Real-time bus arrival predictions and alerts for BBB customers

The City of Santa Monica, (the "City”) seeks proposals from qualified firms to provide a comprehensive software-as-a-service system that will allow the city of Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus (BBB) to improve the customer experience in every interaction with its service.

Background

The City of Santa Monica (City) operates Big Blue Bus (BBB), a fixed route bus service within Santa Monica and the greater West Los Angeles region. BBB operates 17 routes with a fleet of 195 buses, and almost 300 fixed route operators. In FY2025-26, BBB operated for over 4 million revenue hours, 450,000 revenue miles, and provided more than 10,000,000 passenger trips. 

BBB seeks continuous improvement of the customer experience throughout the entire public transit trip, including while waiting for a bus to arrive. Accurate, reliable predictive real-time bus arrival information has been shown to improve the customer experience by reducing the perceived wait time, and the anxiety of not knowing if the next bus is on schedule or when it will arrive. BBB has provided its customers with bus arrival predictions for more than 10 years and customers and other stakeholders rely on the data. In March 2026, more than 5.4 million real-time information predictions were ingested by third-party developers for customer use, including customer apps, signs, connected vehicle projects, local organizations, advertisement screens, and other sources.

Approximately 96% of the data was ingested by applications that provided bus arrival predictions and alerts directly to customers using apps such as Transit or Google. Customers can also plan their BBB trips by visiting BBB’s webpage with an embedded trip-planning feature, using SMS texts, or making Interactive Voice Response (IVR) calls to BBB. In addition, many customers use BBB’s real-time arrival information signs at 195 bus stops throughout the service area. BBB also works with partner agencies to reflect real-time arrivals at shared stops where the partner agency has a real-time display.

Although a variety of third-party apps are available which provide arrival predictions using BBB’s public General Transit Feed Specification real-time (GTFS-rt) feed, it is important that BBB proactively provide its customers real-time bus arrival information that is consistently the same, across a variety of communication channels rather than having customers rely on various sources that may each provide slightly different predictions due to variances in algorithms and/or prediction methodology.

Most BBB customers have and use a smartphone; however, a significant minority of customers do not have a smartphone or prefer to get their bus arrival data by other means such as phone, text, computer, or electronic signs at bus stops. The ideal solution would make accurate real-time bus arrival information easily accessible to virtually all current and potential BBB customers however they may prefer to get the data. The solution would also disseminate static schedule data (GTFS) via maps when appropriate and would be the single source of truth for BBB real-time locations and schedule data.

In addition, providing a means to automatically disseminate real-time service alerts across a wide range of communication channels would improve the customer experience by helping to reduce customer confusion and frustration about planned and unplanned disruptions. An automated alert-generation solution using data ingested from BBB’s existing CAD-AVL and scheduling systems would help BBB staff better serve customer needs without having to manually enter the same information into multiple locations, which currently include social media, BBB’s website, email blasts, and GTFS-rt for downstream systems such as third-party apps or electronic signs at bus stops, etc.

While the passenger web and mobile components of bus schedule and location data are important parts of a successful system, the most important focus is on the generation and delivery of high-quality real-time arrival prediction data that meets industry standards, e.g., GTFS-rt. With these predictions, BBB is able to leverage the marketplace of real-time third-party apps such as Google, Transit, Moovit, etc. giving customers the flexibility to use the apps that best meet their needs while maintaining consistency of data across all third-party platforms. 

Project Details

• Reference ID: 483
• Department: SaMoDOT
• Department Head: Anuj Gupta (Director SaMoDOT)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-07-01T22:00:00.000Z
• Answers Posted By: 2026-07-09T22:00:00.000Z

Evaluation Criteria

• Value Add / Breadth of Service (25 pts) —

  Up to 25 points may be awarded based on the contractor’s ability to provide insight and information, industry best practices and the ability to effectively communicate information to management and provide technical training or resources. Evaluation will be based on responses to the sections of the SOW/Requirements User Experience and Reliability of System, Customer Service Support of System, and Measures of Success.

