RFP _ 13_23_24 Micro Transit Service FINAL.docx

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

RFP # 13-23-24

ON DEMAND MICRO TRANSIT SERVICES

FOR

THE CITY OF VALDOSTA

REQUESTED BY

PURCHASING DIVISION

216 E. CENTRAL AVE., SECOND FLOOR

P.O. BOX 1125

VALDOSTA, GA 31603-1125

PHONE 229-259-3525

tedwards@valdostacity.com

RELEASE DATE: APRIL 12, 2024

PROPOSAL DUE DATE: MAY 23, 2024

DUE TIME: 11:00 AM EST

NOTICE TO PROPOSERS

Authorized Agent

Please let the Purchasing Division know that your firm is going to submit a proposal by sending your company name, address, phone, contact, and email address via email to Teffany Edwards, Purchasing Agent to tedwards@valdostacity.com. This allows the City to assure that your company will receive any addendums or other substantial information with regards to the Request for Proposal (RFP).

Please be aware that private and public mail carriers are not always reliable on next day delivery in our area. Please assure your response is sent in plenty of time to reach us. As you know, late responses, faxed or emailed proposals will not be accepted. If you utilize the US Postal Service and mail your response to the post office box 1125 Valdosta, GA 31603. Private carries will deliver to the physical address but include “Purchasing, 2nd Floor”.

GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS

It is the intent of these specifications and scope of work to furnish the City of Valdosta with the following requisitioned equipment and/or services, according to the attached. It is clearly understood that the following information provided within this document is minimal and are made in order to provide a general idea into the equipment and/or services proposed. You are required to utilize your creativeness, expertise and understanding when submitting your proposal.

The City of Valdosta reserves the right to accept any or all conditions or to choose the proposer considered to be in their best interest.

Award will be made by the City of Valdosta Mayor and Council.

NO RFP WILL BE CONSIDERED IF RECEIVED AFTER THE DATE AND TIME SPECIFIED. THE CITY OF VALDOSTA CISCO PHONE SYSTEM CLOCK WILL BE USED AS THE OFFICIAL TIME STAMP. FAXED OR EMAILED COPIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

You must include the RFP number and company on the outside of your return envelope.

FUND APPORPRIATION CONTINGENCY

The proposer and the City recognize that the continuation of any contract after the close of any given fiscal year of the City of Valdosta shall be subject to the approval of the budget of the City of Valdosta providing the contract is an approved expenditure. The City does not guarantee that the expenditure will be actually adopted each year by Mayor and Council.

INDEMNIFY AND HOLD HARMLESS

Contractor further agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the City against (1) any and all losses, claims, damages, law suits and liabilities for any personal injury, death or property damage arising out of or as a consequence of any work performed pursuant to this contract, (2) any and all expenses related to claims or lawsuits resulting from the above including courts cost and attorney fees, (3) any and all penalties and damages incurred by reason of contractor’s failure to comply with any applicable laws, ordinances or regulations. Any court action or litigation will be performed in the State of Georgia.

INSTRUCTIONS TO PROPOSERS

NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT

The following affidavit is to accompany the bid:

Owner, Partner or Officer of Firm Company Name, Address, City and State Being of lawful age, being first duly sworn, on oath says that he/she is the agent authorized by the bidder to submit the attached bid. Affiant further states as bidder, that they have not been a party to any collusion among bidders in restraint of competition by agreement to bid at a fixed price or to refrain from bidding. Affiant also states as bidder, that they have not been a party to any collusion with any officer of the City of Valdosta or any of their employees as to quantity, quality or price in the prospective contract; and that discussions have not taken place between bidders and any office of the City of Valdosta or any of their employees concerning exchange of money or other things of value for special consideration in submitting a sealed bid for:

Subscribed and sworn to before me this ______ day of _____________________, 20____.

City of Valdosta Georgia Contractor Affidavit Contract Number and Name:

Contractor Name:

By executing this affidavit, the undersigned Contractor verifies its compliance with O.C.G.A. §13-10-91, stating affirmatively that the individual, firm, or corporation which is contracting with the City of Valdosta, Georgia has registered with and is participating in a federal work authorization program*, in accordance with the applicability provisions and deadlines established in O.C.G.A. 13-10-91.

