RFP OR2026R30K002 Intercity Bus Atlas Expansion_Final.pdf

U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Secretary of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Ave, SE Washington DC 20590

Date:

Subject:

November 5, 2025

Request for Proposal (RFP# OR2026R30K002) Intercity Bus Atlas: Expansion and Maintenance

Dear Sir or Madam, The Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of the Senior Procurement Executive has a requirement for the subject services for its Bureau of Transportations Statistics (BTS). You are invited to submit your offer accordingly.

The DOT anticipates the award of a Hybrid (Time & Materials and Firm-Fixed Price) Contract for the subject requirement.

Technical and Price Proposals will be evaluated in accordance with Section M. The period of performance of the proposed Contract will be for one base year and two option years, from the time of award. Contract terms and conditions will be subject to negotiations in accordance with FAR Part 15.

Questions relative to the RFP should be directed to Parwana Haqyar via email by no later than November 10, 2025 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time.

Submissions are due no later than November 24, 2025 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time via email to Parwana.haqyar.ctr@dot.gov with a courtesy copy to Jason.bush@dot.gov . Please reference: “RFP:

OR2026R30K002 Intercity Bus Atlas Maintenance and Expansion” in the subject line.

Thank you in advance for your interest in the Department of Transportation and its programs.

Sincerely, OST Acquisitions mailto:Parwana.haqyar.ctr@dot.gov mailto:Jason.bush@dot.gov

Part 1

SECTION B - SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES/COSTS

B.1. CONTRACT SUMMARY

1. The Contractor shall furnish all materials and personnel necessary to provide the Office the Secretary (OST) with technical support services for the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS)’s Intercity Bus Atlas Expansion and Maintenance as described in Section C.

2. The proposed contract will be a Hybrid Contract: Tasks 1 and 2 will be Firm-Fixed Price and Tasks 3 and 4 will be Time & Materials. It is anticipated that some Tasks may be incrementally funded.

3. The ceiling amount of the Contract is $TBD (inclusive of all costs). In no event shall the Contractor exceed the established Not-to-Exceed Ceiling Amount of the Contract without the written authorization of the Contracting Officer.

4. For proposal response purposes, the following table presents total estimated level of effort (hours) by Task. These estimates are advisory and at a summary level. Contractors shall propose the appropriate specific labor categories, labor hours, and loaded hourly labor rates to meet the requirements of Section C, Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement. The labor categories and seniority levels proposed by the Contractor must be identified in a manner that is consistent with the labor categories and seniority levels specified by the Government.

B.2. PRICE SCHEDULE DEFINITIONS

B.2.1. LOADED FIXED HOURLY RATES

As used in this contract, "Loaded Fixed Hourly Labor Rates" are composed of the hourly rates paid an individual within a specific Labor Category (plus merit and/or cost of living increases if applicable) plus indirect costs such as Fringe Benefits, Overhead, Facilities Capital Cost of Money (FCCM), General and Administrative (G&A), and Fee or Profit. For each Labor Category, Price Schedules shall include ‘Regular Loaded Labor Rates” for work performed primarily at the respective Contractor's headquarters/off-site facility (Contractor’s Work Site). (See Section F.2.).

Indirect Cost Rates as well as the percentage of fee shall be negotiated and fixed at time of contract award and shall remain fixed for the entire term of the contract.

B.2.1.1. REGULAR LOADED FIXED HOURLY LABOR RATES

Regular Loaded Fixed Hourly Labor Rates reflect the Loaded Fixed Hourly Labor Rate paid to the Contractor for work performed by an employee or Subcontractor’s employee during the employee's normal work week (i.e., no more than 40 hours per workweek).

B.2.1.2. OTHER DIRECT COSTS (ODC)

As used in this contract, “Other Direct Costs (ODCs) are costs other than the Contractor’s labor costs. Profit or fee may never be applied to ODCs.

B.2.1.3. ODC INDIRECT COST CATEGORY AND BASE

The application of ODC Indirect Costs is not permitted on this contract.

B.2.1.4 ODC INDIRECT COST RATE

The application of the Indirect Cost rate is not permitted on this contract.

B.2.1.5 TRAVEL COSTS

Travel costs incurred by the Contractor shall be reimbursed in accordance with FAR Part 31, as applicable to the contract, including all appropriate indirect costs allocated in accordance with the Contractor's usual accounting practices consistent with the FAR.

Cost incurred for lodging, meals and incidental expenses shall be reimbursed only to the extent that they do not exceed on a daily basis the maximum per diem rates in effect at the time of travel as set forth in the federal Travel Regulations (for travel in the continental United States) and Joint Travel Regulations (for travel in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and territories and possessions of the United States). Specific written approval from the Contracting Officer must be obtained in advance of any travel to foreign area.

Non-reimbursable Travel: Travel expenses of any kind incurred for personal convenience between home and Contractor's business location (or, in the case of Subcontractor personnel, home and the Subcontractor) will not be reimbursable under this contract. Costs incurred by Contractor or Subcontractor personnel traveling to and from the individual's home and assigned duty station (either "On-Premises" or "Off-Premises") will not be reimbursable under this contract. Any questions concerning OST travel policy shall be directed to the Contracting Officer before costs are incurred.

