Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA)

METRO RTA will be undertaking a Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) study to evaluate potential Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridors across Summit County. This study will be a critical next step in advancing METRO’s long-term vision of building a more connected and efficient transit network. Building upon the foundation of the Reimagine METRO system redesign, the LPA will identify where BRT investments will have the greatest impact in improving travel times, reliability, and access to opportunity for riders.

The LPA study will include a comprehensive analysis of ridership demand, travel time savings, capital and operating costs, land use patterns, and community impacts. Engagement with municipal partners, regional agencies, business leaders, and community members will be central to the process, ensuring that the selected alternative reflects local priorities and supports broader goals related to mobility and economic development.

The outcome of this effort will be the formal adoption of a Locally Preferred Alternative, identifying the recommended corridor and defining the scope of the initial BRT investment. This decision will provide the technical justification and regional consensus needed for subsequent project development phases, including environmental review, detailed design, and federal funding applications under the FTA’s Capital Investment Grant program. By completing the LPA study, METRO will establish a clear and actionable path forward, positioning Summit County to make transformative transit improvements that strengthen the region’s economy, support workforce access, and enhance quality of life for residents.

Background

In 2023, METRO RTA completed a countywide BRT Feasibility Study that screened multiple corridors and identified four high-potential candidates: Market/Exchange, State/Main, Kenmore/Barberton, and South Arlington. The study was built on the Reimagine METRO network redesign and evaluated travel demand, reliability, equity and access needs, and implementation feasibility. METRO coordinated with AMATS, ODOT District 4, partner cities, and community stakeholders to confirm problem statements such as slow travel times, signal delay, transfer friction, and inconsistent stop amenities, and to scope potential solutions including BRT treatments, station upgrades, and targeted TSP and queue jumps. The LPA study is the next step. It will refine alternatives, select the first corridor for advancement, and produce design, cost, and environmental documentation needed to move into project development and pursue federal funding.

Project Details

• Reference ID: 2026-05
• Department: Planning
• Department Head: Valerie Shea (Director of Planning & Strategic Dev.)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-03-30T20:00:00.000Z

Evaluation Criteria

• Firm qualifications, relevant experience, references (25 pts) —

  Demonstrated experience in transit service/operations planning, transit and passenger facility design, traffic operations engineering, and transit ridership forecasting.  Specific experience in conducting high capacity transit feasibility and alternatives analysis studies and transit facility design projects, particularly for BRT. Experience with use of regional travel models and STOPS model to generate transit ridership forecasts for major transit corridor studies. Experience with traffic operations analysis and in particular analysis of BRT projects. Past performance history with similar types of projects References from previous clients

• Project Team Staff (25 pts) —

  Proposed project team staff ability and record of achievement, particularly the qualifications and experience of key supervisory personnel and their commitment to the project. Proposals should include a narrative of roles, responsibilities, and project and component leadership for each aspect of the project. Availability of staff of consultant team to take on work tasks, particularly the consistent availability of the project manager and task managers Previous successful collaborations among consultant team members and firms

• Technical Project Approach/Work Plan (25 pts) —

  The proposed project approach and overall work plan and schedule demonstrates a full comprehension of the scope of services and the ability to consistently provide such services at a high performance level and meet the project requirements The extent to which the proposer presents a robust, inclusive, and adaptive public involvement methodology that leverages non-traditional and high-impact engagement techniques, reduces participation barriers, and clearly links engagement activities to project milestones, decisions, and deliverables. The project approach and work plan demonstrates ability to address key challenges with the project and includes innovative ideas for approach, etc. to meet the project objectives Quality and thoroughness of the written proposal in addressing the technical requirements of the solicitation Scope of the public participation plan for the project is comprehensive and appropriate for this stage of BRT study   Schedule, tasks, and deliverables are clearly laid out and meet the project objectives, and the time allocated for staff is appropriate given their expertise

• Project Management (25 pts) —

  Demonstrated ability to manage project and successfully complete it on time based on proposed schedule, manager, organizational structure of staff team, availability and location(s) of staff, experience with past projects, and references.

