Q_A Document 1 (41).pdf
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- Attached to
- 3rd Party Transportation Operator
- Solicitation number
- PE-64800-NONST-2025-000000058
- Issued by
- Douglas County, Georgia
About this file
This is a Questions and Answers document for Solicitation 25-024 issued by Douglas County for a third-party transportation operator (TPO) to manage transit operations for Connect Douglas. The scope encompasses the operation of four peak routes and deviated-fixed routes, requiring the TPO to provide staffing including drivers, utility/service personnel, and management personnel. The RFP requires the submission of a Bid Certification form (Attachment 1) and a separate Cost Proposal envelope. Key operational details clarified include that routes are available on the Connect Douglas website, the service operates from a facility located at 8800 Dorris Rd that is shared with Connect Douglas staff but physically separated, and the TPO is responsible for creating and submitting driver training materials for County approval. The County maintains all vehicles at its fleet facility and is responsible for vehicle maintenance; vehicles are housed in a fenced and secure area adjacent to the MMTC when not in service. The service commenced in June 2019 under the current TPO arrangement.
This is a cost reimbursement contract in which all employees are W-2 employees of the TPO, not a management fee or turnkey arrangement. The bid bond requirement is 5 percent of the total bid submitted. The TPO is responsible for arranging and paying for its own background checks, drug and alcohol testing for employees, though the County will pull motor vehicle records (MVRs) as a precaution before authorizing drivers. Performance standards require 92 percent on-time performance measured per route monthly, with performance penalties assessed if standards are not met; vendor responsibility for on-time performance excludes scenarios involving County-provided bus breakdowns. The contract is race-neutral with no defined DBE or SBE participation goals. No liquidated damages have been assessed to the current TPO since service began in June 2019, operators are not represented by unions, and no Section 13(C) Protective Arrangements exist. The County will provide capital assets including transit and non-revenue vehicles on an as-needed basis, and desks, cubicles, and computers purchased with FTA funds will remain at the facility.
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Questions & Answers - 1
Solicitation 25-024 - 3rd Party Transportation Operator
Buying Organization Douglas County
No Question/Answer Question Date
Q1 Question: Vehicles & Maintenance
We understand the County will be responsible for the maintenance of vehicles. Where are vehicles maintained? Will the contractor use this facility as their depot?
Answer: There is a fleet facility that services all the county vehicles and Connect Douglas has 2 bay areas for servicing the bus fleet at this location. The vehicles are not housed there unless they are in for repairs and are instead located in a fenced and secure area adjacent to the MMTC.
09/22/2025
Q2 Question: Pricing Form
Can Connect Douglas please furnish any required pricing form to be completed with the proposal?
Answer: Everything related to pricing is included in the RFP. All pricing shall be uploaded in the second envelop labeled "Cost Proposal"
09/22/2025
Q3 Question: Pricing Format
Can Connect Douglas clarify whether respondents should be proposing a management fee and/or a turnkey, hours-based approach to pricing?
Answer: It is not a management contract. It is a cost reimbursement contract. All employees are W-2 employees for the TPO
09/22/2025
No Question/Answer Question Date
Q4 Question: TrendTech Logistics - Questions
Operations & Staffing
Can you provide a map for these routes?
Will Douglas County provide access to its existing driver training materials, or must the vendor develop a new training program from scratch?
For driver background checks and drug/alcohol testing, will the County designate a testing facility/vendor, or is the awarded contractor responsible for procuring its own services?
Fleet Management Software/App
Does Douglas County currently have a fleet management application in place for monitoring vehicles, maintenance scheduling, or performance reporting?
Previous Bid Tabulation
Can the County provide the bid tabulation from the most recent procurement of third-party operator services for Connect Douglas, including the names of proposers and their proposed costs?
Previous Solicitation Reference
Could you provide the solicitation number (or RFP/RFQ reference) for the prior Connect Douglas Third-
Party Operator contract?
Subcontracting & DBE
Is there a defined DBE or SBE participation goal for this contract?
Performance & Risk
How will performance penalties be assessed if on-time performance falls below the 92% standard—per route, per month, or across the entire system?
In the event of a County-provided bus breakdown, will the vendor still be held responsible for on-time performance penalties, or will these be excluded from performance calculations?
What role does the vendor play in emergency response support (e.g., evacuations, disaster declarations)? Is there a separate pay structure for this service, or must it be absorbed under the base contract?
09/24/2025
Answer: Operations & Staffing Can you provide a map for these routes?
Routes are available on the Connect Douglas website.
Will Douglas County provide access to its existing driver training materials, or must the vendor develop a new training program from scratch?
Third party operator would create and submit to us for approval all training materials
For driver background checks and drug/alcohol testing, will the County designate a testing facility/vendor, or is the awarded contractor responsible for procuring its own services?
The company is responsible for their own background, drug, and alcohol testing on their employees.
County will pull MVRs before authorizing them to drive as a precaution.
