ITS Consulting - Planning Phase

Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority is seeking Proposals for ITS Consulting - Planning Phase. Proposals are to be submitted through the Procurement Portal at https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/a2trans no later than 11:00 am on Thursday, May 14, 2026.

The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (TheRide) is seeking a firm that will provide TheRide with consultation and advice regarding the selection and implementation of an updated Intelligent Transportation System (ITS). TheRide selected the existing ITS solution in 2015 and it has reached the end of its useful life. A successful replacement ITS solution should encompass the following functionalities:

Connected Transit System (Driver login, real time vehicle tracking, schedule adherence, GTFS, GTFS-RT etc.)

Automated Passenger Counters (Automated in-vehicle counts of on-boarding and off-boarding, stop correlation, real-time capacity and crowding information and NTD certification)

Automated Vehicle Announcements (Stop announcements, time and location-based announcements, destination sign integration, ADA compliance)

Real-time Operations Management (Predicted vehicle arrival, detour management)

Yard Management and Vehicle Health Monitoring (Telemetry data, yard vehicle location and information, vehicle health information)

Transit Analytics and Insights (Real-time dashboards showing operational metrics for our service) 

The selected consultant will assist TheRide to select an appropriate procurement vehicle for an updated ITS solution, which may include assisting TheRide staff to develop an RFP for the project. Technology solutions brought forward as result of this project must be consistent with the Regional and National ITS Architecture. The implementation of the updated ITS solution should incorporate Systems Engineering Methodology. Special consideration should be given to ensure the selected technologies can support TheRide 2045, TheRide’s Long-Range Plan released in the Summer of 2022 (TheRide 2045 | TheRide), and integrate with the existent systems.

This project is a significant risk to our agency because it is the backbone of how our service communicates with both our Operations Control Center and our passengers. Consulting support throughout this project is necessary to ensure it is properly scoped. We also recognize that our agency will continue growing over the next twenty years, and we want to make sure that we have adequate personnel in both number and in skillset to properly support this important infrastructure going forward.

We would like for the winning proposer to examine the qualifications and staffing levels of our existing support personnel, determine whether our current staffing level is appropriate to support the implementation of a replacement ITS system both now and for twenty years in the future, based on the projections delineated in TheRide 2045, examine the proposed project management methodology and structure of the ITS Selection Committee, assist the AAATA leadership team on the project to develop strong, cross-divisional subcommittees for each of the modules, assist those subcommittees to identify pertinent features that would be of value to the agency, assist us by determining whether TheRide would benefit by scheduling software demonstrations with ITS vendors for the modules, and if so, help our subcommittees develop pertinent questions, and help AAATA leadership determine next steps. Simultaneously to this work, TheRide will create a second RFP for consulting services during the implementation of the ITS system through Summer 2027, which the winning bidder is welcome to bid on.

Background

Project Details

• Reference ID: 2026-14
• Department: Information Technology
• Department Head: Mike Blackston (Manager)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-04-22T15:00:00.000Z
• Answers Posted By: 2026-04-30T03:55:00.000Z

Evaluation Criteria

• Methodology and Approach (25 pts)
• Qualifications, Experience, and References of the Firm and any Subcontractors (15 pts)
• Qualifications and Experience of Key Personnel (10 pts)
• Proposed Timelines and Schedules (20 pts)
• Project Understanding and Overall Quality and Completeness of Proposal (15 pts)
• Price (15 pts) —

  Provide the following for Pricing:

       1. Pricing for the Project as one all-inclusive, lump-sum price in US dollars WITH a breakdown of the price on a task basis

  AND

       2. Hourly Rates by Title/Position

• Interviews, If Conducted (15 pts)

Submission Requirements

• Will you be offering a prompt payment discount? (required) —

  Prompt payment discounts are not used to calculate bid value. Rather, prompt payment discount information is used to inform AAATA’s Account Payables Department if a purchase is made.