Travel costs shall be reimbursed in accordance with the provisions of FAR 31.205-46, as follows:

a) Costs for transportation may be based on mileage rates; actual costs incurred, or on a combination thereof.

b) Costs for lodging, meals, and incidental expenses based upon per diem, actual expenses, or a combination thereof; such costs shall be considered to be reasonable and allowable only to the extent that they do not exceed on a daily basis the maximum per diem rates in effect at the time of travel as set forth in the following:

a. Federal Travel Regulations, prescribed by the General Services Administration, for travel in the contiguous United States;

b. Joint Travel Regulation, Volume 2, DOD Civilian Personnel, Appendix A, prescribed by the Department of Defense, for travel in Alaska, Hawaii, and outlying areas of the United States; or

c. Standardized Regulations (Government Civilians, Foreign Areas), Section 925, "Maximum Travel Per Diem Allowances for Foreign Areas," prescribed by the

Department of State, for travel in areas not covered by (i) and (ii) above.

Travel and Per Diem is included in the above figures and shall not exceed $To be filled in at award for the entire three-year period of performance.

B.3. CONTRACT LINE ITEMS (CLINS) AND CONTRACT TYPE BY CLIN

For proposal response purposes, the following tables presents estimated breakdown of requirement and total estimated level of effort (hours) by Tasks. These estimates are advisory and at a summary level. Contractors shall propose the appropriate specific labor categories, labor hours, and loaded hourly labor rates to meet the requirements of Section C, Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement. The labor categories and seniority levels proposed by the Contractor must be identified in a manner that is consistent with the labor categories and seniority levels specified by the Government in Section B.3. The labor categories contained in Section B.3.1 are recommended, and a full list of possible labor categories pertaining to this Contract can be found in Section B.3.3. The Contractor is encouraged to propose a combination of labor categories, rates, and hours that it deems most appropriate for the completion of the tasks outlined in this RFP document.

Offerors are required to provide further comprehensive breakdown of all anticipated costs for their offered prices in sufficient details.

B.3.1. BREAKDOWN OF CONTRACT PRICING

Labor Categ ory

La bo r

ID

Hou rly Lab or

Rat es

(loa ded

Base Year Option Year 1 Option Year 2 Grand Total Task 1

(base) Task 2 (base)

Task 3 (base)

Taak 4 (base)

Base Total

Task 2 (base)

Task 3 (base)

Task 4 (base)

OY1

Total

Task 2 (base)

Task 3 (base)

Task 4 (base)

OY2

Total

Ho urs

Pr ic e

Sub tota l Pric e

Progra m manag er

5.

5.0

25.

75.

0.0

30.

55.

Transp ortatio n special ist

3.

2.5

80.

90.

80.

60.

Data analyst

1.

50.

40.

LABOR

SUBTOTALS

10.

1,6

TRAVEL COSTS (if any)

OTHER DIRECT

COSTS (if any)

TOTALS

10.

1,6

For a clearer copy, see Attachment J. 2- Pricing Spreadsheet.xlsx

B.3.2. PROPOSED CLIN STRUCTURE

CLIN Item Cost CLIN 0001 Base Year – Task 1, Firm-Fixed Price CLIN 0002 Base Year – Task 2, Firm-Fixed Price CLIN 0003 Base Year – Task 3, Labor Hours CLIN 0004 Base Year – Task 4, Labor Hours CLIN 0005 Base Year – Travel CLIN 0006 Base Year – ODC CLIN 0007 Option Year 1 – Task 2, Firm-Fixed Price CLIN 0008 Option Year 1 – Task 3, Labor Hours CLIN 0009 Option Year 1 – Task 4, Labor Hours CLIN 0010 Option Year 1 – Travel CLIN 0011 Option Year 1 – ODC CLIN 0012 Option Year 2 – Task 2, Firm-Fixed Price CLIN 0013 Option Year 2 – Task 3, Labor Hours CLIN 0014 Option Year 2 – Task 4, Labor Hours CLIN 0015 Option Year 2 – Travel CLIN 0016 Option Year 2 – ODC

B.3.3. CATEGORIES AND DESCRIPTIONS

B.3.3.1. Labor Category Descriptions The Government’s estimated labor categories, duties and recommended experience and education are listed below. Labor categories, education and years of experience are estimated and recommended, but not required or mandatory. Offerors shall provide a cross reference for labor categories if a different title for the same description is used. If an Offeror departs from the education and years of experience proposed, the Offeror shall provide adequate explanation to justify the departure from the recommended qualifications. Deviations shall be clearly identified in proposals submitted in response to this solicitation.

B.3.3.2. General Staff Labor Category Descriptions B.3.3.2.A. Junior A junior labor category has up to 3 years of experience and a BA/BS degree. A junior labor category is responsible for assisting positions that are more senior and/or performing functional duties under the oversight of more senior positions.

B.3.3.2.B. Mid-Level A mid-level labor category has 4 to 10 years of experience and a BA/BS or MA/MS. A mid-level labor category typically performs all functional duties independently. Under general supervision, plans, conducts and supervises assignments.

B.3.3.2.C. Senior

A senior labor category has over 10 years of experience and a MA/MS and a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of a subject area (e.g., a history of publications, speaking on the topics, and presenting to peers). A Senior labor category typically works on high-visibility or mission critical aspects of a given program and performs all functional duties independently. A senior labor category may oversee the efforts of less senior staff and/or be responsible for the efforts of all staff assigned to a specific job.

