Environmental Impact Statement: Orange County and Riverside County, California

Shawn Oliver
Federal Highway Administration
March 20, 2015

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 54 (Friday, March 20, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15050-15051]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-06415]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Environmental Impact Statement: Orange County and Riverside 
County, California

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The FHWA, on behalf of the California Department of 
Transportation (Caltrans), is issuing this notice to advise the public 
that a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Supplemental 
Draft EIS) will be prepared for a proposed highway project in Orange 
County and Riverside County, California. The original Notice of Intent

[[Page 15051]]

was published on October 22, 1986 and revised on March 16, 1988.

DATES: The deadline for comments is Monday, April 13, 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Smita Deshpande; 3347 Michelson Drive, 
Suite 100; Irvine, CA 92612; (949) 724-2245; D12.NOP241.91@dot.ca.gov; 
Chief, Division of Environmental Analysis.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Effective July 1, 2007, the Federal Highway 
Administration (FHWA) assigned, and the California Department of 
Transportation (Caltrans) assumed, environmental responsibilities for 
this project pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327. Caltrans as the assigned 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) agency, in cooperation with 
the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and United States Army 
Corps of Engineers, will prepare a Supplemental Draft EIS on a proposal 
for a median-to-median connector between State Route 241 (SR-241) and 
the State Route 91 (SR-91) Express Lanes, project in Orange County and 
Riverside County, California.
    The proposed median-to-median connector project encompasses 12-ORA-
241 (PM 36.1/39.1), 12-ORA-91 (PM 14.7/18.9), and 08-RIV-91 (PM 0.0/
1.5) for a length of approximately 8.7 miles. Anticipated federal 
approvals include an FHWA Air Quality Conformity Determination, 
Biological Opinion Amendment and permits under Section 404 and 401 of 
the Clean Water Act.
    Caltrans District 12, in cooperation with the Foothill/Eastern 
Transportation Corridor Agency (F/ETCA), proposes to construct the 
median-to-median connector from State Route 241 (SR-241) to the State 
Route 91 (SR-91) Express Lanes. The proposed median-to-median connector 
is phase 2 of the Eastern Transportation Corridor (ETC) project 
previously approved in 1994. It will provide improved access between 
SR-241 and SR-91 and is proposed to be a tolled facility. Caltrans will 
be the lead agency for the project. The United States Army Corps of 
Engineers and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service were 
identified as cooperating agencies in the corresponding 1991 ETC Draft 
EIS and 1994 ETC Final EIS.
    The SR-241/SR-91 Express Lane Connector was originally evaluated as 
a SR-241/SR-91 high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) direct connector in the 
1991 ETC Draft EIS and 1994 ETC Final EIS (both of which studied a 
broader project area with improvements on SR-133, SR-241 and SR-261). 
The Systems Management Concept (SMC) for the ETC project proposed that 
the project would be staged, incorporating general purpose traffic and 
eventually HOV lanes, to meet the forecasted demand. Under the SMC, ETC 
construction would be completed in one stage with three or more phases.
    To implement Phase 2 of the ETC project, a Supplemental Draft EIS 
is being prepared to focus on the eastern portion of the original 
project and to address changes to environmental conditions and 
regulatory requirements. Various alternatives were studied in the 1991 
ETC Draft EIS and 1994 ETC Final EIS; however, the Supplemental Draft 
EIS will include a No Build and one Build Alternative for the median-
to-median connector only.
    Letters describing the proposed action and soliciting comments will 
be sent to appropriate Federal, State, cooperating agencies, 
participating agencies, local agencies, and to private organizations 
and citizens who have previously expressed or are known to have 
interest in this proposal. Environmental Review of the project is 
anticipated to occur from 2015 through 2017. A public scoping meeting 
is not scheduled at this time; should you be interested, please let us 
know in writing. A public hearing will be held in 2016. Public notice 
will be given of the time and place of the hearing. The Supplemental 
Draft EIS will be available for public and agency review and comment 
prior to the public hearing.
    To ensure that the full range of issues related to this proposed 
action are addressed and all significant issues identified, comments, 
and suggestions are invited from all interested parties. Comments or 
questions concerning this proposed action and the Supplemental Draft 
EIS should be directed to Caltrans at the address provided above.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, 
Highway Planning and Construction. The regulations implementing 
Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation on 
Federal programs and activities apply to this program.)

    Issued on: March 16, 2015.
Shawn Oliver,
Team Leader, Right of Way and Environment, Federal Highway 
Administration, Sacramento, California.
[FR Doc. 2015-06415 Filed 3-19-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-22-P