Questions and Answers.pdf

Request for Proposals 2026-2027 Atlanta Regional Transit On-Board Survey

Questions and Answers

1. Q. Given the structure of the RFP:

1.1 Is there supposed to be a task 8?

Answer: Task 7 is now Task 8

1.2. Under what tasks should data processing and expansion be captured?

Answer: Task 7 on survey data processing, weighting, and expansion is included in the revised RFP

1.3. Is ARC requesting a traditional static report, including a methodology section, and if so, what task should this be captured?

Answer: A traditional static report, including a methodology section, is requested and should be captured in task 7

2. Q. Please provide the system level average weekday ridership for MARTA Rail, ATL’s Xpress, CobbLinc, Connect Douglas, and Ride Gwinnett.:

Answer: The table below reflects October 2025 average weekday boardings by system and mode except for the Streetcar which was out of service during October 2025 and ridership from June 2025 is reflected:

Average Weekday Ridership by System and Mode in Metro Atlanta

MARTA Rail Station Entries 70,653 MARTA Streetcar Boardings 1,108 MARTA Bus Boardings 111,145 ATL XPRESS Boardings 3,064 CobbLinc Boardings 6,468 Connect Douglas Boardings 221 Ride Gwinnett Boardings 4,411 Total 197,070

3. Q. For MARTA bus, please provide the system level average weekday ridership at the route level.:

Answer: The following table reflects an average weekday boardings by route during October 2025:

Route Name Boardings

1 Marietta Blvd / Joseph E Lowery Blvd 620 2 Ponce de Leon Avenue / Druid Hills 847 3 Martin Luther King Jr Dr/Auburn Ave 345 4 Moreland Avenue 495 5 Piedmont Road / Sandy Springs 2,826 6 Clifton Road / Emory 1,002 8 North Druid Hills Road 705 9 Boulevard / Tilson Road 571 12 Howell Mill Road / Cumberland 1,427 14 14th Street / Blandtown 552 15 Candler Road 2,073 19 Clairmont Road / Howard Avenue 976 21 Memorial Drive 1,435 24 McAfee / Hosea Williams 483 25 Peachtree Boulevard 234 26 Marietta Street / Perry Boulevard 767 27 Cheshire Bridge Road 455 30 LaVista Road 694 32 Bouldercrest 1,014 34 Gresham Road 586 36 North Decatur Road / Virginia Highland 624 37 Defoors Ferry Road 580 39 Buford Highway 4,389 40 Peachtree Street / Downtown 503 42 Pryor Road 627 47 I-85 Access Road 654 49 McDonough Boulevard 959 50 Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway 1,815 51 Joseph E Boone Boulevard 1,934 55 Jonesboro Road 1,697 58 Hollywood Road / Lucile Avenue 660 60 Hightower Road 1,003 66 Lynhurst Drive / Princeton Lakes 1,150 68 Benjamin E Mays Drive 945 71 Cascade Road 2,349

73 Fulton Industrial 3,120 74 Flat Shoals Road 945 75 Lawrenceville Highway 544 78 Cleveland Avenue 2,586 79 Sylvan Hills 537 81 Venetian Hills / Delowe Drive 603 82 Camp Creek / South Fulton Parkway 1,384 83 Campbellton Road 3,854 84 Washington Road / Camp Creek Marketplace 1,502 85 Roswell 673 86 Fairington Road 1,435 87 Roswell Road / Sandy Springs 1,378 89 Old National Highway 3,313 93 Headland Drive / Main Street 641 94 Northside Drive 690 95 Metropolitan Parkway 2,024 102 North Avenue / Little Five Points 923 103 Peeler Road 234 104 Winters Chapel Road 209 107 Glenwood 1,425 110 Peachtree Road / Buckhead 2,860 111 Snapfinger Woods 1,223 114 Columbia Drive 823 115 Covington Highway 1,941 116 Redan Road 1,216 117 Rockbridge Road / Panola Road 2,011 119 Hairston Road / Stone Mountain Village 895 120 East Ponce De Leon Avenue 1,118 121 Memorial Drive / North Hairston Road 2,705 123 Church Street 193 124 Pleasantdale Road 978 125 Clarkston 1,293 126 Embry Hills 536 132 Tilly Mill Road 316 133 Shallowford Road 349 140 North Point Parkway 381 141 Haynes Bridge Road / Milton 518 142 East Holcomb Bridge Road 55 143 Windward Park & Ride 205 148 Mount Vernon Highway 54