B.3.3.2.D. National Expert A National Expert labor category has over 10 years of experience, a BA/BS degree, and a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of a subject area (e.g., a history of publications, speaking on the topics, and presenting to peers). National experts have a broad and deep competence in terms of knowledge, skill and experience through practice and education in a particular field or subject area and are widely recognized as an authority by peers. Has special knowledge of a subject beyond that of the senior labor category, sufficient that others officially rely upon the individual's opinion on that topic. This should be documented through a combination of:

• Multiple peer reviewed published reports, journal articles, or other documents; Multiple key note presentations at national or international conferences Service as committee chair at national level association

• Multiple interviews, citations or quotes in national media or trade journals B.3.3.2.E. Program Manager The Program Manager (PM) shall be responsible for overall management of the contract, including quality assurance for all products delivered to the Government and availability of resources to complete all Task Orders.

PM duties include:

• Oversee the development of program schedules, resource allocation and budgets.

Tracking the program budgets and providing forecasts, establishing and maintaining program status summaries and metrics for the project portfolio.

• Organize, direct, and manage contract operation support functions, involving multiple, complex and inter-related project tasks.

• Manage teams of contract support personnel at multiple locations.

• Maintain and manage the client interface at the senior levels of the client organization.

• Meet with customer and contractor personnel to formulate and review task plans and deliverable items. Ensure conformance with program task schedules and costs.

The PM shall have:

• Demonstrated experience of excellent verbal, presentation, and writing skills;

• Performance level at the equivalent of 10 years of experience in Program Management;

• Proven leadership skills with a collaborative management style that will facilitate interaction with supervisors, colleagues, customers and corporate partners;

• Performance level at the similar level to having a Bachelor’s degree; and

• An active Project Manager’s Professional (PMP) certification or equivalent.

B.3.3.3. Individual Labor Categories Individual Labor Categories The following individual labor categories correspond to a single Title and Functional Description. The labor ID numbers listed here pertain only to this procurement.

Labor ID # Data Analyst

1.1 Junior Data Analyst

1.2 Mid-Level Data Analyst

1.3 Senior Data Analyst

Translate numbers into plain English. Every business collects data, whether its sales figures, market research, logistics, or transportation costs. A data analyst's job is to take that data and use it to help companies make better business decisions.

Labor ID # Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist

2.1 Junior Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist

2.2 Mid-Level Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist

2.3 Senior Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist

Build, maintain, modify, or use geographic information systems (GIS) databases. Design or prepare graphic representations of GIS data, using GIS hardware or software applications.

Analyze GIS data to identify spatial relationships or display results of analyses, using maps, graphs, or tabular data.

Labor ID # Transportation Specialist/Analyst

3.1 Junior Transportation Specialist/Analyst

3.2 Mid-Level Transportation Specialist/Analyst

3.3 Senior Transportation Specialist/Analyst

Prepare and support analyses on transportation related issues. The topics relate to all modes of transportation and industries, including, not limited to airlines and airports, aviation/airline industry and business, airline flight/routes scheduling and performance, congestion, domestic and international freight and passenger transportation, passenger demand/forecasting, energy, environment, freight demand/forecasting, freight system/vehicle automation and technology, hazardous materials, safety, security, system/vehicle automation and technology, and system performance.

Labor ID # Research Analyst

4.1 Junior Research Analyst

4.2 Mid-Level Research Analyst

4.3 Senior Research Analyst

Responsible for collecting, organizing, and analyzing, interpreting and presenting data to solve problems, explore issues, and predict trends.

Labor ID # Project Manager

5.1 Senior Project Manager

B.3.4. CONFIDENTIALITY

Non-Disclosure of confidential information is the responsibility of both BTS staff as well as any contractors who work on behalf of BTS. Once any confidential information provided by the Contractor is in the possession of BTS, the Offeror is expected to protect access to any confidential information while undertaking any subsequent tasks for BTS (before the Contractor provides confidential data to BTS, the Contractor is only required to protect these confidential data through their own standard protocols). The Contractor shall work with the designated program personnel to determine the specific work conditions required to undertake any subsequent work with confidential data. If deemed necessary by BTS, Contractors shall receive annual BTS Confidentiality Training and sign and date a copy of the BTS Consolidated Non-Disclosure Form prior to the commencement of the performance of any work with confidential data as required under this procurement.

During normal duties, the Contractor’s staff may work with (or come into contact with) confidential transportation data and information, whether from BTS, other government agencies, and/or private industry. BTS operates under strict nondisclosure rules, which provides--in summary--that no confidential information may be used for any purpose other than the purpose for which it was supplied, and that such information may not be published or released to any unauthorized person.

Given these restrictions on use of confidential data, the Contractor will be required to ensure that any such confidential data with which it comes into contact with shall not be disclosed and/or used for any other purposes.

(End of Section B)

SECTION C - DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/STATEMENT OF WORK

C.1. OBJECTIVE

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) is the principal federal statistical agency within the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) and a supplier of trusted and statistically sound baseline, contextual, and trend information used to shape transportation policy, investments, and research across the U.S. BTS is the preeminent source of statistics on commercial aviation, multimodal freight, and transportation economics. BTS is charged with collecting, compiling, analyzing, and publishing a comprehensive set of transportation statistics on the performance and impacts of the national transportation system.