(Contractor Name) Title of Authorized Officer or Agent of Contractor Printed Name of Authorized Officer or Agent

SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN

BEFORE ME ON THIS THE

____DAY OF _______________, 202__

_______________________________ [NOTARY SEAL]

Notary Public My Commission Expires:______________ *any of the electronic verification of work authorization programs operated by the United States Department of Homeland Security or any equivalent federal work authorization program operated by the United Sates Department of Homeland Security to verify information of newly hired employees, pursuant to the Immigration Reform and Contract Act of 1986 (IRCA), P. L. 99-603

I. TIMELINE & DECISION TO USE A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FORMAT

Staff for the City of Valdosta determined that in order to select the most advantageous proposal method for the delivery of on-demand transportation services for the City of Valdosta, comparative judgments of technical factors will be necessary. The City believes an advantageous proposer must be able to use state-of-the-art technology, have experience transporting customers with special needs, and provide a quality and high level of service to meet the City’s and end user’s expectations.

The RFP process will allow the City to assign comparative ratings to and enable the City to select a proposer based on the extent of their experience, project management abilities, service and technology features, training, and service levels, and reporting and data as explained later in the document under the EVALUATION COMPARATIVE CRITERIA heading in Section VI.

The City of Valdosta will assign an Evaluation Committee to evaluate the proposals. The Evaluation Committee will review the proposals from all Proposers who have been deemed responsive and responsible with reference checks to follow. In house or virtual interviews may be required in Valdosta and will be done at proposer’s cost if selected. The City reserves the right to select only the proposer(s) that in the City’s opinion and only in the City’s opinion will best serve our needs.

II. INSTRUCTIONS TO THE PROPOSER AND TECHNICAL PROPOSAL

1. GOVERNING LAW and DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: All proposals must be submitted in accordance with Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A) and the City of Valdosta Purchasing Ordinance and Policies and Procedures Manual. RFP responses should be sent to:

City of Valdosta Purchasing Division Teffany Edwards, Purchasing Agent 216 E. Central Ave, 2nd Floor Valdosta, GA 31601

PROPOSAL ARE DUE NO LATER THAN 11:00AM EST ON MAY 23, 2024

Proposers shall provide (1) One Original and (5) Five Copies, and ONE (1) Digital Copy (thumb drive) of the TECHNICAL PROPOSAL. Also, include Two (2) Copies of the PRICING PROPOSAL in a separate, sealed envelope marked as PRICE PROPOSAL RFP #13-23-24 within the same package. You can include both price proposals in the same envelope. Both the technical and pricing proposal are due by the date and time listed.

2. TECHNICAL PROPOSAL – RFP # 13-23-24 ON-DEMAND MICRO TRANSIT SERVICE: Proposals must have information submitted in the same order as the criteria listed in this RFP and pages shall be numbered in the bottom footer. Submittals shall include a Table of Contents that list the page numbers for documentation sections that demonstrates proposers have met each of the criteria requested at a minimum.

3. PRICE PROPOSAL – RFP # 13-23-24 –ON DEMAND MICRO TRANSIT SERVICE:

If pricing proposal is included in the technical proposal the proposal may be disqualified.

If you wish to receive future notifications concerning this RFP and have decided to respond, please email Teffany Edwards, Purchasing Agent City of Valdosta at tedwards@valdostacity.com. You must include your company information including company name, contact, phone and email at a minimum. You may view all City of Valdosta public bids or competitive solicitations online at: www.valdostacity.com/bid-opportunities

4. QUESTIONS/ADDENDA: Questions involving procedural or technical matters should be directed in writing no later than May 03, 2024 at 10:00 AM EST to:

Teffany Edwards, Purchasing Agent at tedwards@valdostacity.com.