150 Dunwoody Village 160 153 James Jackson Parkway 690 155 Pittsburgh 488 162 Myrtle Drive / Alison Court 1,012 165 Fairburn Road 1,245 172 Sylvan Road / Virginia Avenue 816 178 Empire Boulevard / Southside Industrial Park 819 180 Roosevelt Highway 1,185 181 Washington Road / Fairburn 2,070 183 Greenbriar 585 185 Alpharetta 682 186 Rainbow Drive / South DeKalb 1,461 188 Oakley Industrial 153 189 Flat Shoals Road / Scofield Road 1,097 191 Riverdale / ATL International Terminal 1,328 192 Old Dixie / Tara Boulevard 1,258 193 Morrow / Jonesboro 1,792 194 Conley Road / Mt Zion 1,079 195 Forest Parkway 796 196 Upper Riverdale 2,818 197 Battle Creek Road 426 198 Southlake Parkway 164 221 Memorial Drive Limited 181 295 Metropolitan Campus Express 56 800 Lovejoy 427 809 Monroe Drive / Boulevard 549 813 Atlanta University Center 255 816 North Highland Avenue 212 823 Belvedere 90 825 Johnson Ferry Road 79 832 Grant Park 298 850 Carroll Heights / Fairburn Heights 99 853 Center Hill 389 856 Baker Hills / Wilson Mill Meadows 138 865 Boulder Park Drive 73 867 Peyton Forest / Dixie Hills 282 899 Old Fourth Ward 207

4. Q. For MARTA bus, please provide the weekday vehicle and/or service hours at the route level along with the garage / division name this route primarily functions from.:

Answer: The following table reflects the requested information reflecting October 2025:

Route Name Division Service

Hours Total Hours

1 Marietta Blvd / Joseph E Lowery Blvd Perry 30.5 38.4 2 Ponce de Leon Avenue / Druid Hills Laredo 29.4 49.8 3 Martin Luther King Jr Dr/Auburn Ave Perry 29.5 38.7 4 Moreland Avenue Laredo 24.6 39.1 5 Piedmont Road / Sandy Springs Perry 97.7 136.8 6 Clifton Road / Emory Laredo 39.3 64 8 North Druid Hills Road Laredo 33.3 43.6 9 Boulevard / Tilson Road Laredo 43.8 58.6 12 Howell Mill Road / Cumberland Perry 71.9 95.1 14 14th Street / Blandtown Perry 25.2 39.1 15 Candler Road Laredo 96.9 133 19 Clairmont Road / Howard Avenue Laredo 54.3 67.5 21 Memorial Drive Laredo 60.2 75.7 24 McAfee / Hosea Williams Laredo 31.8 40.4 25 Peachtree Boulevard Laredo 16.5 24.5 26 Marietta Street / Perry Boulevard Perry 47.3 60.2 27 Cheshire Bridge Road Perry 28.7 40 30 LaVista Road Laredo 31.3 44.9 32 Bouldercrest Laredo 44.8 70.6 34 Gresham Road Laredo 31.6 42.5 36 North Decatur Road / Virginia Highland Laredo 41.6 56.2 37 Defoors Ferry Road Perry 27.6 36.9 39 Buford Highway Laredo 90.8 127 40 Peachtree Street / Downtown Perry 26.7 36.9 42 Pryor Road Hamilton 36.7 49.3 47 I-85 Access Road Laredo 26.1 41.4 49 McDonough Boulevard Hamilton 53.6 75.8 50 Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway Perry 43.8 60.5 51 Joseph E Boone Boulevard Perry 50.1 77 55 Jonesboro Road Hamilton 74.1 98.2 58 Hollywood Road / Lucile Avenue Perry 33.2 39.7 60 Hightower Road Perry 37.8 52.3

