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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 165 / Monday, August 30, 2021 / Notices The Federal Transit Administration, as lead Federal agency, and the Niagara Frontier Transit Metro System, Inc. Metro, as local project sponsor and joint lead agency intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement EIS to evaluate potential benefits and impacts of the NFTA
proposed Buffalo-Amherst-Tonawanda Corridor Transit Expansion project the Proposed Project. The Proposed Project to be evaluated in the EIS would expand high quality transit service in Buffalo, New York to Tonawanda and Amherst, New York. FTA, in coordination with Metro will prepare the EIS in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act NEPA, the Fixing Americas Surface Transportation Act FAST Act, and the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act, Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law and its implementing regulations SEQR. This Notice of Intent NOI initiates public scoping for the EIS, and provides information on the Proposed Project, the Projects purpose and need and the alternatives being considered for evaluation in the EIS. This NOI invites public comments on environmental impacts that may be associated with the Proposed Project and alternatives. Interested members of the public, tribes, and agencies are invited to submit comments on the proposed scope of the EIS, Metros purpose and need, the identification of alternatives to be considered, the environmental benefits and impacts to be evaluated, and any other projectrelated issues or analysis. In consideration of the Federal Governments COVID19 Emergency Declaration dated March 13, 2020, FTA
has determined that virtual public meetings and hearings are a permissible and useful tool to provide for public involvement in the NEPA process.
DATES: The 45-day public scoping period will begin on the date of publication of this Notice and continue through October 14, 2021. Written comments may be submitted in hard copy via mail, electronically via email, and through the project website to the addresses listed in ADDRESSES below.
Although the public can send comments through the mail, due to the COVID19
national emergency, we recommend using the other communication methods to provide any scoping comments.
Metro will conduct one scoping meeting for this project to provide an opportunity for public comment. A
livestreamed virtual public scoping meeting will be held on September 15, 2021, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Registration information and instructions for
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participating in the livestream virtual scoping meeting are available at http
www.nftametrotransitexpansion.com along with the scoping information report. Individuals who require special assistance, such as translation, captioning, or signing services, to participate in the scoping meetings should make the request by calling 716
8557382 or emailing planing@nfta.com by September 7, 2021.
To ensure consideration during the development of the EIS, written comments on the scope of the EIS must be submitted by 4:00 p.m. on October 14, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Please send written comments to: Expansion Project, c/o Service Planning, Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, 181 Ellicott Street, Buffalo, NY 14203, by email to planning@nfta.com or through the project website: http www.nftametro transitexpansion.com. Information about the Proposed Project, scoping, and the EIS will be available on the projects website.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Donald Burns, FTA Director of Planning and Program Development, Email:
Donald.Burns@dot.gov; Telephone:
212 6682203.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Proposed Project. Metro is proposing to expand high quality transit in the Buffalo-Amherst-Tonawanda Corridor.
The build alternatives being considered include a light rail transit LRT
extension and a bus rapid transit BRT
system. Both alternatives would essentially follow the same alignment and would be primarily at-grade. Ten stations, two with park & ride facilities and an overnight storage and light maintenance facility are proposed for both alternatives. Metro intends to seek financial support for the project from the United States Department of Transportation, including FTA funding.
The Project is included in the Greater Buffalo and Niagara Regional Transportation Councils GBNRTC
2050 long-range plan as regionally significant.
Purpose of and Need for the Proposed Project. The Proposed Projects primary purpose is to provide a fast, reliable, safe, and convenient transit ride and link established and emerging activity centers along the existing Metro Rail line in Buffalo with existing and emerging activity centers in Amherst and Tonawanda. The Project would serve existing Metro riders, attract new transit patrons, improve regional connections between Buffalo, Amherst, and Tonawanda, and support redevelopment and other economic
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development opportunities.
Additionally, the Proposed Project would improve livability by increasing mobility and accessibility in communities throughout the region. The need for enhanced, equitable and sustainable transit service has three main components: 1 To serve existing and future travel demand generated by recent, pending, and future regional development; 2 to provide high-quality regional transit service; and 3 to better serve transit-dependent population segments.
Scoping. The NEPA scoping process has specific objectives, one of which is to identify the build alternatives significant issues that will be examined in detail in the EIS. Previously, consistent with NEPA and in accordance with FTA guidance, in 2017, Metro conducted an AmherstBuffalo Alternatives Analysis AA to identify a Locally Preferred Alternative LPA, a light rail extension in 2017.
Subsequently, Metro, as lead agency, completed an environmental review process on the LPA in accordance with the SEQR in 2020. A scoping process designed to meet NEPA requirements was conducted in 2018 and a SEQR
Draft EIS SEQR DEIS was released in January 2020. Metro conducted two public hearings in February 2020 to provide an opportunity for the public and local agencies to provide comments and input to the SEQR DEIS. The findings of the SEQR DEIS, the written and oral comments received during the SEQR public hearings and comments received during the SEQR DEIS 60-day public comment period will inform the development of the NEPA DEIS and be considered by FTA during the NEPA
scoping process. For this phase of the Proposed Project, the NEPA Scoping Information Packet released with the NOI can be found on the project website.
Screening of Potential Alternatives.
As described in the previous section, potential alternatives were developed and evaluated through a local planning process including the GBNRTCs metropolitan long-range transportation plan, the AA, and previously published SEQR DEIS. The AA involved a threetiered screening and evaluation methodology that started with 36
alignment and mode alternatives. The modes considered were LRT, BRT, preferential bus and enhanced bus. The LPA was adopted by Metros Board of Commissioners and the GBNRTC based on the technical analysis results and feedback from stakeholders and the public. The LPA and further refined during the development of the SEQR
DEIS.

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