As part of this mandate, BTS is required to provide statistics on the extent, connectivity, and condition of the transportation system and to develop and maintain a national transportation atlas database that is comprised of geospatial databases that depict transportation networks. While BTS’ current suite of spatial products accomplishes this goal for most passenger and freight transportation modes in the U.S., one that unmapped at a national scale is scheduled intercity passenger bus1. In fact, a comprehensive national map of these services has not existed in the public domain since the termination of two well-known products (Russell’s National Motorcoach Guides2 and the American Intercity Bus Riders Association map3) prior to 2016.

To overcome this gap, BTS launched the Intercity Bus Atlas (ICBA) program in 2017, which has been seeking to build a web mapping application that shows the stops and routes of all scheduled bus service in the United States. A fully voluntary program, participating carriers (“Providers”) provide BTS with key schedule information (e.g., stop names and locations, arrival and departure times, route names and frequencies, details on the Provider company, etc.) about the services. Once received, BTS extracts geospatial stop and route information from the Providers’ submissions and concatenates them into a singular national dataset of stops and routes and then publishes these to its website as a web map and as a pair of downloadable GIS layers.

To streamline the ICBA workflow, BTS encourages Carriers4 to submit their schedules using the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS)5. Originally developed to optimize the conveyance of transit schedules to online trip planners (e.g., Google Maps, Apple Maps, etc.), GTFS files represent the different elements and attributes of a Provider’s schedule using simplistic, easy-to-digest text files; each facet of a schedule (e.g., stop locations, route names, stop names, unique trips, stop times, route shapes) are represented by their own file, all of which can be combined together to depict the spatiotemporal characteristics of a Carrier’s network.

While there are certain aspects of scheduled intercity bus travel that are not well represented by the transit oriented GTFS, it nonetheless has some key advantages. First, there is now an abundance of

1 At the US Department of Transportation, the leading definition of “intercity bus” comes from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA): “Regularly scheduled public service using an over-the-road bus that operates with limited stops between two urbanized areas or that connects rural areas to an urbanized area. Intercity bus mode should only be used by private, intercity bus providers.”

2 Published by Russell’s Guides, these were printed guidebooks which included the times, schedules, and stops of all scheduled intercity passenger services in the United States and Canada. Published monthly from 1927 until the 2010s, they included maps. The website for Russell’s are available at http://www.russellsguides.com/.

3 An example AIBRA map can be found at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mulad/11969730234.

4 Companies with scheduled passenger intercity bus services are interchangeably called “carriers” or “providers”.

5 A comprehensive summary of GTFS can be found at https://gtfs.org/.

http://www.russellsguides.com/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/mulad/11969730234 https://gtfs.org/ free and low-cost tools to help a provider build, map, and troubleshoot GTFS feeds6. Second, the text files that underlie a GTFS feed are technically unsophisticated and editable on almost any computer without licensed or specialized software. Third, and perhaps most importantly, GTFS, related to its initial development by Google, is the schedule format required by many online trip planners (e.g., Google Maps, Apple Maps, Transit app) for a provider’s services to appear alongside other transportation options, providing carriers with additional marketing and visibility alongside prospective competitors. Altogether, these factors make GTFS the most logical and efficient format for the schedules underlying the ICBA, especially when compared to alternative formats7 for schedule data.

Nevertheless, BTS only visualizes GTFS data from schedule intercity bus providers who opt into the program by signing the BTS ICBA Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)8. BTS introduced the MOU to assuage two provider concerns: that (1) business sensitive elements of their schedules would be made public and (2) the traveling public would use the Atlas to plan trips using an Atlas intended solely to show where services actively exist.

In response, the MOU explicitly spells out the ways BTS can and cannot use their data. In terms of promoted use cases, it encourages the use of Atlas data for research and planning purposes, whether by the public and private sector. Conversely, it discourages their use for any trip planning, scheduling, navigation, any real-time (or near-real-time) purposes, and it states that BTS shall not use the data for any commercial purpose. Once a Provider signs and agrees to the terms of the MOU, they are entered into a one-year agreement with BTS that renews annually unless the carrier writes to BTS, preferably via nicba@dot.gov, to have their data removed.

Within the confines of the MOU, BTS will use the ICBA data and tools to develop statistics and analyses to help us achieve our federal mandate to understand and map the extent, use, performance, and impact of the United States’ national transportation network, as well as the social, economic, and environmental conditions and relationships it affects. Published ICBA data and geographic information systems (GIS) layers will be available to the public—including federal, state, local, and tribal governments; metropolitan planning organizations; transportation-related associations; public- and private-sector researchers; journalists; and urban and rural planners—to do their own research and planning.

Altogether, ICBA statistical and data products will be used to inform transportation planning and operations, facilitate investment decisions, and guide national policy and legislation related to the movement of people over longer distances. The products developed from a completed ICBA will ultimately provide users with data insights, perspectives, and at spatiotemporal scales not currently available from any other tool or statistic offered from any other source.

C.2. BACKGROUND

The overarching objective of this procurement is to help BTS expand and maintain the Intercity Bus Atlas (ICBA) project. While a completed ICBA is envisioned as a tool for the industry, governments, public, researchers, and policy makers to better understand, study, and make decisions about the extent, density, frequency, affordability, connectivity, and mobility impacts of the

6 An example of one of these tools, from the National Rural Transit Assistance Program, can be found at https://www.nationalrtap.org/Technology-Tools/GTFS-Builder.