66 Lynhurst Drive / Princeton Lakes Perry 50.7 62 68 Benjamin E Mays Drive Perry 45.9 59.1 71 Cascade Road Perry 80.5 109.1 73 Fulton Industrial Perry 101.6 150.9 74 Flat Shoals Road Laredo 37.2 54.8 75 Lawrenceville Highway Laredo 27.5 35.6 78 Cleveland Avenue Hamilton 46 70.4 79 Sylvan Hills Hamilton 26.3 36.3 81 Venetian Hills / Delowe Drive Hamilton 40.5 52.5 82 Camp Creek / South Fulton Parkway Hamilton 59.9 78.5 83 Campbellton Road Hamilton 73.9 112.5 84 Washington Road / Camp Creek Marketplace Hamilton 43.4 65.4 85 Roswell Perry 33.7 52.3 86 Fairington Road Laredo 60.1 83.8 87 Roswell Road / Sandy Springs Perry 60.9 97.7 89 Old National Highway Hamilton 93.5 125 93 Headland Drive / Main Street Hamilton 32.5 38.7 94 Northside Drive Perry 29.7 42.8 95 Metropolitan Parkway Hamilton 59.4 83.6 102 North Avenue / Little Five Points Laredo 31 51.1 103 Peeler Road Laredo 16.9 23.1 104 Winters Chapel Road Laredo 8 13.3 107 Glenwood Laredo 82.7 103.8 110 Peachtree Road / Buckhead Perry 86.5 122.2 111 Snapfinger Woods Laredo 71.1 94.5 114 Columbia Drive Laredo 31.8 42.9 115 Covington Highway Laredo 69.3 99.3 116 Redan Road Laredo 59.4 89 117 Rockbridge Road / Panola Road Laredo 104.1 129.4 119 Hairston Road / Stone Mountain Village Laredo 44.8 58.6 120 East Ponce De Leon Avenue Laredo 49.6 70.1 121 Memorial Drive / North Hairston Road Laredo 94.8 123.1 123 Church Street Laredo 11.1 16.2 124 Pleasantdale Road Laredo 40.5 57.8 125 Clarkston Laredo 38.1 49.6 126 Embry Hills Laredo 23.2 36.1 132 Tilly Mill Road Laredo 12 16.8 133 Shallowford Road Laredo 16.9 33.3 140 North Point Parkway Perry 27.9 43.2 141 Haynes Bridge Road / Milton Perry 41.8 57.8