Questions received after this date and time will not be answered. If a received question, only in the opinion of the City, could add value to the original RFP document or project, an addendum will be sent out only to those who have provided the Purchasing Agent with their contact information through email as required. Likewise, any Addenda will be posted on the City website as well. It will not be the City’s responsibility to ensure a contractor got the addenda if you did not send a response that your firm was responding to the RFP shortly after release date. It is the contractor’s sole responsibility to ensure that it has received all addenda prior to the RFP submittal date. Copies of addenda will be made available on the City’s website: www.valdostacity.com/bid-opportunities

Each proposer is required to acknowledge any/all Addenda by number in their written proposals. Proposers shall place their acknowledgement(s) as the first line of their Transmittal/Cover Page, which shall be placed as the first page of the “Technical Proposal” as well as acknowledged and documented in the Price Proposal as appropriate. Failure to acknowledge all Addenda may mean a proposer is judged to be non-responsive.

5. EXAMINATION OF DOCUMENTS: Each proposer shall be satisfied, by personal examination of the location of the contemplated services and by any other means, as to the requirements of the contemplated services to enable the intelligent preparation of this proposal including site visit. The proposer shall be familiar with the Contract Documents before submitting the proposals in order that no misunderstanding shall exist in regard to the nature and character of the contemplated services to be performed. No allowance will be made for any claim that the proposal is based on incomplete information as to the nature and character of the area or contemplated service.

6. REJECTION OF PROPOSALS: The City of Valdosta will reject any and all proposals when required to do so by the above referenced General Laws. In addition, the City of Valdosta reserves the right to waive any informality in any or all proposals, or to reject any or all proposals, in whole or in part, if it is in the public interest to do so.

7. TIMELINE:

Proposals to be reviewed.

Proposal Evaluation Completed

III. SCOPE OF WORK

1. INTRODUCTION:

The City of Valdosta (“City”) is soliciting proposals from qualified firms to provide on-demand transportation services for residents within the City Limits of Valdosta. The City is issuing this RFP with a primary goal of improving the quality and reliability of transportation service for Valdosta residents with an eye towards incorporating on-demand technology. The City may also request to pilot subsidized or full price trips to/from other locations, for general or target audiences, in or near Valdosta.

The contracted firm will offer a turnkey transportation solution/service that provides:

· Vehicles including maintenance, cleaning, and inspection.

· Drivers and driver training

· Customer Service, Sign-up, and Reservations

· Required Insurance

· Reporting & Data

· Project Management

· Any other actions or provisions unintentionally omitted.

The City intends to award one or more contract(s), as determined to be in the best interest of the City, to the Proposer(s) with the most advantageous technical and price proposal(s). The contract will be for twenty-four (24) months initially (expires June 30, 2026) with possible extensions (see IX Term of Contract). The City desires to begin the service as early as possible after successful award by the City of Valdosta Mayor and Council.

Proposers must demonstrate a minimum of one year of successful experience in the provision of transportation services. Experience with transporting senior citizens or other populations with unique needs is preferred. In recent years transportations services were provided by River North Transit LLC to provide on-demand public transit across the 35 square mile boundary of the city limits of Valdosta. The total number of trips to be provided under the anticipated contract issued pursuant to this RFP are estimated to be similar to past years. In 2022, a typical year consisted of 83,936 trips provided by the contractor. The City reserves the right to increase or reduce funding or trips and in no way guarantees the total number of trips or payment amount.

a. Throughout this document “trips” refers to one-way rides.

b. For multi-unit buildings, door-to-door service brings riders to the front door of the main building, not the riders individual unit.

2. BACKGROUND:

In April 2021, the City entered into an agreement with River North Transit LLC to provide on–demand public transit across the 35 square mile boundary of the city limits of Valdosta. The Valdosta On–Demand fleet of mini vans serve the entire city, providing ride for rates of $2 per trip per person, or $1 for additional person in the same group. The Valdosta On-Demand vehicle fleet consist of 13 mini vans, 5 of which are dedicated wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAV). The hours of operation are Mon-Fri, 5:30am to 9:00pm.

This transit service provided citizens that normally would not have a way or means to move about the City whether it is to go to a job interview, to work, a medical appointment, the supermarket, or education centers. This service has significantly improved quality of life. This service puts individuals where there is a need for them to travel. Forty-four percent of riders use the service to commute to work, ten percent for healthcare, thirteen percent for education and eighteen percent for daily errands. Fifty-six percent of the rider’s annual household income is below $25k.