7 Examples of alternate schedule formats can be found at https://skedgo.com/understanding-gtfs-and-netex/.

8 The text of the ICBA MOU can be found at https://www.bts.gov/intercity-bus-atlas-partnerships-and-registration.

mailto:nicba@dot.gov https://www.nationalrtap.org/Technology-Tools/GTFS-Builder https://skedgo.com/understanding-gtfs-and-netex/ https://www.bts.gov/intercity-bus-atlas-partnerships-and-registration intercity bus industry in the United States, BTS still lacks critical information and connections about and within the industry to complete the Atlas.

Since 2017, schedule data collection has been intermittent and incomprehensive, and has been centered on three core efforts:

1. Direct networking and outreach by BTS ICBA staff members, including presentations at conferences and trade events (2017 to present).

2. Completion of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Transportation Research Board (TRB) National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) study (#08-133) entitled “Implementing the National Intercity Bus Atlas”9 (2019 to 2024), which was directed to (1) catalogue intercity bus carriers, (2) pull available GTFS data, and (3) develop a gameplan to keep the ICBA maintained.

3. Expansion of the BTS National Transit Map10, which contains the stops and routes depicted in the GTFS files submitted by all transit agencies who receive federal funds, pursuant a new Federal Transit Administration (FTA) requirement that all such agencies (many of which operate services meeting the definition of “intercity”) submit a GTFS file alongside their regular National Transit Database (NTD) submissions.

While these methods collectively added 72 feeds from 102 Providers (and their 1,000+ routes and 26,000+ stops), the Atlas nevertheless suffers from several outstanding problems, namely (1) many of its contributing schedules are now out-of-date (i.e., they were collected at one point in time without the means to acquire updated data), (2) there are known Providers entirely missing from the map, and (3) there are likely other, unknown Providers we don’t know how to identify.

In turn, BTS needs help in two key areas to overcome these obstacles: (1) a procedure to build and maintain a comprehensive list of active, qualifying intercity bus carriers in the United States and (2) regular, direct access to active schedule and network data for these carriers. Without these two elements, the Atlas cannot be maximally useful to its intended audiences.

C.3. SCOPE

The Contractor shall complete the requirements under four (4) main tasks as described below:

Base Tasks:

1. Under Task 1, the Contractor shall hold a kick-off meeting and develop a project management and work plan.

2. Under Task 2, the Contractor will provide BTS with direct access to up-to-date schedule and route network data, in the Generalized Transit Feed Specification Schedule (GTFS- Schedule11) format, from all scheduled intercity bus Providers from which they currently have requisite access so it can update the Intercity Bus Atlas on a regular12 basis.

9 Details on this project are available at https://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=5597.

10 More information on the National Transit Map is available at https://www.bts.gov/national-transit-map.

11 “GTFS-Schedule” is distinguished from other GTFS formats, namely GTFS-Realtime (which is used for reporting vehicle positions during active service) and GTFS-Flex (used for capturing paratransit services that do not serve a fixed route). Information on GTFS-Realtime is available at https://developers.google.com/transit/gtfs-realtime, and information on GTFS-Flex is available at https://gtfs.org/community/extensions/flex/.

12 The terms of the current ICBA Memorandum of Understanding state that BTS will “collect Submitter’s data at least once, but no more than four times per year.” While the Contractor should otherwise expect BTS to perform ICBA https://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=5597 https://www.bts.gov/national-transit-map https://developers.google.com/transit/gtfs-realtime https://gtfs.org/community/extensions/flex/

3. Under Task 3, the Contractor will perform outreach to industry to provide BTS with direct access to up-to-date schedule and route network data, in the GTFS-Schedule format, from those scheduled intercity bus Providers missing from the ICBA (either entirely or through out-of-date data) and that from which they currently lack the schedule and network data necessary to add these missing, pertinent Carriers to the Atlas. As much as necessary, the Carrier should partner with industry to track down and acquire the required data.

4. Under Task 4, the Contactor will provide BTS with support (e.g., ad-hoc meetings with experts, technical advice, industry expertise, data questions) related to the Atlas.

C.4. BASE-LEVEL TASKS

Task 1: Project Management Kick-Off Meeting

1.1. Task Overview

1.1.1. Kick-off meeting

Within two (2) weeks of award, the Contractor shall participate in a kick-off meeting (either onsite at the US Department of Transportation headquarters or virtually via tele-conference services like Microsoft Teams or Zoom) with the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) and Technical Expert (TE). During this kick-off meeting, DOT will reiterate its high-level requirements and priorities for this procurement. DOT and the Contractor will review roles, authorities, and responsibilities of involved individuals, reach agreement on common issues, resolve, and identify potential problems, and clarify understandings of technical aspects. The duration of this meeting should not exceed three (3) hours.

1.1.2. Management and work plan

In preparation for the kick-off meeting, the Contractor shall prepare a Management and Work Plan containing the management approach and critical schedule needed to timely complete three required tasks. This plan shall be delivered to the Government no later than close of business on the final workday before the kick-off meeting.

Following the kick-off meeting, the Contractor will update this plan based on any comments received from the Government (either during the kick-off meeting or in writing no later than three business days after the conclusion of the meeting) and deliver a Final Management and Work Plan within five business days of receipt of the Government’s comments on the draft.

