Archive for September, 2010
Thursday, September 30th, 2010
In the battle for transit funding, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) is leading the charge armed with stories and petitions. Over that past year APTA has been collecting video testimonials of riders and community leaders speaking about the benefits and importance of public transportation, urging Congress to increase funding for public transit. Recently, APTA gathered in Washington, DC to unveil their “Telling Our Story” initiative to Capitol Hill. APTA’s National Online Wall is now open to the public; you can visit it here and share your own story.
Tuesday, September 28th, 2010
The best way to evaluate a product is to talk to people who have used it before. The same applies for Transit ITS technology. References can be an excellent way to learn more about a vendor’s technology as well as their support and services. The Transit Cooperation Research Board’s (TCRB) Report 76 outlines important information agencies should be sure to gather when talking to vendor references.
The report advises that procuring agencies contact agencies which operate systems that are similar in size, market and service to your own to ensure the information references provide will be relevant to your operation. If possible, arrange a demonstration of the hardware and software while on-site, which will allow you to see how the system functions in a real-world environment. Most importantly, gather the basic information about the reference’s experience with the system including:
- What benefits they have realized since implementation
- Why they chose to implement this system
- An evaluation of the vendor’s training and support
- Any obstacles the references encountered which could be avoided
- A copy of their RFP, installation plan, proposal, and costs (if available)
Following these steps will ensure vendor references are a valuable and realistic evaluation of the solution which can be extremely valuable as you progress through the procurement process.
http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/tcrp/tcrp_rpt_76.pdf
Thursday, September 23rd, 2010
Everyone knows product demos are a great way for transit agencies to gather information about a wide variety of products to determine how well a product will address agency needs. However, how can you ensure you are getting the most value from the ITS product demos you are watching?
Here are a few suggestions from the Transit Cooperative Research Board (TCRB) to make viewing product demos more productive:
- Have the right participants: Make sure all applicable staff are present for the demo. Most importantly, include staff who will use the technology such as dispatchers, managers, drivers and operations staff.
- Inform Vendors About Your Agency: Provide vendors with a description of your services, operations and needs well before the demo so they can prepare their product demo to specifically address your systems issues and goals.
- Get the Basics: At the end of the demo, ensure you have all the information you need about how the product will meet your specific needs, who will use the product, computer requirements as well as estimated costs
- Ask All Your Questions: Encourage all attendees to ask questions, especially those who will be using the product the most. This will ensure you have a complete understanding of how the product can fit into your day-to-day operations.
For more information about evaluating product demos and choosing a technology system, see TCRP Report 76: A Guidebook for Selecting Appropriate Technology Systems for Small Urban and Rural Public Transportation Operators.
Tuesday, September 21st, 2010
1. Be Mindful of the Details
Releasing an RFP is a substantial undertaking and oftentimes it’s the little details that are forgotten. Before release be sure to double-check:
- Consistency of dates (pre-bid conference, question period, due date, etc.) throughout the document.
- All pertinent contact information. Make sure the delivery address is a physical location and not a P.O. Box to allow for courier delivery of proposals.
- Details such as the number of copies requested as well as the type of electronic copy desired (CD, USB key or email) are clearly specified.
- Font size and legibility of copy delivered to vendors.
- Forms that need to be manipulated by vendors are sent in an editable format (unlocked Microsoft Word document or PDF).
- Information on where to access attachments and addenda is clearly stated.
By ensuring that all of these details are met, vendor time is freed to focus on the more important parts of their RFP responses. Your agency will also have fewer administrative questions to answer after the RFP’s release.
2. Provide Relevant Information About Your Agency
Be sure to include all relevant information about your agency and its current operations within the RFP. This should include details about any in-office computer equipment, servers and software currently used, as well as the number and types of vehicles in your fleet. This information will allow vendors to format their responses specifically to your agency and current resources which will save time and money during the implementation.
3. Establish Reasonable Timelines
It is normal to want the procurement process to proceed as quickly as possible to begin benefitting from your Transit ITS Solution; however, it is important to give vendors adequate time to respond to your proposal to the best of their ability. Below is a reasonable timeframe for generating a response to a Transit ITS RFP:
Release of RFP to Pre-Bid Meeting Date………………………………………. 2 weeks
Pre-Bid Meeting Date to Deadline for Questions Submission………………… 2 weeks
Deadline for Questions Submission to Agency Response to Questions………. 1 week
Agency Response to Questions to RFP Due Date ……………………. at least 2 weeks
4. Give Vendors an Idea of Your Budget
If possible, ask vendors for preliminary pricing information when establishing your budget to ensure it accurately reflects your desired functionality. If this is not possible, publish your budget, or at least present a budget range, to allow vendors to present a solution that will be within budgetary constraints.
5. Require a Standardized Proposal Format
Requiring vendors to follow a standardized proposal format allows you to more easily compare and evaluate RFP responses. This is especially pertinent for the price proposal and compliance matrix sections. A standardized version of these forms will enable simple side-by-side comparison of vendor offerings and price points.
6. Use References Wisely
References from existing customers are one of the best ways to evaluate a vendor’s service and technical solution in a real-world setting. Requiring at least five customer references from completed projects similar to yours will help ensure the vendor’s solution is proven and works in the field. This is also a great way to get valuable first-hand feedback about a vendor’s support and service.
