in this alternative.
The construction of a rail transit system. The eastern
terminus of the proposed rail transit alternative would be the CBD in
Orleans Parish and the western terminus would be the LANOIA in
Jefferson Parish. It would follow the abandoned Kansas City Southern
Railroad for approximately 5 miles, where it would connect to the rail
owned by the Union Passenger Terminal via right-of-way owned by
Canadian National Illinois Central Railroad and follow this existing
alignment or some other alignment to the CBD. Light rail transit (LRT)
and diesel multiple units (DMU), among others will be considered. This
alternative would also include all facilities associated with the
construction and operations of a light rail transit line, including
right of way, structures, track, stations, park-and-ride lots, storage,
and maintenance facilities as well as respective rail and bus operating
plans.
Alternatives to be considered for Earhart Expressway include:
A ``no-build'' alternative. Existing conditions will
remain as they are. Only those improvements that have already been
approved will be implemented.
Transportation Systems Management Improvements-Low cost
infrastructure and traffic management improvements, including
signalization, ITS, and similar.
Improvement alternatives including the upgrade of US 61
(Airline Drive) or
[[Page 47724]]
the extension of LA 3139 (Earhart Expressway) from LA 3154 (Dickory
Avenue) would be considered. The road expansion will follow a westward
alignment and terminate in the vicinity of I-310. The approximate
length of the proposed road component is 10 miles.
IV. Probable Effects
The environmental documents will be prepared in accordance with the
1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Accordingly, all
potential impacts to the physical, natural, and socioeconomic
environments will be evaluated. Concerns to be addressed in NEPA
Documents include: aesthetics/visual resources, property value effects,
local traffic and travel patterns, land use, noise and vibration,
wetlands, construction impacts, Environmental Justice/Title VI issues,
and cumulative impacts of concurrent and consecutive implementation of
both alternatives.
V. Procedures
In accordance with the regulations and guidance by the Council on
Environmental Quality (CEQ), as well as 23 CFR part 450 and 23
policies, the NEPA Documents will include an evaluation of the social,
economic, and environmental impacts of the alternatives. The NEPA
Documents will also comply with the requirements of the Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990 (CAAA) and with Executive Order 12898 on
Environmental Justice. The NEPA Documents will also meet the
requirements of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's
transportation conformity regulations (40 CFR part 93 and 23 CFR
450.322(b)(8)). After their publication, the draft NEPA Documents will
be available for public agency review and comment.
The Final NEPA Documents will consider the public and agency
comments received during the public and agency circulation of the NEPA
Documents and will identify the preferred alternatives. Opportunity for
additional public comment will be provided throughout all phases of the
project development.
Issued on: September 5, 2001.
William A. Sussman,
Division Administrator, Federal Highway Administration.
[FR Doc. 01-23027 Filed 9-12-01; 8:45 am]
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