1.2. Task Deliverables:

No. Deliverable description Due date(s) 1 Kick-off meeting, in person or virtual, with appropriate Contract and Government staff members.

Within two (2) weeks of award

2 Draft management and work plan Final workday before the kick-off meeting

3 Final management and work plan Within five (5) business days of the kick-off meeting updates on a quarterly basis, it is possible that the terms of the MOU could be modified to allow more frequent updates.

In such a case, the regularity of these updates could be more frequent, and the Contractor would be expected to provide data on this more frequent update cycle.

Task 2: Production and provision of GTFS feeds for carriers with “connected” carriers

2.1. Task Overview

The core goal of this task is for the Contractor to provide BTS with schedule and route network data, in the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) format, from all scheduled intercity passenger Providers in North America for which they currently have direct access, emphasizing those (a) wholly missing from the Atlas and (b) on the Atlas but with out-of-date data. The Contractor shall partner with industry, wherever possible, to reach these Providers and gain access to the required data.

2.1.1. ICBA GTFS Summary Table

Ahead of the kick-off meeting from Task 1, BTS will provide the Contractor with a spreadsheet that lists (a) all scheduled identified passenger Providers targeted for the Intercity Bus Atlas and (b) the status and availability of their GTFS schedule and network data. This table, hereafter called the “ICBA GTFS Summary Table”, will be the central location for the Government and the Contractor(s) to keep track of the most up-to-date information on each feed and the method by which it is being delivered to BTS.

Within the GTFS Summary Table, BTS has included one row for each Provider, with a series of columns that indicate:

• Carrier name, including any alternate or former names

• If the Carrier is actively running scheduled passenger services, yes or no

• Carrier unique identifier(s)13

• If the Carrier provides a GTFS feed to the National Transit Map14, yes or no

• If the Carrier has/have signed the CBA MOU, yes or no

• Details provided on the Carrier’s MOU agreement (e.g., date and method of signature, POC name, POC e-mail, POC phone number)

• If the Carrier has a GTFS feed, yes or no

• Method and details of accessing the Carrier’s GTFS feed (e.g., web-based, e-mailed, etc.)

• Validity of the Carrier’s GTFS retrieval methods, yes or no

The Summary Table has rows for all hereto identified scheduled intercity bus providers in the United States, the majority from which BTS has never been able to acquire GTFS schedule data.

Both (1) as soon as receiving the file at the start of the period of performance of this contract and

(2) ahead of any subsequent, regularly scheduled ICBA update, the Contractor shall use their connections and knowledge of the United States scheduled intercity passenger industry to update the Summary Table, indicating:

• Carriers for which they have direct access to the schedule and network data needed to construct a mappable GTFS feed

• Carriers missing from the Table that need to be added

13 To BTS’ understanding, there is not a standardized system for assigning unique identifiers to individual scheduled intercity bus providers. Nonetheless, BTS is interested in collecting unique identifiers that may have been assigned to a Carrier through an adjacent program, e.g., the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) National Transit Database (NTD), the BTS National Transit Map (NTM), or the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) USDOT number (USDOT ID), which it could use to keep track of Carrier GTFS feeds over time.

14 Details on the NTM available at https://www.bts.gov/national-transit-map, as of September 2025.

https://www.bts.gov/national-transit-map

• Carriers that have entirely gone out-of-business

• Carriers that have rebranded or been merged or subsumed into another carrier

• Carriers that have newly begun scheduled intercity services

• Carriers that have stopped running scheduled intercity services

In each case, the Contractor should directly update the columns in the Table that correspond with the type of change associated with the given carrier, i.e., populate all empty columns for a new addition, update the status of a carrier for those adding or dropping scheduled services, update current or former names for rebranded entities, etc.

BTS will provide this spreadsheet to the Contractor as a secure, web-hosted document. The document will be fully editable and viewable by both the Government and the Contractor, and it will be constantly available to both groups. The document will only be shared between BTS and the Contractor, and it will not be shared with (1) the public, (2) any federal agency outside BTS, or (3) any BTS team member not involved in the ICBA program.

Once created, the Government and the Contractor will make iterative edits, comments, revisions, and updates to the document over the period of performance of this contract (instances when the Summary Table needs to be updated are noted throughout the procurement, with examples from both Tasks 2 and 3). It is expected that the GTFS Summary Table will always have the most up-to-date reference information on each Provider and its GTFS data.

When the Contractor makes a change to the table, they should notify BTS via e-mail or by tagging the relevant team member from the other group with a comment on the cell that was changed. If multiple changes are made at once, only a single e-mail is needed. If bulk changes are needed, or there is a significant question about a data item that transcends a single Carrier, the Contractor and Government may schedule an ad-hoc web-based video meeting to discuss the changes and decide who to proceed.

The final deliverable of this table will be the version of the spreadsheet at the time of the end of the period of performance. The Government will use the contents of the final version of the Summary File as the basis for any ICBA updates after the end of the contract, incorporating the outreach and maintenance methods learned from the Contractor over the course of the procurement. Whichever methods the Contractor uses to deliver GTFS feeds to BTS must be set up in a way that allows BTS to continue to perform ICBA updates in the future without direct Contractor assistance.