142 East Holcomb Bridge Road Laredo 14.9 24.3 143 Windward Park & Ride Perry 12.9 24.2 148 Mount Vernon Highway Perry 5.6 8.8 150 Dunwoody Village Perry 18.4 28.4 153 James Jackson Parkway Perry 22.7 30.8 155 Pittsburgh Hamilton 23.2 29.7 162 Myrtle Drive / Alison Court Hamilton 17.7 30 165 Fairburn Road Perry 42.9 65.5 172 Sylvan Road / Virginia Avenue Hamilton 31.3 43.3 178 Empire Boulevard / Southside Industrial Park Hamilton 25.5 39.1 180 Roosevelt Highway Hamilton 49.4 73.8 181 Washington Road / Fairburn Hamilton 80.2 105.3 183 Greenbriar Hamilton 28.2 39.7 185 Alpharetta Perry 43.9 61.3 186 Rainbow Drive / South DeKalb Laredo 61.8 99 188 Oakley Industrial Hamilton 11.4 15.6 189 Flat Shoals Road / Scofield Road Hamilton 48.6 61.6 191 Riverdale / ATL International Terminal Hamilton 64.4 81.7 192 Old Dixie / Tara Boulevard Hamilton 38.5 48.9 193 Morrow / Jonesboro Hamilton 80 101.2 194 Conley Road / Mt Zion Hamilton 48.6 59.6 195 Forest Parkway Hamilton 32.4 40.4 196 Upper Riverdale Laredo 75.2 110.3 197 Battle Creek Road Hamilton 25.5 33.8 198 Southlake Parkway Hamilton 18.4 26.3 201 Six Flags Over Georgia Perry 9.5 18.4 221 Memorial Drive Limited Laredo 10.3 14.2 295 Metropolitan Campus Express Hamilton 7 11.4 800 Lovejoy Hamilton 13.7 19.4 809 Monroe Drive / Boulevard Laredo 30.4 48.5 813 Atlanta University Center Perry 28.6 38.9 816 North Highland Avenue Laredo 30.7 38.8 823 Belvedere Laredo 12.7 16.8 825 Johnson Ferry Road Perry 9.8 17.5 832 Grant Park Hamilton 15.4 20.6 850 Carroll Heights / Fairburn Heights Perry 14.9 18.2 853 Center Hill Perry 28.5 39.5 856 Baker Hills / Wilson Mill Meadows Perry 13.5 15.9 865 Boulder Park Drive Perry 15.2 21.7 867 Peyton Forest / Dixie Hills Perry 17.4 23.8

899 Old Fourth Ward Laredo 10 16.8

5. Q. Is EXHIBIT B - PROPOSED PROJECT BUDGET available in an Excel format?

Answer: No. Only as provided in the RFP.

6. Q. Data Collection Methodology

6.1. Beyond in-person intercept surveys, is ARC open to incorporating hybrid or multimodal data collection approaches (e.g., mobile-based, passive, geospatial, or sensor-based inputs) as primary or supplementary methods to enhance coverage and reduce response bias?

Answer: This origin-destination intercept transit on-board survey should be designed to capture in-person answers to transit travel behavior survey questions at bus stops and MARTA train platforms using tablet PC technology via a 3-minute questionnaire

6.2. Are there constraints or preferences regarding participant-driven or mobile-based data collection platforms, particularly for reaching hard-to-survey or underrepresented populations?

Answer: This survey should be designed to randomly capture transit riders at bus stops and MARTA heavy rail platforms, while maximizing response rates by all population groups

6.3. Does ARC have expectations regarding real-time or near real-time data validation, monitoring, or dashboarding during field collection (e.g., automated flagging of inconsistencies)?

Answer: On-the-fly geocoding via tablet PC technology is expected while administering the survey

7. Q. Data Quality, QA/QC & AI Integration

7.1 What thresholds or benchmarks define acceptable data quality (e.g., accuracy, completeness, response rates, consistency, and outlier handling)?

Answer: A complete survey is one in which all questions have been answered, while minimizing data imputation

7.2 How does ARC expect QA/QC processes—including machine learning or automated validation methods—to be implemented, validated, and documented?

Answer: The proposal shall clearly identify a QA/QC process, including appropriate machine learning methods as deemed necessary

7.3 Are there requirements for explainability, auditability, or transparency of AI/ML models used for QA/QC, weighting, or anomaly detection?

Answer: Total transparency and full documentation of all survey methods are expected

8. Q. Survey Design, Sampling & Representativeness

8.1 Can ARC confirm target sample sizes (e.g., % of daily ridership) and any minimum thresholds by operator, route, or time period to ensure statistical validity?

Answer: 10% of daily ridership by operator, route, and time of day periods, across weekday workdays

8.2 Should sampling be proportionally distributed across operators, routes, time periods, and seasonal variations (e.g., peak/off-peak, events, weather)?

Answer: Survey sampling should be proportionally distributed across items listed in 3.7

8.3 Are there expectations for adaptive or dynamic sampling strategies during data collection (e.g., rebalancing based on interim results or low-response groups)?

