Transit Planning Consultant Services

Sussex County, New Jersey is soliciting proposals from qualified firms to develop an updated Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan (CHSTP) and conduct a comprehensive internal operational assessment of Skylands Ride transportation services. The procurement encompasses two primary tasks: Task 1 requires development of a CHSTP compliant with Federal Transit Administration and New Jersey Transit requirements, including project kickoff, data collection, demographic analysis, transportation provider inventory, stakeholder engagement, gap analysis, strategy development, and production of draft and final reports with a September 2027 deadline; Task 2 involves a comprehensive internal operational assessment of Skylands Ride encompassing project management, operational process review, staffing analytics, facilities evaluation, benchmarking analysis, and development of improvement recommendations. Key project milestones include a Project Kickoff Meeting upon contract award, Stakeholder Engagement Plan finalization by Q4 2026, Data Collection completion by Q1 2027, Draft CHSTP submission by April 2027, public comment period from April through June 2027, Final CHSTP delivery by July 2027, and NJ TRANSIT submission by September 2027, with the Internal Operational Assessment due by December 2026. Evaluation criteria for award consist of Relevant Transit Planning Experience (35 points), Project Approach and Methodology (30 points), Project Team Qualifications (20 points), and Cost Proposal (15 points), totaling 100 possible points. Proposals must be submitted through the Sussex County Bonfire portal (sussex.bonfirehub.com) by April 16, 2026, at 11:00 a.m., with requests for information accepted until March 31, 2026, by 3:00 p.m., a site visit scheduled for March 25, 2026, and a bidders' conference scheduled for April 7, 2026; the anticipated contract award date is May 13, 2026.

No specific set-aside designations or restrictions limiting respondent eligibility are detailed in the procurement documents, and no incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified. The successful respondent must procure and maintain minimum insurance coverage including Worker's Compensation ($1,000,000), General Liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence/$3,000,000 aggregate), Automobile Liability ($3,000,000 combined single limit), and Professional Liability ($2,000,000), with the County named as an additional insured on all policies. Respondents must comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and grant program guidelines, including New Jersey Local Public Contracts Law, Equal Employment Opportunity provisions, Americans with Disabilities Act compliance, and federal contract provisions applicable to federally funded awards under 2 CFR Part 200. The contract award will be made to the lowest responsive, responsible respondent whose proposal is deemed most advantageous to the County, with award to be made within sixty days of bid receipt in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40A:11-24. Total contract compensation shall not exceed $200,000 unless amended by resolution of the Sussex County Board of County Commissioners, with the County estimating approximately $100,000 per report for planning purposes; all proposed pricing must remain firm for the contract duration unless amended by Board resolution, with the project anticipated to be funded in whole or in part through federal, state, or other grant funding sources.