2.1.2. ICBA GTFS feed preparation

After updating the GTFS Summary Table, the Contractor must immediately build and prepare mappable15 GTFS feeds for all the Carriers for which it currently has direct16 access to the schedule and network data required to build those feeds. If helpful for project planning, the Contractor is

15 A GTFS file with “mappable” stops and routes requires an optional “shapes.txt” file, which depicts the road network used by a Carrier’s buses as it connects the stops on each route (the “stops.txt” file, represents the stops served by a Carrier’s routes, is a core requirement of GTFS and does not need to be additionally mandated). If a GTFS file for a Carrier does not include “shapes.txt” (with all the attributes needed to assign those shapes to the corresponding routes in the feed), it will not be considered a valid, “mappable” GTFS feed.

16 Direct access means the Contractor has unimpeded access to the Carrier schedule data needed to build a mappable GTFS feed and does not need to request access to the data from the Carrier or from a third-party. A Contractor may have direct access to the schedule data because they use Carrier network and schedule data for similar purposes like ticket aggregation, interlining, marketing, or vending.

welcome to prioritize feed construction for those Carriers missing from the Atlas or that are mapped with out-of-date data. Active Carriers with up-to-date data can be ignored unless the Contractor can provide their GTFS feeds through a method that reduces burden on the Carrier (i.e., provide it through a URL instead of over e-mail), while the Contractor can totally ignore Carriers that submit their entire GTFS feeds to the National Transit Map.

The Contractor can build and provide its GTFS feeds to BTS through any of three methods:

1. build, maintain, and host a GTFS feed on behalf of a Carrier.

2. help a Carrier to build, maintain, and host its own GTFS feed, which it then gives BTS.

3. provide the web location where the Carrier hosts its GTFS feed for BTS to access (based on past ICBA outreach efforts, BTS believes most Carriers with their feeds at an easily accessible location have already been added to the Atlas).

If the Contractor builds a GTFS file on behalf of a Carrier specifically for the ICBA, the Contractor may provide those files back to the original Carrier or (with Carrier consent) to third party schedulers, aggregators, or trip planners, e.g., Google Maps, Apple Maps, etc.

2.1.2.a. ICBA GTFS feed specifications To the greatest extent possible, the Contractor will incorporate the following specifications when building, maintaining, and conveying a GTFS feed to BTS for the Intercity Bus Atlas:

• The GTFS files provided for the ICBA must contain a (1) a “stops.txt” file with valid latitude and longitude values, representing the Carrier’s stop locations, and (2) a “shapes.txt” file, representing the paths taken by the buses on its routes. If these are not provided, the GTFS feed cannot be mapped. If a feed is missing either of these two file elements, the Contractor must work with the Carrier(s) to add the requisite stop and shape information. For the “shapes.txt” file, the path represented in the file for each route should reflect the path most likely to be taken by the Carrier’s buses when operating that route. BTS cannot generates stop locations or shapes on behalf of a Carrier.

• BTS’ error-checking (as part of its regular update cycle) will only focus on the elements of the GTFS files needed to map a Carrier’s routes and stops. It will not evaluate any of the files or attributes from any optional GTFS component file not needed to map the data.

• The Contractor shall include the following elements in the GTFS feeds it provides to the ICBA program, ensuring they include items of maximal importance to intercity travel:

o In the required file “agency.txt”17 (containing high-level Carrier information):

Use well-known agency unique identifiers (e.g., FMCSA USDOT Number18) as the “agency_id” Use the name by which customers would recognize a Carrier as the

“agency_name” Use the time zone of the agency’s headquarters as “agency_timezone”.

If creating a GTFS feed on behalf of a Carrier, use the contact information at the

Carrier to complete the “agency_url”, “agency_email”, and “agency_phone” (i.e., contact information for buying a ticket).

17 The term “agency” is a legacy of GTFS’ creation for urban public transit, and BTS recognizes that most scheduled intercity carriers do not call themselves “agencies”. Still, this is the table where Carrier information is stored.

18 More information on FMCSA USDOT ID numbers available at https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/registration/do-i-need-usdot-number, as of September 2025.

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/registration/do-i-need-usdot-number https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/registration/do-i-need-usdot-number o In the required file “stops.txt”:

Use any well-known station codes (i.e., IATA train or bus station code19; Amtrak station code20, Carrier-specific code) as the “stop_code”.

Use the customer-recognized stop name under “stop_name” Use the “stop_location” and “parent_location” fields to differentiate stops at the curbside from those inside a dedicated terminal; “stop_location” differentiates curbside stops from platforms in a terminal and “parent_location” is a code use to capture all platforms in a terminal.

Include the “stop_timezone”21 for all stops.

o In the required file “routes.txt”:

Use customer-recognized route names under “route_name”.

Use the extended “route_type” classifiers22 if a Carrier has specific services it wishes to be differentiated from the standard “route_type” of ‘3 (Bus).’

o In the required file “trips.txt”:

Use customer-recognized trip names under “trip_name” especially if there are distinct trips along a route, i.e. there is a trip or schedule number23 assigned to a trip along a route that only stops are a specific set of stops

Use the customer-recognized final destination of a trip (city or city-station) as the “trip_headsign”.

o In the required file “stop_times.txt”:

All arrival and departure times must be in the local time zone.