Fleet Management Software/App Does Douglas County currently have a fleet management application in place for monitoring vehicles, maintenance scheduling, or performance reporting?
Yes. County does all maintenance on the vehicles
Previous Bid Tabulation Can the County provide the bid tabulation from the most recent procurement of third-party operator services for Connect Douglas, including the names of proposers and their proposed costs?
This information has to be obtained via FOIA/ORR from records.
Previous Solicitation Reference Could you provide the solicitation number (or RFP/RFQ reference) for the prior Connect Douglas Third-Party Operator contract?
This information has to be obtained via FOIA/ORR from records.
Contract is race neutral
Performance & Risk How will performance penalties be assessed if on-time performance falls below the
92% standard—per route, per month, or across the entire system?
Per route
In the event of a County-provided bus breakdown, will the vendor still be held responsible for on-time performance penalties, or will these be excluded from performance calculations?
There is a response for breakdown scenarios that the company will be responsible for.
Q5 Question: Liquidated Damages
Can the City please provide a history of liquidated damages assessed on the current contractor?
Answer: There have been no liquidated damages assessed to the TPO since the service began in
June 2019.
09/29/2025
Q6 Question: Unionized?
Are current operators/staff represented by a Union? If so, can the County please provide the most recent collective bargaining agreement (CBA)?
Answer: None of the operators or staff for the TPO are represented by a union and there has been no history or meetings concerning collective bargaining since the system began in June of 2019
09/30/2025
Q7 Question: Protective Arrangements
Can you please furnish any existing 13(C) Protective Arrangements and associated side letters or other that pertain to the transit operations?
Answer: None exist
09/30/2025
Q8 Question: Estimated Budget
Can the County provide an estimated budget for the scope of services outlined in the RFP?
Answer: The scope of the RFP is a portion for the selection process and will not be provided over and above what is in the RFP
09/30/2025
Q9 Question: Vehicle Inventory
Please provide a vehicle inventory, including make, model, year, mileage, fuel type, capacity
(ambulatory, wheelchair), and replacement plan.
Answer: Cannot copy and paste over into this format using this website. Recommend an ORR or FOIA
09/30/2025
Q10 Question: Facilities
Please provide the address for the current facility/facilities used to operate the service. Can additional information about these facilities be furnished (e.g,. Address, size, floorplan, zoning, equipment, charging infrastructure)?
Answer: 8800 Dorris Rd is the location and it is a shared location with Connect Douglas Staff but separated by keypad. Desks, cubicles, computers purchased with FTA funds and would remain.
09/30/2025
Q11 Question: Deviated-fixed routes
Can the County confirm which 4 deviated-fixed routes are included in the scope of the RFP?
Answer: Those are not deviated they are peak routes
10/01/2025
Q12 Question: Utility Services
p. 16 - Utility/service personnel are not currently employed by the Contractor but is included as a component to be provided in this RFP.
If available, please provide additional detail regarding responsibilities and services that are requested for these persons; please confirm if vehicle cleaning/washing is part of this requirement.
Answer: Per the RFP, utility/service personnel responsibilities do include vehicle cleaning and washing.
Our proposal accounts for this requirement and staff will be assigned to ensure that buses are cleaned and maintained in accordance with the standards outlined in the solicitation. In addition to vehicle cleaning/washing, utility/service personnel will also be available to assist with other operational and support tasks as specified in the RFP.
10/01/2025
Q13 Question: Attachment 1
Please confirm that Attachment 1 is the Bid Certification form (from p. 55 of RFP), as that title conflicts with, p. 48 of the RFP which indicates that the Reference Form is Attachment 1: "C. Reference
(Attachment 1)”.
Answer: Attachment 1 is the Bid Certification however, please provide the information requested in "C" on page 48 entitled "References."
10/01/2025
Q14 Question: Non-Revenue Vehicle - Manager p.16 – The RFP states, “The County will provide the capital assets for Connect Douglas to include transit revenue and non-revenue vehicles.” At this time, the county provides (2) vehicles for road supervisors, while the vehicle for business-related and operational functions for managers is provided by the Contractor. Please clarify if the County will provide a management vehicle for these purposes going forward.
Answer: The County will provide the capital assets for Connect Douglas to include transit revenue and non-revenue vehicles and some capital equipment on a as needed basis to support the operations.
10/01/2025
Q15 Question: p. 55 Attachment 1 Bid Certification
Could you please confirm which section in Bidnet we should use to upload Attachment 1 – Bid
Certification (p.55 of the RFP), since the available section titles do not exactly match the document’s title?
Answer: Add the information to "Company Information"
10/01/2025
Q16 Question: Bid Bond Amount
Could you please confirm whether the bid bond amount to be submitted in the 'Bid Bond' section of the
Bidnet document upload site remains $75,000?
Answer: The bid bond is 5% of the total bid submitted.
10/01/2025
Questions & Answers - 1
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