3. PROJECT GOALS:

The City envisions this Project will improve mobility for residents that live within the City Limits of Valdosta, enhancing their mobility and improving their quality of life. The City seeks to take advantage of state-of-the-art transportation technology and/or services to meet existing challenges with the transportation system. The City may also request to pilot subsidized or full price trips to/from other locations, for general or target audiences, in or near Valdosta. Additional funding would be provided, as applicable.

Specific Project goals are as follows:

• Customer Experience: Improve service reliability; introduce new customer-friendly features; ensure high customer satisfaction

• Technology – Introduce technology that reduces administrative work for the City and improves the customer experience

• Economic: Ensure fair and competitive pricing

• Sustainability: Reduce vehicle miles travelled through shared trips, efficient routing and/or other methods

4. VISION:

The successful vendor will provide the City on-demand micro transit service for subsidized trips to destinations within the City Limits of Valdosta. Vendor will provide vehicles, drivers, customer service, scheduling and dispatching, insurance, reporting and data, training, vehicle maintenance, project management, and any other requirements to make the project successful.

The service will offer an affordable, reliable, sustainable, and convenient alternative to car ownership for residents. Vendor will offer and encourage shared trips, pairing members of the general public for optimal efficiency.

Residents participating in the subsidized program will be able to book trips using a smartphone, by placing a phone call or via other mechanisms. Bookings can be made in real-time or by advanced reservations.

The system may use state-of-the-art technology for efficient operations. System will be able to readily identify program participants, accept subsidized payments, ensure subsidized rates applies only to eligible members travelling to approved locations, and identify residents requiring special assistance such as with entering and existing vehicle or wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAV).

Drivers will be professional, friendly, courteous, and trained to work with various members of society.

Vehicles will be clean, comfortable, reliable, and readily identifiable. WAV and low- entry vehicles will be available as needed to accommodate residents with mobility impairments. Future possibilities may include vehicles that utilize electric or hybrid technology for operation.

5. SERVICE SPECIFICATIONS:

This section describes the required and desired specifications of the service to be performed.

5.1 PROJECT MANAGEMENT:

The following features are preferred:

c. Invoices to be submitted by Vendor for payment will be accompanied by required data, described in Section 5.12 Reporting and Data.

5.2 LOCATIONS: Subsidized transportation for qualifying residents shall be provided only within the service area. Vendor is responsible for ensuring subsidies are only applied for qualified trips; Vendor shall bill the City only for trips taken by pre-approved eligible residents travelling to or from approved locations. The City may adjust allowable locations at any time during the term of the contract. There shall be no fixed routes.

5.3 PRICING AND PAYMENTS:

The following features are required:

a. Trip pricing is reasonable.

b. Trip pricing is transparent and easy to understand such that residents know the approximate price of trip in advance of taking the trip.

The proposer must deduct farebox revenues from operating costs to arrive at the net project cost of an operating assistance project. In no event may the proposer use farebox revenue as local share for the project that generated those revenues, although the proposer may use farebox revenue to support bonds issued to finance capital projects.

Price Proposals should include a provision for a credit to the City for all fare box collections net of credit card processing fees. The proposal should include the method of computation of the invoice amount. All invoices should be itemized with the farebox credit shown at gross with any deductions listed in order to demonstrate compliance with FTA regulations regarding farebox collections by operators.

The following features are preferred:

a. Shared Trips cost individuals less than Private Trips

b. Multiple passengers travelling together and under a single booking do not incur additional fees.

c. Vendor has system for accepting payments by riders without traditional bank accounts or credit/debit cards.

5.4 TIMELINE:

The following feature is strong preferred:

a. Fully operational by July 01, 2024, or acceptable date offered by proposer.

5.5 Trip Service Hours with the following features required:

a. Weekday trip service during hours of 5:30AM - 9PM

b. Some weekend and non-business hour weekday trip service hours (after hours)

5.6 Special Accommodations

The following features are required:

a. WAV and/or otherwise appropriate vehicles to accommodate all riders as determined by their mobility needs.

b. Service must be ADA compliant.

c. Door-to-door service provided, upon request. Driver will assist elderly users from the door of their home (or main entrance, if a multi-unit building) to the door of the vehicle, including helping senior citizens enter and exit the vehicle, assisting with bags and with stairs, as necessary.