• Quality Control (15 pts) —

  Up to 15 points may be awarded based on whether the distinctive goals established for each component are met as described in the sections of the SOW/Requirements QA and QC and Measures of Success.

• Experience / Technical Competence (30 pts) —

  Up to 30 points may be awarded based on evaluation of the proposer’s knowledge and prior experience. Evaluation will be based on responses to SOW/Requirements sections of this RFP: General Technical Requirements, (Optional) Website Support for BBB Customers, Solution for Customer Information Alerts, General Requirements Applicable to All Modules, User Experience and Reliability of System, Customer Service Support of System, System Administration and Reporting, and Security and Confidentiality of Data.

• Cost (15 pts) —

  Up to 15 points may be awarded for the lowest price or best value, annualized fixed or variable fees listed separately for each milestone or contract term as described in the SOW Requirements section Cost Proposal. The contractor’s overall cost proposal for the project should reflect cost effective work and services.

• Stability / References (5 pts) —

  Up to 5 points may be awarded upon an evaluation of proposer’s work for similar engagement based on references provided and responses to the following sections of the SOW/Requirements section of this RFP: Minimum Vendor requirements.

• Ability to Meet Work Plan / Timelines (10 pts) —

  Up to 10 points may be awarded based on the contractor’s ability to perform the work within the desired time frame. Evaluation will be based on responses to the following sections of the SOW/Requirements sections of this RFP: Project Management, Implementation Plan, and System Implementation and Integration.

Submission Requirements

• Proposal
• Letter of Transmittal (required) —

  Please upload your letter of Transmittal as a PDF here. Make sure to include the following items.

  1. Identify the submitting organization;
  2. Identify the name, title, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address of the person authorized by the organization to contractually obligate the organization;
  3. Identify the name, title, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address of the person authorized to negotiate the contract on behalf of the organization;
  4. Identify the names, titles, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses of persons to be contacted for clarification;
  5. Be signed by the person authorized to contractually obligate the organization;
  6. Acknowledge receipt of any and all amendments to this RFP.
• Qualifications (required) —

  Provide a brief summary of your company’s history, its capabilities, and its recent relevant experience (last five years). Also, describe your demonstrated experience with similar projects and qualification including professional licenses and certifications.

• Key Personnel (required) —

  Describe the project team composition and include resumes of key personnel. Proposed members should be available for ninety (90) days from the proposal due date. The City must be promptly notified of any changes in key personnel prior to award.

• References (required) —

  List a minimum of three (3) references for whom comparable services were provided to in the last five (5) years. Include the name of the firm, name of the contact, telephone number of the contact, email address of contact (if available), brief description of the services provided and your firm’s role, and the start and completion date.

• Project Work Plan (required) —

  Describe your understanding of the project and approach. Include deliverables, milestones, assumptions, and identify potential risks that could delay the project. List any resources you expect the City to provide.

• Cost Proposal
• Cost of Software, Licensing and Subscription (required) —

  Pricing shall be itemized and tabulated, with details of user license types (e.g., administrator, analyst, or read-only), data storage or transfer fees (if applicable) and any SaaS, Licensing, and/or Subscription fees, and annualized over a five-year contract term. 

• Implementation, Support and Ongoing Services (required) —

  Implementation costs, broken down by key milestones, and post-implementation annual costs not included above, including helpdesk/customer support, system monitoring, maintenance, and software updates or enhancements and annualized over a five-year contract term. 

• Other Required Responses
• Business License Requirements —

  WHO NEEDS A BUSINESS LICENSE?

