[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 175 (Friday, September 10, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49271-49273]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-23615]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Federal Highway Administration
Environmental Impact Statement on Transportation Improvements
Within the Roosevelt Boulevard Corridor in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration and Federal Highway
Administration, USDOT.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Federal
Highway Administration (FHWA) as federal co-lead agencies, in
cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the
City of Philadelphia and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation
Authority (SEPTA) as local lead agencies, are issuing this notice to
advise interested agencies and the public that an environmental impact
statement (EIS) may be prepared for transportation improvements in the
Roosevelt Boulevard Corridor in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The
Philadelphia City Planning Commission, the Mayor's Office of
Transportation, and SEPTA are undertaking a Transportation Investment
Study (TIS) to consider solutions to the problems of capacity and
quality of transportation in the Roosevelt Boulevard Corridor which is
marked by congestion and long travel times, especially for public
transit riders. The TIS will include the NEPA scoping process, the
identification and evaluation of design concept and scope alternatives,
and the selection of a preferred alternative or alternatives.
Subsequently, if an EIS is prepared, alternative alignments and designs
that are consistent with the selected design concept and scope will be
addressed in that document. Sponsorship of the EIS will depend on the
outcome of the TIS and the alternatives remaining under evaluation. It
is important to note that a final decision to prepare an EIS has not
been made at this time. This decision will be made at the end of the
TIS and will depend upon the nature of the selected concept and its
expected impacts.
DATES: Comment Due Date: Written comments on the scope of the
alternatives and impacts to be considered should be sent to Andrew
Lenton, Project Manager, Philadelphia City Planning Commission, by
October 15, 1999. See ADDRESSES below. Scoping Meetings: Public scoping
meetings will be held on Wednesday, September 22, 1999 and Thursday,
September 23, 1999, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. See ADDRESSES below.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope should be sent to Andrew
Lenton, Project Manager, Philadelphia City Planning Commission, 1
Parkway Building, 13th floor, 1515 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102.
Scoping meetings will be held at the following locations:
Public Scoping Meeting #1
Wednesday, September 22, 1999, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Frankford
Group Ministries, Main Meeting Room, Orthodox & Griscom Streets,
Philadelphia, PA 19124
Public Scoping Meeting #2
Thursday, September 23, 1999, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Nazareth
Hospital, Physician's Office Building (P.O.B.), 2601 Holme Avenue,
Philadelphia, PA 19152.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
John T. Garrity, Federal Transit Administration, or Carmine M. Fiscina,
Federal Highway Administration, at (215) 656-7070.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Scoping
Public scoping meetings will be hosted by the Philadelphia City
Planning Commission (PCPC), the Mayor's Office of Transportation (MOT)
and the Southeast Pennsylvania Transit Authority (SEPTA) on Wednesday,
September 22, 1999, and Thursday, September 23, 1999, between 7:00 p.m.
and 9:00 p.m. See ADDRESSES above. FTA, FHWA, PCPC, MOT and SEPTA
invite interested individuals, organizations and public agencies to
attend the scoping meetings and participate in establishing the
purpose, alternatives, time framework and analysis approach, as well as
an active public involvement program. The public is invited to comment
on the alternatives currently proposed and to suggest additional
alternatives which are more cost effective or which have less
environmental impact while achieving similar transportation objectives.
Comments should address the modes and technologies to be evaluated, the
alignments and termination points to be considered, the environmental,
social and economic impacts to be analyzed, and the evaluation approach
to be used to select a locally preferred alternative.
To ensure that a full range of issues is addressed and all
significant issues identified, comments and suggestions are invited
from all interested parties.
[[Page 49272]]
Comments may be provided at the public scoping meetings, verbally and/
or in writing. Comments or questions can also be directed to the PCPC
(See ADDRESSES above.), or via e-mail to [email protected] or via
telephone to (215) 790-3140. People with special needs should call
Andrew Lenton at (215) 683-6429. The Nazareth Hospital site is
accessible to people with disabilities.
An information packet is available which describes the purpose of
the project, the possible alternatives, the impact areas to be
evaluated, the citizen involvement program, and the schedule. The
packet will be available at the public scoping meetings. It is also
being mailed to affected federal, state and local agencies and to
interested parties on record. Others may request the scoping materials
by contacting Andrew Lenton, Project Manager, Philadelphia City
Planning Commission. See ADDRESSES above.
II. Description of Study Area and its Transportation Needs
The Roosevelt Boulevard Corridor is located in the Northeast
portion of Philadelphia, extending approximately 14 miles from Broad
Street to the Philadelphia City Line. The Corridor is approximately one
mile wide (width varies according to impact under consideration). It
serves an area that includes some 400,000 residents of Northeast
Philadelphia, including areas adjacent to Bucks and Montgomery
Counties, and communities toward Center City, such as Olney,
Feltonville, Hunting Park and Logan. Major attractors in the corridor
include One & Olney Square, the Friends Hospital, Metropolitan
Hospital, Northeast Tower Center, Rising Sun Plaza, Frankford Stadium,
the future Frankford Transportation Center, Oxford Circle, the
Northeast Regional Library, Roosevelt Mall, Nazareth Hospital,
Evangelical and Baptist Homes, the Northeast Shopping Center, Northeast
Philadelphia Airport, the Red Lion Shopping Center, the Swenson Skills
Center, the Northeast Industrial Park, Boulevard Plaza, Byberry East
Industrial Park, Community College of Philadelphia, and the Neshaminy
Interplex Business Center. Environmental features include Hunting Park,
Tacony Creek, Pennypack Creek, Pennypack Park, and Poquessing Creek.
