City of Detroit Office of Contracting and Procurement (OCP)

Request for Quote 545204 – Bus Transportation Services

CITY OF DETROIT

OFFICE OF CONTRACTING AND PROCUREMENT

REQUEST FOR QUOTE

RFQ NO. 545204

BUS TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR

SUMMER FIELD TRIPS

Buyer: Marcy Wilson

EVENT / ACTIVITY DUE DATE / TIME

ADVERTISEMENT DATE Wednesday, April 8, 2026

QUESTIONS DUE Monday, April 13, 2026 on or before 4:00 PM

EST

All questions must be submitted online in the Supplier Portal

PRE-BID CONFERENCE None

ANSWERS DISTRIBUTED Wednesday, April 15, 2026 @ 4:00 PM

QUOTES DUE DATE * Monday, April 20, 2026 @ 4:00 PM EST In the Supplier Portal as specified in this RFQ.

* Respondents must register in Bonfire (EUNA Procurement) to download bid documents and submit bids. The City cannot guarantee the accuracy of any bid documents obtained from outside of Bonfire, and bids submitted outside of Bonfire will not be accepted. Detailed resources about registering and bidding, including video tutorials and live, virtual office hours, are available at www.detroitmi.gov/suppliersupport.

Questions about the specifics of this RFQ must be asked within the Bonfire Messages interface for the bid on or before the date and time indicated above. Questions asked via phone, email, and/or other means will not be answered.

Quotes must be uploaded in Bonfire on or prior to the date and time indicated above. Late and/or emailed quotes will not be accepted.

https://detroit.bonfirehub.com/ http://www.detroitmi.gov/suppliersupport

1. PROJECT REQUEST

The City of Detroit Office of Contracting and Procurement (OCP) requests quotes from qualified Respondents to render certain technical or professional services ("Services") as set forth in this RFQ to provide BUS TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR THE CITY OF DETROIT.

The General Services Department – Recreation Division is seeking qualified vendors to provide bus transportation services for summer field trips to various locations (Attachment B) within a one (1) hour drive and fifty (50) miles of the City of Detroit. Both charter and school bus types are acceptable, but school buses are preferred.

2. BACKGROUND/DESCRIPTION OF ENVIRONMENT

It is the responsibility of the Bidder to review General Conditions. In your quotation a distinction between dollars and cents must be made. Also, illegible bids may be grounds for rejection of your bid. All changes made to the bid form altering, price, terms, quote and/or conditions. MUST be crossed out and initialed. Failure to initial any changes will be grounds for rejection of your bid.

CORRECTION FLUID IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.

Each year, the City of Detroit Recreation Division provides transportation to youth, teens, adults, and seniors to different venues across the state of Michigan. The City of Detroit is invested in widening the horizon of its residents by providing transportation to these venues (field trips) in an affordable, safe way.

The bulk of the need for buses on this contract will be during Summer Camp season, which is June 22, 2026 and August 14, 2026 between the times of 9:00 am and 5:00 pm. Buses will be picking up at several different locations identified in the price sheet (Attachment C). Field trips are held at twelve (12) recreation centers one (1) day per week for eight (8) weeks. Buses are also needed throughout the remainder of the year on an as-needed basis.

This solicitation will be used to establish a contract for bus transportation services.

3. AWARD CLAUSE INCLUDING RENEWAL OPTIONS

If a contract is awarded as a result of this RFQ, it will be a City of Detroit Professional Services Contract (sample attached). This award shall be for a one (1) year period, with options to renew for three (3) additional one (1) year terms. Dates, times, and destinations for future years of transportation would be included in subsequent year renewal requests.

The City anticipates multiple awards as a result of the RFQ. The City requests the ability to purchase from any awarded bidder’s entire catalog of transportation services.

4. STATEMENT OF WORK

The Contractor shall provide transportation services for youth, Recreation Staff, and Chaperones to various field trip destinations within a 1-hour drive or fifty (50) miles of the City of Detroit. The majority of these services provided to multiple recreation facilities will be during Summer Camp season from June 22, 2026 to August 14, 2026, and as-needed throughout the rest of the year.

Pickup and drop-off locations for the summer of 2026 are included in the price sheet (Attachment C). Destinations will be determined at a later date but are at a not-to-exceed distance of fifty (50) miles or a drive time of one (1) hour from the pickup locations.

In the event of a Bus breakdown, the Contractor shall provide prompt replacement transportation to ensure that the schedule is met. The Contractor shall also be responsible for loss claims by passengers, and for baggage and equipment while stored onboard the Bus.

5. OPERATIONAL INFORMATION

Awarded Contractor(s) will work closely with City agency staff.