  1. Is this vendor physically located in the City of Santa Monica?

  Yes (Vendor must have a City of Santa Monica business license - contact the Business License unit for the appropriate forms. Skip question 2 & continue to “ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS” section below)

  No (Continue to the next question)

   

  2. Does this vendor physically come into the City of Santa Monica to conduct business and/or make deliveries?

  Yes(Vendor must have a City of Santa Monica Out-of City Business License. contact the Business License unit for the appropriate forms. Continue to “ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS” section below)

  No(STOP, no license needed)

   

  ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

  If this vendor is located in or comes into the City of Santa Monica to conduct business, in addition to having a CITY OF SANTA MONICA BUSINESS LICENSE, they will be required to have insurance (see agreement for descriptions).

  The business license documentation is only required from the successful Proposer.

• Notice Regarding Disclosure of Contents of Documents (required) —

  All responses to this Request for Proposal (RFP) accepted by the City of Santa Monica (City) shall become the exclusive property of the City. All proposals accepted by the City shall become a matter of public record and shall be regarded as public, with the exception of those elements of each proposal which are defined by the contractor as business or trade secrets and plainly marked as "Trade Secret", "Confidential" or "Proprietary". Each element of a proposal which a contractor desires not to be considered a public record must be clearly marked as set forth above, and any blanket statement (i.e. regarding entire pages, documents or other non-specific designations) shall not be sufficient and shall not bind the City in any way whatsoever. If disclosure is required or permitted under the California Public Records Act, or otherwise by law, the City shall not in any way be liable or responsible for the disclosure of any such records or part thereof.

• Oaks Initiative (required) —

  CITY OF SANTA MONICA OAKS INITIATIVE NOTICE

  NOTICE TO APPLICANTS, BIDDERS, PROPOSERS AND OTHERS SEEKING DISCRETIONARY PERMITS, CONTRACTS, OR OTHER BENEFITS FROM THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA

  Santa Monica’s voters adopted a City Charter amendment commonly known as the Oaks Initiative. The Oaks Initiative requires the City to provide this notice and information about the Initiative’s requirements. You may obtain a full copy of the Initiative’s text from the City Clerk.

  This information is required by City Charter Article XXII—Taxpayer Protection. It prohibits a public official from receiving, and a person or entity from conferring, specified personal benefits or campaign advantages from a person or entity after the official votes, or otherwise takes official action, to award a “public benefit” to that person or entity. The prohibition applies within and outside of the geographical boundaries of Santa Monica.

  All persons or entities applying or receiving public benefits from the City of Santa Monica shall provide the names of trustees, directors, partners, and officers, and names of persons with more than a 10% equity, participation or revenue interest. An exception exists for persons serving in those capacities as volunteers, without compensation, for organizations exempt from income taxes under Section 501(c)(3), (4), or (6), of the Internal Revenue Code. However, this exception does not apply if the organization is a political committee or controls political committees. Examples of a “public benefit” include public contracts to provide goods or services worth more than $25,000 or a land use approval worth more than $25,000 over a 12-month period.

  In order to facilitate compliance with the requirements of the Oaks Initiative, the City compiles and maintains certain information. That information includes the name of any person or persons who is seeking a “public benefit.” If the “public benefit” is sought by an entity, rather than an individual person, the information includes the name of every person who is: (a) trustee, (b) director, (c) partner, (d) officer, or has (e) more than a ten percent interest in the entity. Therefore, if you are seeking a “public benefit” covered by the Oaks Initiative, you must supply that information on the Oaks Initiative Disclosure Form. This information must be updated and supplied every 12 months.

• Living Wage Ordinance Certification (required) —

  CITY OF SANTA MONICA LIVING WAGE ORDINANCE
  Certification for Providers of Services to the City of Santa Monica
  (Fiscal Year 25/26 – September 8, 2025 through June 30, 2026)
  TO BE COMPLETED BY ALL CONTRACTORS PROVIDING SERVICES TO THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA IN EXCESS OF $54,200

  The City of Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 4.65, Living Wage Ordinance (LWO), establishes a Minimum Wage of $22.50 for certain employees of contractors providing services to the City where services exceed $54,200 or more and requires that contractors also provide the same health care and other benefits to employees’ same sex spouses and domestic partners as are provided to other employees’ spouses.