5.7 Customer Service, Sign-up and Reservations

The following features are required:

a. System is user-friendly and accessible via multiple mechanisms, including telephone.

b. System allows customers to book trips, cancel trips, request additional assistance, ask questions, make complaints, request refunds, or receive general support.

c. System notifies customers of any cancelled or delayed trip with as much advance notice as possible, preferably 20 minutes minimum.

The following features are preferred:

a. Reservation system is available 24/7/365 and telephone-based customer service is available during reasonable business hours.

b. Vendor will investigate all complaints received within a specified time period, preferably within one business day, and report back to the City the result of all complaints received. Vendor should maintain a complaint system for reporting.

5.8 Subsidy Logistics (Fare structure for Seniors, Medicaid, Military, Student, etc.)

The following features are required:

a. Vendor identifies eligible consumers for subsidy based on mutually agreed upon mechanism. List of eligible consumers is a living document that will be updated on an ongoing basis.

b. Eligible consumers pay only their subsidized rate at the end of allowable trips.

c. Vendor invoices City in regular intervals for City portion of all eligible trips

d. Vendor accommodates multiple subsidy levels. For example: qualified residents may pay $0, $2, $3, or $4 depending on their approved level of subsidy, while the City pays the remainder of each trip. Vendor should automatically associate a subsidy level with a qualified resident and charge the appropriate amount.

The following features are preferred:

a. System for accepting subsidized payments is automated and does not require customers to present a paper voucher.

b. City can set a cap or maximum amount it will pay for a single trip; system charges senior citizens for any expenses above the cap.

c. System can apply different subsidy levels for requests for Shared Trips vs Private Trips

5.9 Shared Trips

The following features are required:

a. Shared Trips must deliver residents to their destination within a reasonable and predictable timeframe.

b. “Virtual Bus Stops” throughout Valdosta, which means that Micro Transit Service is able to provide essentially universal public transportation coverage in the city for pickup and drop off (which may be a short walk away from their location) in order to minimize detours and keep things as efficient as possible. The exception is that any rider who indicates limited mobility receives door to door services.

The following features are preferred:

a. Vendor provides a minimum of 25% or more of trips as Shared Trips (Possible Goal w/ appropriate marketing & promotions)

b. Senior citizens have the option to request either a Shared or Private Trip

5.10 Drivers & Training

The following features are required:

a. Sensitivity training provided to all drivers to be able to appropriately serve population.

b. All drivers must be properly licensed to operate the required vehicles and transport elderly passengers.

c. Upon request of the City, Vendor will remove any driver from this service whose conduct is unacceptable.

d. Vendor will ensure all drivers successfully pass a background check and will make available copies documentation upon request of the City.

The following features are preferred:

a. All drivers operating this service will be trained and have current certification in the provision of Cardiac Pulmonary Resuscitation ("CPR") and first aid.

5.11 Vehicles

The following features are required:

a. Each vehicle shall be equipped with a functioning hands-free communication device.

b. Each vehicle shall be equipped with a seat belt cutter, first aid kit, spill kit, and fire extinguisher.

c. Each vehicle shall be equipped with running boards.

d. Vendor must provide a sufficient number of quality and desired vehicles in order to provide service to all eligible riders.

e. Vendor must have available and provide WAV vehicles upon request to accommodate mobility needs of passengers. This may include low-entry vehicles not to exceed eight (8) inches.

f. Vehicles must be easily identifiable by the customer.

g. The Vendor must, at all times, comply with all laws of the State of Georgia, all ordinances of the City of Valdosta, and all regulations applicable to carriers engaged in the class of transportation required in this service. All vehicles must be maintained to FTA standards.

h. All vehicles must be inspected and approved in compliance with the laws of the State of Georgia.

i. Vendor must ensure all vehicles used are maintained in a first-class state of repair and safe operating condition at all times. All vehicle surfaces, interior and exterior, shall be kept in a clean, safe, and unobstructed fashion.

j. Functioning heating and air conditioning systems.

k. The City reserves the right to inspect any vehicle used in the service. The City reserves the right to reject the use of a vehicle deemed unsuitable according to requirements of these Specifications/Scope

The following features are preferred:

Future possibilities may include vehicles that utilize electric or hybrid technology for operation.