The Respondent is expected to provide service in accordance with the terms of the executed contract and under the rules, regulations, and supervision of the City.

Each Bus used in performing the Services shall be in compliance with applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines; including, but not limited to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR) and Michigan Vehicle Code (Act 300 of 1949), as amended.

*Contractor shall immediately notify the City of all incidents and all accidents involving its operations.

Services are not to be performed by a vehicle when the following conditions exist:

a) Inadequate yearly insurance (bids must include certification of insurance(s); and the Contractor shall submit insurance Certificate of Renewals prior to expiration of insurance during the contract period.

b) Vehicle not in compliance with FMCSR and Michigan Vehicle Code.

c) Vehicle’s operator not possessing a valid Michigan commercial driver's license

(CDL) with a passenger endorsement.

d) Vehicle operator impaired by drugs, alcohol or other medical condition that might prevent the safe operation of the vehicle.

6. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Vendors shall have two (2) years of experience providing transportation services.

Buses shall have a capacity of at least forty-eight (48) passengers.

7. TECHNICAL INFORMATION

N/A

8. QUESTION DEADLINE

All questions regarding the RFQ shall be submitted through the Supplier Portal no later than the time and date specified on the Cover Page. In the interest of transparency, only written questions will be accepted. Answers to questions will be posted within the Supplier Portal. The City of Detroit does not guarantee a response to questions not submitted after the question deadline.

Should a Respondent be in doubt as to the true meaning of any portion of this RFQ or find any patent ambiguity, inconsistency, or omission herein, the Respondent must make a written request for an official interpretation or correction in accordance with the instructions for submitting questions as specified in this RFQ.

http://www.michigan.gov/SIGMAVSS

Respondents are advised that no oral interpretation, information or instruction by an officer or employee of the City of Detroit shall be binding upon the City of Detroit.

Respondents requesting changes to the RFQs terms and conditions, specifications, quantities, etc.;

or if clarifications are needed, must make the request in writing by the stated bid submission deadline.

9. REJECTIONS, MODIFICATIONS, CANCELLATIONS

The City of Detroit expressly reserves the right to:

1) accept or reject, in whole or in part, any and all quotes received;

2) waive any non-conformity;

3) re-advertise for quotes;

4) withhold the award for any reason the City determines;

5) cancel and/or postpone the request for quotes, in part or in its entirety, and/or,

6) take any other appropriate action that is in the best interest of the City.

This RFQ does not commit the City of Detroit to award a contract, to pay any cost incurred in the preparation of a quotes under this request, or to procure or contract for services.

10. PROTESTS

Protests can be filed with the Office of Procurement. Interested parties aggrieved by a solicitation or the award of any resulting contract, may file written notice of protest to the following:

City of Detroit Chief Procurement Officer 2 Woodward Avenue, Suite 1008

Detroit, MI 48226 “Procurement Protest”

At a minimum, such protests shall include:

1) name of protestor.

2) solicitation/contract number and description; and

3) statement of grounds for protest (reference specific text in the solicitation, bid or contract document that is at issue).

The decision of the Chief Procurement Officer and/or the Department Director is final and is not subject to appeal.

11. BID BOND, PAYMENT & PERFORMANCE BOND (Construction) N/A

12. INVOICES

Vendors must be registered in City of Detroit Vendor Portal and be a registered vendor with the City of Detroit to submit invoices and receive payments. Go to http://www.detroitmi.gov/Supplier to register.

AUTHORIZATION TO COMMENCE WORK OR SHIP GOODS – READ

CAREFULLY!!!

http://www.detroitmi.gov/Supplier

Contractors may begin work or ship goods upon receipt of the required authorization, which is the CPA (Contract Purchase Agreement), in addition to SPO (Standard Purchase Order), from Procurement.

The CPA (City Council Approved and Awarded Contract Purchase Agreement) alone is NOT authorization to begin work! NO letter of Intent, or Letter to Commence Work will be issued.

**Work commencing without issuance of the SPO is subject to Payment Delays and/or Non- Payment! **

Required vendor steps to invoice:

1) Invoices should NOT be uploaded until the Contractor receives confirmation of review and approval from the City of Detroit.

2) Vendors should submit their invoices via City of Detroit Vendor Portal. Portal invoice amount and creation date must match the date on attached invoice. Please follow the below invoice requirements:

Invoice MUST contain or have as attachment:

• Vendor Name and address on Invoice

• Contact Info on Invoice (Accounts Receivable contact with phone and email)

• Remittance information (MUST be included, or the invoice is subject to rejection

• City of Detroit contact (person who authorized work to commence)

• Invoice Date

• Date of service/delivery

• Contract number

• Purchase order number

• Total Invoice amount

Other invoice requirements:

• Invoice must be billed based on Purchase Order rates

• Total invoice amount must tie to the total supporting documents

• Supporting documentation must be attached to the invoice in the portal

Terms are standard NET 30 Days, unless otherwise negotiated, and start from the invoice receipt date, provided that the invoice is submitted timely to our AP department with the necessary supporting documentation.