Use “pickup_type” and “drop_off_type” if a Carrier operates routes that require call-ahead coordination.

o The last two required files, “calendar.txt” and “calendar_dates.txt”, should be included in an ICBA GTFS feed to help BTS determine when a feed is out-of-date.

o The remaining optional GTFS component files (excluding “shapes.txt”) are not needed to build and inform the ICBA in its current form but could be useful and encourage in the future; they do not need to be included in an ICBA GTFS feed but the Contractor is welcome to include them in the version of the GTFS feed they provide to schedulers, vendors, or back to the Carrier: “fare_attributes.txt”, “fare_rules.txt”, “timeframes.txt”, “rider_categories.txt”, “fare_media.txt”, “fare_products.txt”, “fare_leg_rules.txt”, “fare_transfer_rules.txt”, “areas.txt”, “stop_areas.txt”, “networks.txt”, “transfers.txt”, “pathways.txt”, “levels.txt”, “locations.geojson”, “location_groups.txt”, “booking_rules.txt”, “translations.txt”, and “attributions.txt”.

Before providing BTS with any delivery information on a feed (section 2.3), the Contractor should--to the greatest extent possible--validate each feed to ensure it is mappable; any errors detected at this phase should be remedied by the Contractor, involving Carriers as appropriate. The Contractor can use a standard GTFS validator24 to complete this step.

19 More information on IATA codes at https://www.iata.org/en/services/codes, as of September 2025.

20 Look-up tools for Amtrak station codes at https://www.amtrak.com/stationsearch, as of September 2025.

21 BTS time zone information available at https://geodata.bts.gov/maps/time-zones/explore, as of September 2025.

22 More information on extended route types at https://developers.google.com/transit/gtfs/reference/extended-route-types; examples related to intercity bus include coach services (200-209) and bus services (700-716).

23 More information on intercity bus schedule numbers at https://cptdb.ca/wiki/index.php/Russell%27s_Guide.

24 Information on GTFS validation practices, including example validator tools, available at https://gtfs.org/getting-started/validate/# as of September 2025.

https://www.iata.org/en/services/codes https://www.amtrak.com/stationsearch https://geodata.bts.gov/maps/time-zones/explore https://developers.google.com/transit/gtfs/reference/extended-route-types https://developers.google.com/transit/gtfs/reference/extended-route-types https://cptdb.ca/wiki/index.php/Russell%27s_Guide https://gtfs.org/getting-started/validate/ https://gtfs.org/getting-started/validate/

2.1.3. Providing GTFS feeds to BTS for the ICBA

As the Contractor readies ICBA GTFS feeds, it will provide them by having the corresponding Carriers complete the “Memorandum of Understanding” registration form25 on the BTS website.

This procedure, where Carriers complete the form instead of the Contractor, ensures:

1. BTS only receives GTFS feeds from Carriers that have definitively signed the MOU

2. BTS automatically generates a record of each Carrier agreeing to participate in the ICBA

The information below details the MOU form and provides guidance for its completion.

2.1.3.a. MOU submission form The MOU submission form contains the following elements:

• The full text of the BTS ICBA memorandum of understanding, which outlines the terms and conditions under which a Carrier agrees to provide their GTFS data to BTS to build the Intercity Bus Atlas.

• A form for a Carrier to submit information on their feed. The form has three sub-elements:

o Carrier contact information:

Company name (text box) Company point-of-contact (text box) Company POC business e-mail address (text box) Company POC phone number (text box) o Carrier GTFS delivery method, with three options (drop-down menu):

Option #1: GTFS maintained at URL

• Link URL (text box) Option #2: GTFS managed by tech partner or ticket aggregator

• GTFS manager name (text box)

• GTFS manager company (text box)

• GTFS manager e-mail address (text box)

Option #3: Other

• Instructions (text box) o Carrier acknowledge of the terms and conditions (radio button) When a Carrier completes the form, it auto-generates an e-mail to the BTS ICBA project inbox (nicba@dot.gov) with the details of their submission. Once BTS receives this e-mail, the Carrier is considered to have signed the MOU, and BTS saves a copy of the e-mail as a record of their agreement. BTS will not ingest a Carrier’s GTFS feed into the Intercity Bus Atlas until it has received e-mail confirmation from that Carrier that it has signed the MOU.

2.1.3.b. Submitting a feed The only way for a Contractor to deliver an ICBA GTFS feed is to have a representative of that Carrier complete the MOU submission form. While the Carrier must be the entity that completes the MOU, the Contractor can work directly with their Carrier POC to make sure they submit the correction information when they complete the form.

If the Contractor wishes to provide a single GTFS feed that contains the schedule and network data of multiple Carriers, all the Carriers represented in that feed must sign the ICBA MOU before the

25 Available at https://www.bts.gov/intercity-bus-atlas-partnerships-and-registration, as of June 2025.

mailto:nicba@dot.gov https://www.bts.gov/intercity-bus-atlas-partnerships-and-registration data from that feed can be ingested and mapped onto the Atlas. While BTS is theoretically able to extract the elements of a multi-Carrier GTFS that pertain a subset of Carriers, it strongly prefers that each individual Carrier have its own, standalone feed.

BTS provides the following guidance to the Contractor and its Carriers for completing the MOU registration-submission form:

1. The Provider POC is the person authorized to agree to the terms of the MOU on behalf of their intercity bus company. BTS will contact this person (at the provided e-mail address and phone number) to confirm receipt of their MOU submission and provide subsequent updates…