5.12 Reporting & Data

Vendor will make all or the majority of all of the following data available to the City in a user-friendly format on a monthly or more frequent basis if desired by City. Format may include a monthly report, access to a backend “dashboard”, or equivalent. Format separates trips for senior citizens from other trip types that may be purchased through this RFP.

Monthly Summary Data

Trip Level Data

Cost to City

Required

Shared or Private trip request

Required

# of passengers in vehicle

Preferred

Customer Name

Required, by request only

Customer Address

Required, by request only

5.13 Service Levels

Vendor will propose and commit to service levels for all or the majority of the following:

Service Levels Data

a. Average wait time (separate levels for WAV and all other vehicles, Shared vs Private trips)

b. Average trip rating

c. Average time to resolve complaints.

d. Average response time to calls and emails.

e. Maximum percentage of missed, declined trips and cancelled trips.

f. Percentage of trips in low-emissions vehicles

g. Percentage of trips served in hybrid/electric vehicles.

h. Other

IV. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

Following the deadline for receipt, the Purchasing Agent or his designee will open the Technical Proposals and prepare a register of those firms submitting proposals which shall be available for public inspection. All proposal contents shall be confidential until the evaluation is final and award has been made.

The Technical Proposals shall be evaluated by an evaluation committee designated by the City Manager or his designee which committee shall prepare their evaluation based on the criteria contained herein. Upon completion of the technical evaluation, the City Manager or his designee will open and evaluate the Price Proposals. A contract will be awarded to the responsive and responsible proposer whose proposal is determined to be most advantageous taking into consideration cost and evaluative criteria. The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals if to do so is determined to be in the best interests of the City.

All proposals shall remain firm for ninety (90) calendar days after the proposal opening.

V. MINIMUM CRITERIA

All proposals must have a section in their proposal labeled MINIMUM CRITERIA and must provide all necessary documentation as evidence that they meet each of the following minimum criteria in order to be considered for further evaluation. If you have placed your documentation elsewhere in this Technical Proposal, you shall indicate the page number where that documentation can be found within your Technical Proposal. If the documentation or identification of page number is not clearly evident for each criterion, the proposal may be deemed unresponsive.

a. Proposer’s Qualifications and References Form, 2 pages

b. Non-Collusion Form, 1 page

c. Certification of Tax Compliance, 1 page

d. Non-Debarment Letter, 1 page

e. IRS W-9 Form, 1 page

f. E-Verify Form 1 page

g. Certification Regarding Lobbying, 1 page

h. Federal Clauses, signed, 37 pages

VI. EVALUATION COMPARATIVE CRITERIA

Proposals from proposers who meet or exceed the minimum criteria will be evaluated and rated on the basis of the following comparative criteria. The City reserves the right to ask any respondent to provide additional supporting documentation in order to verify its response.

Ratings of Highly Advantageous (HA); Advantageous (A), Not Advantageous (NA) or Unacceptable (U) will be given to each of the following eight (8) criteria for each respondent. A composite rating will then be determined. A composite rate of Highly Advantageous or Advantageous may be assigned only if a proposal has received at least one such rating among the criteria listed below.

To the extent that an Evaluation Criterion requires the certification of fact, the proposer’s certification as to that fact shall be an adequate response provided, however, that on request the proposer shall provide to the City such evidence as the City may be required to support that fact.

All proposals must have a section labeled EVALUATION CRITERIA and must provide all necessary documentation as evidence that proposer meets each of the following criteria. If you have placed your documentation elsewhere in this technical proposal, you shall indicate the page number(s) where that documentation can be found. If documentation or identification of the page number(s) is not clearly evident for each criterion, the proposal may be deemed non-responsive. The evaluation of the Technical Proposals will be based on the “evaluation criteria” described in this section. A proposal will receive the appropriate rating based on the foregoing and no consideration shall be given to materials and features not requested by the criterion.