If you need assistance, please contact the Office of Departmental Financial Services (ODFS) 313- 410-7804.

13. PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE

The City’s experience with the bidder on previous contracts will be considered in determining the award. Past performance and experience may be factors in making the award.

14. MISCELLANEOUS

It shall be the responsibility of the Respondent to thoroughly familiarize themselves with the provisions of these specifications. After executing the contract, no consideration will be given to any claim of misunderstanding.

The Respondent agrees to abide by the rules and regulations as prescribed herein by the City as the same now exists or may hereafter from time to time be changed in writing.

Contractors are encouraged to contract with small and minority businesses, women's business enterprises, labor surplus area firms and Detroit businesses. The City strongly encourages the hiring of Detroit residents whenever possible by contacting Detroit At Work for your hiring needs. Visit the Detroit At Work website at www.detroitatwork.com for specific contact information regarding these opportunities.

GENERAL CONDITIONS

It is the responsibility of the Bidder to review General Conditions. In your quotation a distinction between dollars and cents must be made. Also, illegible bids may be grounds for rejection of your bid. All changes made to the bid form altering, price, terms, quote and/or conditions.

MUST be crossed out and initialed. Failure to initial any changes will be grounds for rejection of your bid. CORRECTION FLUID IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.

1. LOCAL PREFERENCE CONDITIONS

It is the responsibility of the Bidder to review the Local Preference Conditions attached to this bid and comply with all requirements therein.

2. MINOR DEVIATIONS

Specifications referred to herein are used to indicate desired type, and/or construction, and/or operation. Other products and/or services may be may be offered if deviations from specifications are minor and if all deviations are properly outlined and stated in the bid document. Failure to outline all deviations will be grounds for rejection of your bid.

The decision of the City of Detroit, acting through the Chief Procurement Officer, shall be final as to what constitutes acceptable deviations from specifications.

3. RENEWAL

The proposed agreement may be renewed with three (3) additional one (1) year terms. Both parties must agree to an extension under the same terms and conditions as exist in the then current contract.

4. AWARD (multiple) Multiple Awards will be made on a low bid basis, as determined by the City of Detroit based on contractor’s ability and equipment as described in the specification. Blank spaces are considered to be no offer. The City of Detroit reserves the right to delete any item(s) from the award. The City of Detroit reserves the right to limit the amount of the award per contractor.

http://www.detroitatwork.com/

4.01 STANDBY AWARD

The City of Detroit reserves the right to make an award to the second low bidder, on a standby basis. This vendor will be used in the event the successful bidder cannot furnish the quantities and /or services needed in accordance with the delivery requirements of the City of Detroit.

All awards are subject to Ordinance No. 15-00.

5. TERMINATION OF CONTRACT

At any time during the contract the City may terminate the agreement for reason of poor or deficient work performance, inability of the Contractor to reason of poor or deficient work performance, inability of the Contractor to supply trained competent technicians, or lack of service as described in this agreement by giving a 10-calendar day notice in writing. EITHER party may terminate the agreement by giving a 30-calendar day written notice to terminate.

6. TERMINATION OF CONTRACT

The City reserves the absolute right to terminate this contract in whole or in part, for the convenience of the City at its sole discretion on thirty (30) days written notice to the Vendor.

7. SPECIFICATION CHECK

We have read the specifications thoroughly and we:

( ) Are able to meet specifications without deviation.

( ) All deviations are properly outlined on an attached sheet marked ________________ for identification.

SIGNED: __________________________________________

TITLE: ___________________________________________

8. PRICE

Failure to complete the attached price sheet (Attachment C) and submit with your Bid shall result in your Bid being deemed non-responsive and rejected without any further evaluation. You can bid on all, or a portion of the items listed in the price sheet.

The price bid shall be all-inclusive which means that all related expenses shall be factored into the per bus unit price. Gas, Tolls, and Driver and other expenses are the Contractor’s responsibility and will not be reimbursed or paid for by the City of Detroit.

9. LITERATURE

Descriptive literature showing the unit’s dimensions and features must be included. If the size, capacity, or features of the unit, or any of its components are not clearly defined in the printed literature submitted with the Bid, the Bidder shall furnish supportive data in sufficient detail so that the unit may be checked for conformity to the specifications.

If any of the features or dimensions of the unit the Bidder proposes to furnish do not meet the specified requirements, the Bidder shall indicate such deviations n the space provided on the Bid Form. Failure to provide this information may result in rejection of your bid.

