Availability of the Draft Tier I Environmental Impact Statement

Maiser Khaled
Federal Highway Administration
Federal Register
March 18, 2011

[Federal Register: March 18, 2011 (Volume 76, Number 53)]
[Notices]               
[Page 15041-15042]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr18mr11-150]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

 
Availability of the Draft Tier I Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Draft Tier I Environmental Impact 
Statement.

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SUMMARY: The FHWA, on behalf of the California Department of 
Transportation (Caltrans), announces the availability of the Draft Tier 
I Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a proposed route adoption 
study in Fresno County, California.

DATES: Public circulation of this document will begin on March 16, 2011 
and will end on May 9, 2011. An open forum public hearing will be held 
for this project on Wednesday, March 30, 2011 between 4:30 p.m. and 
7:30 p.m. in Kerman. The location is Kerman Community Center, 15101 W. 
Kearney Boulevard, Kerman, CA 93630.

ADDRESSES: This document will be available at the Caltrans District 6 
Office, 1352 West Olive Avenue, Fresno, CA 93728 on weekdays from 8 
a.m. to 4 p.m.. Copies of the document can also be read at the Fresno 
County Library, 2420 Mariposa Street, Fresno, CA 93721; the Kerman 
Branch Library, 15081 West Kearney Boulevard, Kerman, CA, 93630; and 
the Mendota

[[Page 15042]]

Branch Library, 1246 Belmont Avenue, Mendota, CA, 93640. The Draft Tier 
I EIS is also available at http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist6/environmental/
projects/sr180westside/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: G. William ``Trais'' Norris III, 
Sierra Pacific Environmental Analysis Branch, 2015 East Shields Avenue, 
Suite 100, Fresno, CA 93726. E-mail trais_norris@dot.ca.gov. Telephone 
(559) 243-8178.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Effective July 1, 2007, the FHWA assigned, 
and Caltrans assumed, environmental responsibilities for this project 
pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327. Caltrans as the delegated National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) agency, has prepared a Draft Tier I EIS 
on a proposal for a route adoption of State Route 180 between 
Interstate 5 and the end of the freeway portion of State Route 180, 
just west of the Fresno City limits in Fresno County. Caltrans approved 
the Draft Tier I EIS on March 8, 2011.
    The proposed route adoption will identify the most appropriate 
location for an ultimate four-lane expressway for State Route 180 
within the study area. Three route adoption alternatives and the No-
Action/No-Project Alternative are under consideration. For the purposes 
of a route adoption, each alternative is 1,000 feet wide.
    Alternative 1 extends approximately 48 miles across the valley, 
beginning at a point where a direct westerly extension of Belmont 
Avenue would intersect Interstate 5 and generally follows existing 
State Route 180 until it reaches a connection with the existing State 
Route freeway terminus at Brawley Avenue. This alternative contains 
three variations that were developed to bypass or provide access to 
affected communities.
    Alternative 2 extends approximately 49 miles across the valley, 
beginning at a point where a direct westerly extension of Belmont 
Avenue would intersect Interstate 5 and follows the same alignment at 
Alternative 1 until just east of State Route 33. It then travels 
northeasterly to generally follow the McKinley Avenue, Belmont, and 
Nielsen Avenue alignments as it travels east to join the existing State 
Route 180 freeway.
    Alternative 3 extends approximately 50 miles across the valley. 
This alternative begins at an existing interchange on Interstate 5 at 
Shields Avenue and runs eastward 18 miles to State Route 33, north of 
Mendota. From here, the route continues eastward generally paralleling 
to the south of the San Joaquin River/Madera County line. The route 
veers southeasterly to coincide with Alternative 2 for the remainder of 
the alignment. The No-Action/No-Project Alternative would result in no 
action being taken.
    (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 14, 2011.
Maiser Khaled,
Acting Director, State Programs, Federal Highway Administration, 
Sacramento, California.
[FR Doc. 2011-6374 Filed 3-17-11; 8:45 am]
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