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Project Title:
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Review of U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Study and Implementation of Changes to the Section 4(f) Process
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PIN:
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SASP-P-07-01-A
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Major Unit:
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Transportation Research Board
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Sub Unit:
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Studies and Special Programs Division
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RSO:
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Huey, Beverly
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Subject/Focus Area:
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Project Scope
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Pursant to the USDOT Act of 1966, the transportation regulatory review process known as "Section 4(f)" protects the taking of land from significant publicly owned parks, recreation areas, wildlife refuges, and historic properties for transportation projects unless a feasible and prudent alternative is not available. In 2005 transportation reauthorization legislation, Congress made two important changes to the Section 4(f) process. First, it simplified and streamlined the approval of certain uses of properties covered under 4(f) that are determined to have "de minimis" impacts. Second, it required the USDOT to issue regulations that clarify the factors and standards to be applied in determining the feasibility and prudence of avoidance alternatives. Implementation of these provisions will require USDOT to make trade-offs that are controversial. As required by Congress, a USDOT study (conducted by a contractor) will evaluate the impact of implementing these provisions.
An ad hoc committee operating under the auspices of the TRB will review the design of, and the final report for, the USDOT study of the implementation of the revised Section 4(f) process. The committee will not evaluate whether regulatory decisions made by USDOT regarding 4(f) projects under the new law are appropriate; rather, its role is limited to (a) advice on the study design for appropriate methodology and data collection for evaluating impacts and (b) review of the final report of the study to determine whether the findings and associated conclusions therein are justified by the data collected and methods applied in interpreting the data. The pertinent technical questions for the committee would involve items such as what data should be collected, how impacts should be measured, which parties should be interviewed, how cases are selected for consideration, and so forth. The review of the study itself would involve determinations about whether the conclusions are supported by evidence presented in the USDOT report.
The project is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Highway Administration.
The start date for the project is February 2008. During the course of this activity, the committee is expected to issue three letter reports – the first in approximately 4 months (~May 2008); the second in approximately 12 months (~Feb. 2009); and the third in approximately 20 months (~Dec. 2009).
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Project Duration:
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20 months
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Provide FEEDBACK on this project.
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Contact the Public Access Records Office to make an inquiry, request a list of the public access file materials, or obtain a copy of the materials found in the file.
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Tel:
202.334.2000