Proposal Evaluation Criteria and Points

Points

Capability and prior experience in transit systems, including the provision of flexible route deviation services, including services for disabled riders, in various sized communities

Adequacy of Proposer’s response to all other requirements, terms, and conditions of this Request for Proposals

1. Company Experience

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors who demonstrate extensive experience operating transportation systems and transporting seniors or other “special” populations and have an extensive regional presence.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors who demonstrate reasonable experience operating transportation systems and transporting senior or other “special” populations and have a reasonable regional presence.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who demonstrate limited experience operating transportation systems, and/or transporting senior or other “special” populations and have a limited regional presence.

Unacceptable A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who demonstrate minimal or no experience operating transportation systems, have minimal or no experience transporting seniors or other “special” populations, and have minimal or non-existent regional presence.

2. Project Overview & Project Management

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors who present a highly compelling proposal that demonstrates a superb ability to deliver on the City’s goals including using state-of-the-art technology, ensuring the highest-level customer experience and supporting sustainable transportation.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors who present a proposal that demonstrates an ability to deliver on the City’s goals and timeline, including using some state-of-the-art technology, ensuring a quality customer experience and supporting sustainable transportation.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who present a proposal that demonstrates a limited ability to deliver on the City’s goals, which may include not employing state-of-the-art technology, not fully ensuring an acceptable customer experience and/or not supporting sustainable transportation.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors who present a proposal that does not demonstrate an ability to deliver on the City’s goals, which may include not employing state-of-the-art technology, not ensuring an acceptable customer experience and/or not fully promoting sustainable transportation.

3. Timeline

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors whose project plan and timeline enable a full or near-full system launch within two months of contract execution.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors whose project plan and timeline enable a full or near-full system launch within six months of contract execution.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors whose project plan and timeline does not enable a full or near-full system launch within twelve months of contract execution.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors whose project plan and timeline does not enable a full system to launch within twelve months of contract execution.

4. Locations, Service Hours, Mobility Accommodations, Subsidy Logistics, Shared Trips

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide all or nearly all of the preferred features while maximizing flexibility and user-friendliness for the customer and City.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide most of the preferred features while providing flexibility and user-friendliness for the customer and City.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide few or none of the preferred features while providing limited flexibility and user-friendliness for the customer and City.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors who do not provide the required features and offer no flexibility nor user-friendliness for the customer and City.

5. Customer Service, Sign-Up and Reservations

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors who offer a highly user-friendly system and provide all or mostly all of the required and desired services.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors who offer a reasonably user-friendly system and provide many of the required and desired services.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who offer a minimally user-friendly system and provide some of the required and desired services.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors who do not offer a user-friendly system nor provide the required services.

6. Drivers & Training, Vehicles

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide thorough training to drivers, ensure vehicles are well-maintained and in excellent condition, ensure drivers are professional and friendly, have sufficient numbers of vehicles and drivers to meet demand without delay, employ or plan to employ a substantial percentage of hybrid/electric vehicles, and can provide all or the majority of all preferred features.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide adequate training to drivers, ensure vehicles are well-maintained and in good condition, ensure drivers are professional and friendly, have sufficient numbers of vehicles and drivers to meet demand, employ or have plans to employ some hybrid/electric vehicles, and can provide most of preferred features.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide limited training to drivers, have limited ability to ensure vehicles are well-maintained and in good condition, have limited methods to ensure drivers are professional and friendly, do not have sufficient numbers of vehicles and drivers to meet demand, do not use hybrid/electric vehicles and/or can provide few or none of the preferred features.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors who do not meet the required specifications.

7. Reporting & Data, Service Levels

Rating Criteria

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who do not provide most of the data requested, do not offer data in a user-friendly format, and/or do not offer meaningful service levels that will lead to a reasonable service quality.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors who provide minimal to no access to the data requested.

8. Interviews (If Conducted and at Proposer’s expense)

Rating Criteria

Highly Advantageous A rating of highly advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide clear and concise responses to interview questions, and clarify any issues raised by the evaluation team.

Advantageous A rating of advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide reasonable responses to interview questions and adequately clarify any issues raised by the evaluation team.