• Cost by category (5 pts) —

  Project Management and Admin

  Project Purpose and Need

  Public & Stakeholder Involvement

  Determine Preferred Initial BRT Project

  Analyze & Refine the Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA)

  Environmental Screening & NEPA Readiness

  Risk Register & Early Constructability Workshop

  Full FTA Standard Cost Categories (SCC) Cost Package

  Small Starts Project Development Entry Materials

  Notes

  Labor Subtotal

  Other Costs Subtotal

  Notes

  Total Cost of Subcontractors

  Travel Costs

• Hours by category (as percent of total hours) (5 pts) —

  Project Management and Admin

  Project Purpose and Need

  Public Involvement

  Determine Locally Preferred Initial BRT Project

  Analyze and Refine Locally Preferred Alternative

  Small Starts Application Process

  Total Hours

  Notes

  Aggregate $/Hour

Submission Requirements

• Years of Experience (required) —

  Does your company have at least 3-5 years of experience at performing services and providing products of a similar size and scope of that noted for this RFP?

• Experience Narrative (required) —

  Including a brief narrative on capabilities as specifically related to the scope of this RFP.

• Subcontractor Information (required) —

  Please provide your subcontractor information (if applicable) in the following format for each individual subcontractor: (if no subcontractors, please simply state "no subcontractors")

  • Subcontractor Company Name
  • Brief Description of Work To be Performed by Subcontractor
  • Subcontractor License Number and Type
• SAM.gov Confirmation (required) —

  Please upload a printout from SAM.gov to confirm that your company currently has no active exclusions. The printout must be no greater than seven (7) calendar days prior to the due date of this bid.

• Complete Proposal Upload (required) —

  Upload your complete proposal here, including any pricing information. This does not include any of the required forms that are also requested here in this submittal section.

• Proposal Upload (without Cost) (required) —

  Please upload your proposal here but be sure that it does not include any pricing or cost information as you will be uploading that separately as required.

• Separate Pricing/Cost Information (required) —

  Upload your pricing/cost information separately here. It must not be included within any of your other uploaded files.

• Federal Clauses for Signature (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Delinquent Personal Property Statement (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• DBE (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Buy America (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Federal Clauses for Signature (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Authority to Reject and Officer Signature (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Non-Collusion Affidavit (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• ACH Form (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Workers Compensation Certificate (required) —

  Please upload the applicable document(s) here as part of your bid response.

• Employer Liability Insurance Certificate (required) —

  Please upload the applicable document(s) here as part of your bid response.

• General Liability Coverage (required) —

  Please upload the Commercial General Liability Insurance Certificate with Declaration(s) page here as part of your bid response.

• Auto Liability Coverage (required) —

  Please upload the Commercial Auto Liability Insurance Certificate and applicable document(s) here as part of your bid response.

• Warranty Information (required) —

  If warranty information has been requested with this bid, please upload the applicable information here.

• Additional Information —

  If any section required you to provide additional information, you would upload it to this section here. If you wish to provide any additional information about your bid that has not already been addressed then you would do so here.

• Upload price sheet from the attachment portion of the bid here (required) —

  Upload price sheet

• Submittal of Proposal by Certified Personnel (required) —

  By submitting a proposal to the County, the individual submitting is confirming that they are authorized to do so on behalf of the Company named in the Proposal.

• Certifications and Bid Amounts (required)
• Akron Beacon Journal Post Date 1 (required) —

  For the advertising dates of the Legal Notice in the Akron Beacon Journal.

  What is the First Date of advertisement for this project?

  Please use the following format to enter the date (Month, Day, Year):

  Example
  June 15, 2023

• Akron Beacon Journal Post Date 2 (required) —

  For the advertising dates of the Legal Notice in the Akron Beacon Journal.

  What is the Second Date of advertisement for this project?

  Please use the following format to enter the date (Month, Day, Year):

  Example
  June 22, 2023

• Estimated Project or Purchase Value (required) —

  What is the current estimated value of this project or purchase?

  NOTE: Your selection here does affect Terms and Conditions, including several FTA Clauses, that are included with this posting. If you wish to include all potentially applicable Terms and Conditions and all FTA Clauses, then simply select the option for over $150,000.

• Separate Proposer Pricing/Cost Files (required) —

  If there is a requirement to obtain sealed cost or separate cost files with this RFP, you must select the appropriate option here. This is often used with Qualifications Based Evaluations or when grant funding guidelines require that cost not be a factor in selection. If there is no such requirement for this RFP then you may select "Not Applicable".

• Warranty Information (required) —

  Be mindful of the Bid Bond section when reviewing as it contains applicable information. Will warranty information be required from bidders?

  Bid Bond information is located within Bid and Proposal Information when the amount exceeds $100,000.

• Electronic Pricing Table (required) —

  Do you wish to use the Electronic Pricing Table within OpenGov to capture some or all of the pricing information for this RFP?

  Keep in mind that you can also receive additional pricing information such as pricing breakdowns within the proposal uploads (Vendor Questionnaire) even if you use the pricing table.

Questions & Answers