Answer: Low-response rates should be closely monitored and addressed appropriately

8.4 How should trade-offs be handled between statistical precision and operational feasibility, particularly for underrepresented populations or low-response routes?

Answer: 10 Robust statistical representativeness across population groups should be closely monitored, quantified, and addressed appropriately

8.5 Does ARC have guidance on survey design elements such as maximum survey length, use of incentives, or required languages beyond English and Spanish?

Answer: Survey incentives, if deemed necessary, should be discussed with ARC staff at the appropriate time. Survey length should be around 3 minutes, and for short trips, those can be captured via a paper survey hand-out, or online. Surveys can be administered in English and/or Spanish. The proposal will identify how other languages can be accommodated.

9. Q. Data Integration, Modeling & Data Pipeline

9.1 Will ARC provide access to existing datasets (e.g., Breeze card, APC/AVL, GTFS), and what data access permissions, latency, and governance standards should be assumed?

Answer: GTFS data feeds are available online. Breeze, APC, and AVL might be available via MARTA

9.2 What level of flexibility is allowed in designing data pipelines for integration with ActivitySim and STOPS models, and are automated or reusable pipelines expected?

Answer: For ActivitySim, a Python-based data model is strongly suggested, such as Pydantic or Pandera. For the FTA STOPS model, the data pipeline should accommodate a synthetic and an incremental approach, while accounting for CTPP journey-to-work data

9.3 Are there preferred data formats, schemas, APIs, or interoperability standards for integrating and delivering datasets?

Answer: Data schemas should include structured (CSV), semi-structured (JSON, XML) and/or unstructured (PDF, images)

9.4 Are there baseline models, benchmarks, or alignment requirements that proposers should consider?

Answer: Familiarity with ARC’s travel demand models is strongly encouraged

10. Q. Visualization, Dashboards & Deliverables

10.1 Does ARC expect interactive dashboards, real-time visualization tools, or static reporting deliverables—or a combination of both?

Answer: A combination

10.2 Who are the primary end users of deliverables (e.g., technical modelers, policymakers, public stakeholders), and should outputs be tailored to multiple audiences?

Answer: Multiple audiences

10.3 What level of documentation, reproducibility, and reporting frequency is expected for deliverables?

Answer: Monthly

11. Q. Survey Execution & Field Operations

11.1 What coordination will ARC provide with transit operators, and are there operational constraints such as security, permitting, working hours, or access requirements?

Answer: This should all be addressed and articulated in the proposal

11.2 Are there expectations regarding interviewer staffing levels, training, monitoring, and deployment across multiple transit systems?

Answer: The selected consultant will need to properly train all surveyors , as well as assign and manage staffing resources

12. Q. Pilot & Supplemental Survey Requirements

12.1 What are ARC’s expectations for pilot testing (e.g., success criteria, sample size, duration, and iteration cycles)?

Answer: The pilot / pre-test needs to be adequately detailed in the proposal

12.2 For the supplemental tour diary survey, should the sample be representative or targeted, and what methodologies (e.g., mobile, web, interview) and tracking requirements are expected?

Answer: The supplemental tour diary will be a sub-sample of the survey, handled as a voluntary follow-up online survey

13. Q. Subcontracting & Teaming

13.1 Are there preferred roles or expectations for subcontractors (e.g., data collection, analytics, technology), and how will their expertise be evaluated relative to the prime contractor?

Answer: The prime contractor remains responsible for the performance of the subcontractors

13.2 Are there any limitations or expectations regarding the proportion of work performed by subcontractors?

Answer: None

14. Q. Data Governance, Privacy & Security

14.1 What are the requirements for data privacy, PII handling, anonymization, security standards, and data ownership—particularly when integrating multiple data sources (survey, passive, and third-party data)?

Answer: The contractor will explain in the proposal how they will ensure privacy and anonymization of survey respondents. ARC will take ownership of all survey materials, documentation, and accompanying datasets generated by this survey