2024-01-31_MBTA_Secure Bike Parking and Access Control Systems RFI.pdf

MASSACHUSETTS BAY TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY

Secure Bike Parking and Access Control Systems

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION 21-24

Commbuys Bid# BD-24-1206-40000-40000-97690

Contact Person:

Ray Wise Sr. Director Procurement Operations Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority 10 Park Plaza Boston, MA 02116 rwise@mbta.com

ISSUE DATE: 1/31/2024

Please Note: This is a single document associated with a Request for Information (RFI) that can be found on www.COMMBUYS.com. Interested parties are responsible for reviewing and adhering to all information, forms and requirements for the RFI. Bidders may also contact the COMMBUYS Helpdesk at COMMBUYS@state.ma.us or the COMMBUYS Helpline at 1-888-MA-STATE. The Helpline is staffed from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday through Friday Eastern Standard or Daylight time, as applicable, except on federal, state and Suffolk county holidays.

mailto:rwise@mbta.com http://www.commbuys.com/ mailto:COMMBUYS@state.ma.us

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

RFI #21-24 / COMMBUYS Bid# BD-24-1206-40000-40000-97690

Purchasing Department MBTA Procurement & Logistics Address 10 Park Plaza, Room 2810 City, State Zip Code Boston, MA 02116 Procurement Contact Person Ray Wise E-Mail Address rwise@mbta.com

A. Background

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) provides 1.2M weekday trips by subway, bus, ferry, commuter rail, and paratransit in 175 cities and towns in the greater Boston region. Systemwide, more than 80% of our customers walk or bike to our stations. Additionally, the MBTA operates 101 parking facilities near transit stations providing over 44,000 parking spaces. Of those customers who drive to stations, 30% live within 2 miles, and 50% live within 4 miles. Short first- & last-mile trips such as these present a significant opportunity for the MBTA to increase the percentage of people who access stations by bike and micromobility. Providing secure, reliable, and convenient bike and mobility parking at our stations is a critical piece of achieving modeshift for access to our system. Nearly all of our 253 stations have conventional bike racks; however, these are not a suitable or secure storage option for customers in many contexts. With the rapid evolution of micromobility devices from scooters and e-bikes to adaptive trikes and cargo bikes, we wish to provide secure parking solutions for customers regardless of the mobility device they use. Therefore, the Authority would like to understand more about options to upgrade and expand its bike parking offerings systemwide with new forms of infrastructure that are secure, smart, scalable, and well-maintained.

The MBTA’s existing secure bike parking infrastructure consists of approximately 25 bike cages or Pedal & Parks (P&P) which provide between 30 to 180 bike parking spaces at select stations systemwide. These facilities are custom-built, owned, operated, and maintained primarily by the MBTA. Security features include a caged enclosure, cameras, lighting, police call boxes, and card-based access control. User access is controlled by Honeywell ProWatch hardware and software. P&P access is granted by RFID card readers at each P&P, activated by MBTA fare cards registered in the system. As a result of the upcoming transformation of the MBTA fare system, all fare media will soon operate with NFC technology, rendering current RFID card readers at P&Ps obsolete. Therefore, P&P access control will also need to be upgraded or replaced to be compatible with our new fare media.

In order to take advantage of the moment, the MBTA is working with municipal partners to think more holistically about secure bike parking throughout the region, with the aim of developing a common system that utilizes deployments not only at MBTA transit stations, but also on municipal streets and spaces. As such, we would like to identify secure bike parking systems which are flexible, scalable, smart, and provide a common means of operation and access control whether users park at the train station, home, or work.

B. Objective mailto:rwise@mbta.com

To this end, the MBTA is seeking information on secure bike parking systems with integrated access control for potential installation at MBTA transit stations and municipal property throughout eastern Massachusetts. We are primarily interested in systems with small- to medium-sized modular units such as lockers, docks, or pods whose installations can be scaled to provide parking for approximately five to fifty devices depending on context. The desired product must utilize an access control system that can be retrofitted to the MBTA’s existing Pedal & Parks, replacing existing access control hardware and software with one that is more modern and extensible. The system must be easy to use for both users, operators, and owners, and must provide a convenient and secure way for users to leave their bicycles, micromobility devices, or strollers at transit stations and public rights of way or spaces for extended durations, whether for hours or days.

We would like to understand creative solutions for deployment within the public right of way. Potential questions to be addressed include: How might installations of your system provide flush sidewalk-level access when deployed in street-level curbside spaces? What considerations or opportunities exist for deployment of your system as part of neighborhood-scale mobility hubs or placemaking? What considerations should be taken into account for utility or solar connections for ROW-based installations?

We would also like to understand the typical cost and scope of operation/maintenance services and user support that can be provided with such systems on a local or regional scale, with multiple potential system owners or stakeholders. What is the scope of O&M support provided with your system? What sustainable commercial strategies might your system use to offset O&M costs? In your experience, how do various funding strategies such as advertising or user fees compare to one another, and how sustainable are these strategies over the long term?