  An employee covered by the LWO is any person who does not actually work as a manager, supervisor, or confidential employee, and who is not required to possess an occupational license.

  The Living Wage Ordinance applies the services sought pursuant to this bid and bidders are required to prepare and return the Living Wage Certification Form. If the bidder is selected, the bidder must maintain payroll records that include, at minimum, the full name of each employee providing services under the contract, job classification and rate of pay. Bids that fail to include Certification Forms may be considered non-responsive and excluded from further consideration.

  Please prepare the following certification if you are a contractor engaging in a contract for services with the City of Santa Monica in excess of $54,200.

  Your signature on this certification grants the City permission to review any and all payroll books and records and any company documents pertaining to the benefits offered to employees to assure your compliance with the LWO during the term of the contract.

  Please direct any questions to:

  City of Santa Monica Finance Department 
  Attention: Living Wage Compliance Section 
  1685 Main Street, Mail Stop 09
  Santa Monica, CA 90401

  You can also contact staff regarding living wage ordinance questions by e-mail at finance.mailbox@smgov.net or by phone 310-458-8281.

• Certificate of Compliance (required) —

  Please upload your completed Certificate of Compliance document here.

• Non-Discrimination Policy, Debarment Certification & Non-Collusion Declaration (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Levine Act Disclosure Form (required) —

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload.

• Minimum Vendor Requirements
• Does the vendor have a minimum of 5 years of experience in providing real-time predictions and operational analytics to comparable transit agencies in North America? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide a list of previous agencies served.

• Does the vendor have a minimum of two years of compatibility with a Clever Devices CAD/AVL system? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide a list of previous agencies served.

• Solution Overview
• Does your solution implement a variety of user-friendly interfaces concerning real-time individual bus locations and predicted arrival times for end users including customers as well as staff throughout the organization via voice response, text, social media, automated signs at bus stops, and other digital channels? (required)
• Does your solution ensure that customers are kept informed with a feature or stand-alone solution that will automatically push out service alerts concerning closures, delays, events, detours, etc., via email, voice response, text, social media, automated signs at bus stops, and other digital channels? (required)
• Does your solution ensure that customers are kept informed with a feature or stand-alone solution that will automatically push out service alerts concerning closures, delays, events, detours, etc., via email, voice response, text, social media, automated signs at bus stops, and other digital channels? (required)
• Comments to questions in section 2.2 —

  If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment.  This is not a requirement.