The area is currently served or crossed by taxicab services, 27 bus
routes, the R8 Fox Chase Regional Rail line and the termini of the
Market-Frankford Subway-Elevated and the Broad Street Subway lines.
Roosevelt Boulevard itself is a right of way nearly 200 feet wide in
many sections. It is an attractive parkway with three express lanes and
three local lanes in each direction. Traffic may move between the local
and express lanes via slip ramps. The Boulevard itself crosses most
intersections at grade, but at Oxford Circle, Pennypack Circle and
Cottman Avenue, the express lanes are depressed below grade and
continue through without grade crossings. The Boulevard serves as the
main transportation spine of Northeast Philadelphia.
Travelers in the Boulevard Corridor presently experience quite long
travel times, particularly by public transportation. The capacity and
quality of transportation have not increased in proportion to the
recent growth of population and employment in the corridor. Motorist
and pedestrian safety also are primary concerns in the Corridor. Air
quality tops the list of general concerns, because of the Philadelphia
region's non-attainment of EPA air quality standards. Finally, the
changing nature of land uses continues to further separate employment
from residential locations, particularly for mobility-constrained
households. The Northeast spine therefore presents a considerable need
for transportation improvement.
III. Alternatives
It is expected that the scoping meeting and written comments will
be a major source of candidate alternatives for consideration in the
study. The following briefly describes the general alternatives that
are suggested for consideration along the Corridor:
No Project. Certain transportation improvement projects
already slated for construction, such as the Woodhaven Expressway
Extension and I-95 reconstruction, would proceed. However, no major
improvements would occur in the Boulevard Corridor.
Transportation System Management (TSM). TSM would involve
making operational and low cost capital improvements to existing
roadways and transit facilities. Pursuing this alternative could result
in options such as enhancing bus service in the corridor, changing the
design and operation of intersections, and improving bus stop waiting
areas.
Additional Grade Separations. Additional underpasses--
similar to the one at Cottman Avenue--could address the Corridor's
transportation needs.
Expressway. This concept would lower the inner travel
lanes below the cross streets.
Busway. An exclusive travel lane for limited stop express
buses could be implemented along the Boulevard.
Light Metro. Under this concept, rail vehicles would
operate at street level along the Boulevard median as an extension of
the Broad Street Subway, crossing intersections at grade along the
Boulevard. The vehicles would draw electricity from a third rail while
in the subway and from overhead wires while on the Boulevard.
Broad Street Extension. The Broad Street Line would extend
up the Boulevard from Broad-Erie Station as either a subway or a modern
elevated line.
Broad Street Extension with Expressway. The Broad Street
Line would operate in the median of the expressway described earlier.
Market-Frankford Extension. The Market-Frankford Line
would extend from Frankford Terminal along Bustleton Avenue, and from
that point follow the Boulevard alignment. The line could operate as a
subway or a modern elevated.
Market-Frankford Extension with Expressway. From Bustleton
Avenue northward, the Market-Frankford Line extension could operate in
the median of the expressway described earlier.
Broad Street Extension with a One-Station Market-Frankford
Extension. In this suggested concept, the Broad Street Line would
extend as a subway or elevated, as described above, and would meet a
short extension of the Market-Frankford Line.
New York Short Line. Either Broad Street Subway service or
the Regional Rail network would be extended along the western portion
of the study area, sharing the right-of-way of an existing freight
railroad.
Based on public input received during scoping, variations of the
above alternatives and additional alternatives suggested during
scoping, as well as other transportation-related improvement options,
both transit and non-transit, will be considered for the Roosevelt
Boulevard Corridor.
IV. Probable Effects
Most of the Corridor runs through densely populated residential
neighborhoods, with row homes facing the Boulevard. Also, the Boulevard
is an attractive, tree-lined parkway. Issues and impacts to be
considered during the study include potential changes to: the physical
environment (air quality, noise and vibration, water quality,
aesthetics, etc.); the social environment (land use, development,
neighborhoods, job accessibility, etc.); parklands and historic
resources; transportation system performance, including vehicular and
pedestrian circulation and parking; capital, operating and maintenance
[[Page 49273]]
costs; financial resources available and financial impact. Evaluation
criteria will include consideration of the local goals and objectives
established for the study, measures of effectiveness identified during
scoping, and criteria established by FTA for ``New Start'' transit
projects.
Issued on: September 7, 1999.
Sheldon A. Kinbar,
Regional Administrator, FTA.
Carmine M. Fiscina,
Technology and Safety Engineer, FHWA.
[FR Doc. 99-23615 Filed 9-9-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P