C. Requested Information (RFI Response)

Response should be submitted in COMMBUYS and should address the following topics:

1. Secure Bike Parking Infrastructure

a. Solution description. Describe the size and nature of your solution, addressing at minimum the following points. Enclose photographs, drawings, and/or links as appropriate.

i. Do you utilize lockers, docks, pods, or some other approach

ii. How does your solution support storage of bicycles for people of all ages and abilities including conventional bikes, bakfiets-style cargo bikes, long-tail cargo bikes, and adaptive tricycles (an envelope up to appx. 3’ wide, 10’ long)

iii. How have you deployed in space-constrained locations?

iv. Is your solution scalable? Is your system able to expand and contract based on user demand or for utilization testing at specific locations?

b. Is your solution enclosed? How does it protect mobility devices from the elements?

i. How is your solution powered? Besides locking mechanisms, what lighting, charging, or other power-consuming capabilities does your solution offer?

c. Security. Describe the security your solution provides for bicycles including at minimum:

i. What integrated security measures (apart from personal bike locks) are part of your solution?

ii. How does your solution address access control? Do you currently utilize NFC-compliant closed-loop cards, contactless EMV cards, and/or mobile devices for access?

d. Systems and Integration. Explain the technology and usability features of your solution including:

i. How do users interact with your solution for functions like user registration, operation, and support?

ii. Are real-time/historical utilization data available for internal planning purposes and customer facing parking information? If so, what data are available and how are they accessed?

iii. Is your system able to connect to APIs for integration with the fare media systems (for use of fare media cards, integration with customer transit accounts, and fare payments across bike parking and other modes of transit)?

iv. Do you offer system components (e.g. access points and card readers) that can be deployed to existing MBTA Pedal & Parks?

2. Pedal & Park Access Control System

a. Access Control Description. Describe the access control offerings available with your solution. Enclose photographs, drawings, and/or links as appropriate.

b. Access Control integration. Describe how your access control integrates with other components, including:

i. How would your solution integrate with existing, legacy access control systems?

If desired, is it possible to retrofit existing P&Ps and other secure parking to your access control solution?

ii. What methods does your access control system utilize? Can it utilize MBTA-specific NFC-compliant fare media (via physical closed-loop cards (MBTA proprietary CharlieCard – DesFIRE), contactless EMV cards, and/or mobile devices for access?

iii. Does your access control system connect to APIs for integration with fare media system (for use of fare media cards, integration with customer transit accounts, and fare payments across bike parking and other modes of transit)?

iv. Can your access control system work with other access solutions, including the fare media readers used at fare gates across the system?

c. Access Control Data. Detail the real-time and historical access control data available, including data suitable for internal planning as well as customer-facing information.

3. Operations & Maintenance

a. Please describe standard or typical means of operation and maintenance for your secure bike parking products and access control systems.

b. Please provide examples of your experience with the operations and maintenance of secure bike parking infrastructure on a regional or local scale, including partners from multiple jurisdictions or organizations. Include detailed information about how the systems are maintained, including whether such tasks are performed by third parties.

4. Financial Considerations

a. Please provide representative pricing information for your solution, including standard or typical costs for operations and maintenance as applicable.

b. Please provide information on innovative commercial strategies that your system may utilize in order to fund O&M

c. Detail the options available for account-based pay-per-use

d. Describe the advertising space, if any, available as part of your solution.

5. Information Security (if applicable)

a. Briefly describe your information security controls and processes.

b. What types of Information Security certifications/attestations does your platform support/provide?

6. Software Accessibility. For any software that is part of your solution, please address the following questions:

a. Is your solution and included documentation complaint with the following: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1, levels A and AA? If not, in what areas is the solution noncompliant?

b. Does your solution have a completed Accessibility Compliance Report (ACR) from the latest version of the VPAT 2.1 (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) or equivalent?

If so, does the ACR include reporting for WCAG 2.1 levels A and AA (AAA optional) and Functional Performance Criteria (Section 508 requirements)?

D. Next Steps

Upon receipt of responses, the MBTA may request additional information or demonstration of system capability through email or virtual meeting.

Responses to this RFI will be used to understand current capabilities and determine the merits of moving forward with a Request for Proposal (RFP). If the decision is to move forward, the MBTA will develop and refine business requirements by July 1, 2024. Any RFP will be posted on COMMBUYS, and the MBTA will endeavor to notify all companies that respond to this RFI.

E. Procurement Calendar

Procurement Activity Date Time

RFI Published January 31, 2024

Deadline for Submission of Questions through COMMBUYS “Bid Q&A”

February 12, 2024

Response to Questions Posted Online February 15, 2024

Deadline for Bidder Responses (“Bid Opening Date/Time” in COMMBUYS)

March 5, 2024 3:00 p.m. EST

Bidders are required to monitor COMMBUYS for changes to the procurement calendar for this Bid.

F. Online Questions (Bid Q&A)

Written Questions must be entered by pressing the “Bid Q&A” tab for the Bid in COMMBUYS no later than the Questions Due date and time indicated in the Procurement Calendar (above). The MBTA reserves the right not to respond to questions submitted after this date. It is the Bidder’s responsibility to verify questions were successfully posted on COMMBUYS.

Written Responses to Questions will be posted on the Bid Q&A Tab in COMMBUYS on or about the “Response to Questions Posted Online” date indicated in the Procurement Calendar (above).

G. RFI Attachments

MBTA Bike Parking Inventory