10. TERMS OF PAYMENT

A discount of _____% will be allowed for payment of invoice within thirty (30) days of delivery and acceptance of the above items and vendor's invoice. Other terms less than thirty (30) days, E,O,M., Proximo, etc., shall not be considered. Payment terms will not be considered in determining the award of the contract(s), except in the case of tie bids.

However, discounts may be offered to facilitate prompt payment.

The City of Detroit reserves the unqualified right to reject any bid, which includes a provision for a service charge levied by a vendor when payment by the City is not made within a specified time period.

This paragraph supersedes paragraph 4 of the General Conditions.

11. CONTRACT ACCEPTANCE

The successful bidder shall be notified of the execution of a contract by the City of Detroit upon issuance of a "Contract Award Notice" or a Purchase Order. The "Contract Award Notice" shall contain the date the contract award was approved.

The signed, accepted bid of the successful bidder will be the contract between the bidder and the City of Detroit, containing the full description of all contractual terms and conditions. A copy of your signed bid will not be mailed to you. Each bidder shall keep a copy of his/her signed bid form for future reference.

12. INSURANCE

12.01 The Contractor shall maintain at its expense during the term of this contract, the following insurance:

12.01.1 Worker’s Compensation insurance with Michigan statutory limits and Employer’s Liability insurance with limits of $500,000.00 each accident, $500,000.00 each disease, $500,000.00 each disease/each employee. For Federal and State Funded Training Programs and etc., is required to secure insurance for worker’s compensation for all of its participants and The City of Detroit should also be listed as an additional insured.

12.01.2 Commercial General Liability insurance with a combined single limits of

$1,000,000.00 per occurrence subject to a minimum aggregate limit of $2,000,000.00

12.01.3 Automobile Liability insurance covering all owned, hired and non-owned vehicles with personal protection insurance and property protection insurance to comply with the provisions of the Michigan No- Fault Insurance Act, including residual liability insurance with a minimum combined single limit of $1,000,000.00. Include MCS90 endorsement (if hazardous waste will be transported by vendor’s auto) with minimum property damage limits of $1,000,000.00 each occurrence.

12.02 If during the term of this contract, changed conditions or other pertinent factors, should in the reasonable judgment of the City, render inadequate the insurance limits, the Contractor will furnish on demand such additional coverage as may reasonably be required under the circumstances. All such insurance shall be effected at the contractor's expense, under valid and enforceable policies.

12.03 All policies shall name the Contractor as the insured and shall be accompanied by a commitment from the insurer that such policies shall not be canceled or reduced without at least thirty (30) days' prior notice to the City. The Commercial General Liability insurance policy shall name the City as an additional insured. Certificates of insurance evidencing such coverage shall be submitted to the Finance Department, Office of Contracting and Procurement, prior to the commencement of performance under this contract and at least fifteen (15) days prior to the expiration dates of expiring policies.

13. EQUALIZATION FACTOR

Per Section 17-5-12 (c)(1) of the Detroit City Municipal Code, “The bidder that makes the lowest bid, as evaluated or scored, shall be deemed the lowest equalized bidder. If the lowest equalized bid is evaluated or scored below the lowest responsible bid submitted, the lowest equalized bidder shall be awarded the contract, provided that, the contract awarded to such bidder shall not exceed, more than 12 percent above the lowest responsible bid submitted, or $100,000.00, whichever is less.”

The firm making the lowest responsive, responsible bid evaluated according to the Equalization Allowance Table* shall be deemed the lowest bidder. (see Equalization Credit Statement).

Vendors who wish to receive Equalization credit for bids submitted must submit their CRIO-issued Detroit Based Business certificate with their bid document to substantiate eligibility. The CRIO certificate must be submitted with each and every bid response submitted by the vendor. Failure to submit the CRIO certificate will result in equalization credit not being applied to your bid.

14. EXPERIENCE AND REFERENCES

Past performance and experience may be factors in making the award.

We have furnished goods and/ or services of a similar nature, as follows (Complete in entirety):

Company Address Phone Number Contact Name

15. ALTERNATE BID

Additional bids submitted on brands other than the brands referenced in the specification shall clearly be labeled (ALTERNATE). Alternate bids submitted will be at no cost to the city of Detroit. The decision of the City of Detroit, acting through the Chief Procurement Officer, shall be final as to what constitutes an acceptable alternate from specifications.

16. BID WITHDRAWAL

No bid shall be withdrawn for 120 days from submission deadline. Bidders may reduce this period if stated on bid, but such bids may be rejected on the basis of the reduced time period.

This paragraph supersedes paragraph 14 of the General Conditions.