Not Advantageous A rating of not advantageous will be given to Vendors who provide minimal responses to interview questions and fail to adequately clarify any issues raised by the evaluation team.

Unacceptable A rating of unacceptable will be given to Vendors who do not provide any responses to interview questions and do not clarify any issues raised by the evaluation team.

The Quality Level will be based on the following scoring method:

Quality Level (Factors worth 25 points)

Highly Advantageous

Meets all requirements; reflects significant enhancements or strengths as compared to minimum levels of acceptability; few if any offsetting weaknesses.

Advantageous

Meets all requirements; strengths and weaknesses, if any, tend to offset one another equally.

Not Advantageous

May contain significant weaknesses, only partially offset by less pronounced strengths; should meet all minimum requirements, but some areas of doubt may exist.

Unacceptable

Serious doubt exists about ability to meet minimum needs but may be sufficient; significant weaknesses throughout, offsetting strengths.

VII. AWARD OF CONTRACT

The City Manager or his designee shall determine the most advantageous proposal from a responsible and responsive Transit Services proposer taking into consideration price and the evaluation criteria set forth in the RFP.

In accordance with the provisions of O.C.G.A and the City of Valdosta Purchasing Policy, the City of Valdosta reserves the right to waive any informalities in any or all proposals, or to reject any or all proposals, in whole or part, if it be in the public interest to do so.

The Proposer warrants that no part of any awarded contract amount or any other funds shall be paid directly or indirectly to an employee or official of the City of Valdosta as wages, compensation, or gifts in exchange for acting as an officer, agent, employee, subcontractor, or consultant to the City in connection with any work contemplated or performed relative to this Contract. Any Proposer who believes they may have a Conflict of Interest in submitting a Proposal shall make this disclosure to the Agency in their response.

VIII. DBE

The City of Valdosta invites DBE’s to participate in this RFP. The City is striving to reach GDOT FTA Transit participation goal.

IX. TERM OF CONTRACT

It is anticipated that this contract shall be effective for twenty-four (24) months from the date of execution (initial expiration 07/01/2026). The continuation of this contract for each fiscal year shall be subject to appropriation and/or continuation of funding for any fiscal year or any part thereof during the term of this Agreement. The contract then can be renewed for (5) five, (1) one-year periods if both parties are in agreement with an estimated final termination date of June 30, 2031. The contract may be cancelled by the City with 120 days written notice for any reason deemed appropriate by the City. If funds for the discharge of the City’s obligations under this Agreement are not appropriated and authorized, or funds so appropriated and authorized are reduced or withdrawn, then this Agreement shall terminate when funds are exhausted.

CITY OF VALDOSTA

PURCHASING DIVISION

PRICE PROPOSAL RFP # 13-23-24

A. The undersigned proposes to supply the services specified below in full accordance with the Contract Documents and Project Manual supplied by the City of Valdosta entitled:

ON-DEMAND MICRO TRANSIT SERVICE

for the contract price(s) specified below, subject to additions and deduction according to the terms of the specifications.

B. This proposal includes addenda as provided below. Proposer must provide signature and addenda number separately. These addenda will become part of this RFP and a part of the contract.

1) Driver Pay 2) Customer Support

3)Project Management 4) Technology

5)Operations Support 6) Miscellaneous Costs

C. Include On-Demand Micro Transit Services Pricing Proposal in a format that best demonstrates the cost to the City of Valdosta.

* The Price Proposal is based on estimated quantities, which are the City’s best estimate based on prior experience. Actual quantities may be more or less than those estimated. Regardless of the amount of the actual quantities, the unit price(s) shall be those set forth in your proposal.

D. Price Proposals must be submitted separately from Technical Proposals. All references to cost must be displayed only in the Price Proposal and may not be included in the Technical Proposal.

The template (link below) requires vendors to show anticipated prices for theoretical trips. The theoretical trips are based on 2022’s actual trips. Proposer’s overall bid price must be consistent with and/or predictive of actual pricing for anticipated trips based on this proposal.

While the bid template determines an overall bid price. Trips will be paid for on an as-delivered basis with the vendor invoicing the City monthly for actual trips taken.