• Please provide the discount information. (required)
• Agreement of Goods and Services (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Certification of Primary Participant Regarding Debarment (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Lobbying (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Certificate of Non-Collusion (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Affirmative Action Plan Certification (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Covenants Against Gratuities (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Iran Economic Sanctions Act (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• References (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• AAATA Living Wage Policy Vendor Declaration of Compliance (required) —

  The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (AAATA) Living Wage Policy requires that employers providing services to AAATA or recipients of grants for financial assistance (in amounts greater than $10,000 in a twelve-month period of time) pay their employees who are working on the AAATA project or grant, a minimum level of compensation known as the Living Wage. This wage must be paid to the employees for the length of the contract or project and is subject to adjustment in accordance with the Living Wage Policy.

  Companies or individuals employing fewer than 5 persons and non-profit organizations employing fewer than 10 persons are exempt from the Policy. If this exemption applies to your firm, please check below:

  _____This company or individual is exempt due to the fact that we employ or contract with fewer than 5 individuals.

  _____This non-profit agency is exempt due to the fact that we employ or contract with fewer than 10 employees.

  The Policy requires that all contractors/vendors and/or grantees agree to the following terms as a part of their contract with AAATA:

  1. To pay each of its employees performing work on any covered contract or grant with AAATA a living wage rate no less than the living wage as established by ordinances as the Living Wage of the City of Ann Arbor. Such living wage, as established by the City of Ann Arbor, will take into account whether the employer provides health care benefits (as defined in this policy) to its covered employees, or does not provide such health care benefits.
  2. Please check the spaces below which apply to your workforce:
     

     _____Employees who are assigned to any covered AAATA project or grant will be paid at or above the applicable living wage without health benefits. Rate Effective April 30, 2026 - Ending April 29, 2027, is $19.42 per hour and adjusts annually.

     OR

     _____Employees who are assigned to any covered AAATA project or grant will be paid at or above the applicable living wage with health benefits. Rate Effective April 30, 2026 - Ending April 29, 2027 is $17.42 per hour and adjusts annually.

  3. To post a notice approved by AAATA regarding the Living Wage Policy in every workplace or other location in which employees or other persons contracting for employment are working.

  4. To provide AAATA payroll records or other documentation as requested; and,

  5. To permit access to work sites to AAATA representatives for the purposes of monitoring compliance, investigating complaints or non-compliance.

• Technical Proposal (required) —

  Technical Proposal: shall include all required elements listed and NO PRICES OR COSTS SHALL BE INCLUDED IN THE TECHNICAL PROPOSAL and

  1. Proposals must meet the following general requirements:
     1. Proposers shall not upload individual pages as separate documents for either the Technical Proposal.
     2. Proposals must be submitted in written English. All communication regarding this RFP will be conducted in English.
     3. Proposers shall make no additional stipulations or alterations to the RFP including on the Forms and Certifications or Price Proposal Form, nor qualify the Proposal unless authorized by AAATA in writing.
• Price Proposal (required) —

  Price Proposal: shall not be included in the Technical Proposal. 

  1. Proposals must meet the following general requirements:
     1. Proposers shall not upload individual pages as separate documents for the Price Proposal.
     2. Proposals must be submitted in written English. All communication regarding this RFP will be conducted in English.
     3. Proposers shall make no additional stipulations or alterations to the RFP including on the Forms and Certifications or Price Proposal Form, nor qualify the Proposal unless authorized by AAATA in writing.

     4. Provide the following for Pricing:

             1. Pricing for the Project as one all-inclusive, lump-sum price in US dollars WITH a breakdown of the price on a task basis

        AND

             2. Hourly Rates by Title/Position

• Does this project involve Federal Funding? (required)
• Rate Effective April 30, 20XX - Ending April 29, 20XX (required)
• The rate per hour if the employer provides health care benefits: (required)
• The rate per hour if the employer does NOT provide health care benefits: (required)
• Will you be using the Electronic Pricing? (required)
• Would you like to keep the Living Wage policy in this solicitation? (required)