7. Do Not Make Price Your Only Determinant
With the multitude of factors present in evaluating responses to a Transit ITS RFP, it may seem logical and easiest to pick the response with the lowest price. However, the lowest price could also mean lower levels of functionality, support and vendor reputation.
Because the success of a Transit ITS implementation relies heavily on procuring the correct functionality and support for your agency, it is important to weigh factors other than price during evaluation. One way to ensure price is not an overriding factor is to request pricing information be submitted separately from the rest of the proposal. This will allow the evaluation committee to choose the response that best addresses your needs without being influenced by price.
Thursday, September 16th, 2010
Procuring transit ITS technology requires preparation. In order to ensure the best solution for your agency, it is imperative to first be aware of exactly what technologies you need. The Transit Cooperative Research Board provides a guide called “TCRP Report 76: Guidebook for Selecting Appropriate Technology Systems for Small Urban and Rural Public Transportation Operators”. Though the guide is targeted to smaller agencies, the ideas inside are useful for agencies of any size.
The first chapter of the guide focuses on how to perform a Technology Needs Assessment. As every transit agency operates differently and has its own goals, it is important to ensure the technology you request in your RFP will help you meet those goals.
The first step in completing a Needs Assessment is to form a Technology Review Team. This group of people will assess the current operations of the agency and identify areas where the use of technology would bring improvement. The team should include management and operations staff, procurement and information systems staff, leaders from human services departments that may purchase from your system, and board members whose support is critical in procuring new technology.
Once the team is formed, it should look to identify current problems in the operation by examining system performance statistics, both past and present. Once issues are discovered, the team should evaluate which system functions present the most pressing needs (e.g. reservations, routing, billing, etc.). When the needs have been identified it is time to look at which technologies will address them and help meet your goals.
This is where TCRP Report 76 becomes the most useful. The report addresses 12 common system needs and clearly outlines which solutions, out of 19 different ITS technologies, can effectively address them. The 12 systems needs are:
- More accurate, easier reporting and record keeping
- More efficient service coordination
- Safer, more accurate cash handling
- Improved operations staff performance and productivity
- More effective maintenance tracking
- Clearer communications
- More effective dispatching
- Faster, more efficient trip request processing
- Improved scheduling productivity
- Improved service quality
- Greater safety
- More accessible and useful customer information
Using the charts in the report can help agencies decide which technologies to include in their ITS RFP to ensure the purchased system will meet their needs.
You can access the Guidebook here: http://www.trb.org/Main/Public/Blurbs/160931.aspx
Tuesday, September 14th, 2010
To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Easter Seals Project ACTION launched an online dialogue about the role of paratransit operations. Between July 26 and Aug 6, 2010, people from across the country weighed in on issues shaping the paratransit industry, from the best way to comply with ADA requirements, to planning for the future. To read more about the various reactions and thoughts on this subject, click here.
Friday, September 10th, 2010
Kerr Area Rural Transportation System (KARTS), located in Hendersen, NC, transports more than 160,000 paratransit passengers a year on 42 vehicles. KARTS also provides trips to the cities of Durham, Chapel Hill and Raleigh. Their Paratransit ITS System was implemented in March 2009 and Rob Brink, Director at KARTS, shares some of the changes he’s seen since the implementation.
1. Have you seen a change in how dispatchers and drivers communicate?
It’s really night and day as far as the totality of the communication process has improved from tracking where drivers are and not having to radio them, but also being able to insert trips and cancellations and getting no-shows back. The biggest improvement is just the seamlessness of it. There’s things that can be done now that might have taken 10 minutes that can now be done instantaneously.
2. Has the system affected the complaint resolution process?
Dispatchers are able to focus more on the call, because they don’t have the radio noise in the background. Also, they’re able to give customers better answers when they ask where their vehicle is or how much longer their vehicle is going to be. Also, dispatchers are able to take care of customer’s needs more immediately because if somebody calls and says they are ready to be picked up, the dispatcher can go ahead and just send a message right out to the driver while that customer is still on the phone. This has reduced customer wait times.
3. Has the system affected on your fleet’s on-time performance?
Definitely in the way that we are able to track it. Before we had this system, there was no real-time data to base our on-time performance off of. Also, with the real-time functionality we now can see if the driver is falling behind and assist them in keeping on-time.
4. Have you noticed any environmental benefits to using the system?
We probably use 25% of the paper we were using prior to the system. Before, we were running a detailed manifest for all the drivers which were about 10-20 page documents. We’ve reduced that to trip summaries which are only 1 to 2 pages.
5. Where have you seen the most changes in your operation?
The communication aspect of the system is the biggest benefit. Being able to communicate with all drivers at one time, seamlessly, is very valuable. Not having to key up the radio and announce to everyone on the vehicles what’s going on and being able to send drivers those messages, move trips and cancel trips, has really been the biggest benefit.
Tuesday, September 7th, 2010
Here is a great resource to help make getting around your city a little bit easier. This site lets you type in your city or zip code, and it will list all the transit-related apps that are available to download onto your smart phone. From real-time ‘Where’s my bus’ arrival info, to trip planners and traffic monitors, no matter where you are, or what kind of transit you use, you can find an app to make your commute a little easier. Check out the website here.