• General Technical Requirements
• Can the service be hosted by the Contractor such that no system software needs to be maintained by the City? (required)
• Can the service accept General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) and consume BBB’s data feed automatically and daily if changes have occurred? (required)
• Can real-time data be made available in GTFS-real-time (GTFS-rt) format (synced with the BBB’s GTFS data)? (required)
• Is the system capable of ingesting static bus route and stop arrival schedule data in order to generate customer-friendly route maps and to inform the public in the event that location data is not available, e.g., during an outage or when service has been disrupted? (required)
• Is real-time data also available in a human readable format such as JSON as well as other formats such as xml, txt, geojson, kml, and zip? (required)
• Does the solution include publicly accessible API(s) that allow(s) third party web and mobile application developers to use the real-time transit data and ensure(s) consistency of predictions across multiple platforms, regardless of the app used? (required)
• Can you provide references/links to public APIs for existing customers that work on an open API specification, e.g., OneBusAway? (required)
• Does the system function in any standard web browser, using any third-party smartphone application (app) that helps customers plan their transit trips (e.g., Transit, Google, and others), via SMS, and through interactive voice response (IVR)? (required)
• Does the system display maps of “live” bus locations of all buses that can be viewed online by customers who visit BBB’s website and/or the proposer’s website, if available? (required)
• Do map views include standard map display features (zoom in/out, panning, etc.)? (required)
• Do map views have an automatic refresh feature? (required)
• Does the geo-spatial object management portion of the system provide capabilities to trace routes and place stops and landmarks on the map for the general public to see? (required)
• Does the vehicle icon on the map display for the public clearly indicate Name of Route, Route Direction, and Location? (required)
• Does the bus stop icon on the map display for the public clearly indicate Name of Bus Stop, Bus Stop ID #, Routes the bus stop serves, and the time the next two buses will be arriving at the bus stop? (required)
• Do users have the ability to select only routes that are of interest to them individually? (required)
• Does the system have the ability to remember routes for users? (required)
• Does the system provide arrival predictions at stop level to give riders more detail about anticipated vehicle arrival times? (required)
• Will the vendor design a banner that uses customer-supplied logos/graphics? (required)
• Does the system differentiate estimated time of arrival for inbound and outbound stops along a particular fixed route?  (required)
• Does the system continuously update the web page (whenever a new estimated time of arrival (ETA) is determined? (required)
• Does the system display route schedule and bus stop location that can be viewed online by customers who visit BBB’s website and/or the proposer’s website, if available? (required)
• Optional: Can the vendor provide its own customized or commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) application (app) that can be downloaded to iOS or Android smart devices by customers? (required)
• Optional: If app is available, can the app provide interface that shows steady vehicle movement without reloading on internet-enabled mobile phones? (required)
• Optional: If app is available, for phones with GPS capability enabled, can the app provide geolocation features to allow riders to identify location on maps? (required)
• Optional:  If app is available, can the system provide free-to-download native iPhone and native Android applications? (required)
• Are customers able to access real-time transit information via SMS and IVR? (required)
• If SMS and IVR are available, please provide details of how SMS and IVR are accessed in the "Comments" column. (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• (Optional) Website support for BBB customers.
• Does the vendor provide and host a responsive mobile-friendly website that is compatible with all major operating systems and web browsers for customers to use to obtain real-time bus arrival, schedule adherence, and/or trip planning information, with any content or applications shared with BBB compatible with the City’s web site platform? (required)
• Does the website include clear instructions for users on how to use the app and navigate the site, as well as answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs)? (required)
• Does the website allow customers to access (BBB’s and/or the proposer’s, as specified in the contract) customer support via email, phone, live chat, or other means of communication? (required)
• Does the website comply with applicable Americans with Disability Act (ADA) provisions as well as Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973? (required)
• In addition to providing and hosting their own web site for customers to access, can the vendor provide content to BBB to be embedded on one or more of BBB’s web pages that customers can access to obtain schedule data and maps, real-time bus arrival, schedule adherence, and/or trip planning information? (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Solution for Customer Information Alerts
• Does the solution seamlessly integrate with other BBB systems such as the CAD/AVL or other systems to automatically generate alerts using the GTFS-alert specification in the event of service disruptions such as detours, cancelled service, bus stop closures, construction or event impacts, or ad-hoc bus trips along a specified route?  (required)
• Does the solution automatically or with minimal intervention publish a variety of service alerts via email and SMS to those who have opted in, as well as social media, RSS, and APIs directly to third-party applications without the disruption details being entered more than once by staff? (required)
• Is the alerts system hosted by the Contractor such that no system software needs to be maintained by the City? (required)
• Does the alerts system consume BBB’s data feed automatically? (required)
• Is the alerts system able to generate alerts for a variety of specific events such as service outages and detours? (required)
• Does the alerts solution include a public API that allows third party web and mobile application developers to use the data to ensure consistency of alert content across multiple platforms, regardless of the app used? (required)
• Does the proposed alerts solution function in any standard web browser? (required)
• Will alerts be available via API to BBB’s network of real-time arrival information signs at bus stops and shelters? (required)
• Will alerts be available via API to the infotainment screens onboard BBB service vehicles if applicable to routes or stops served by those vehicles? (required)
• Will alerts be available via API to any other network of e-paper, kiosks, or screens capable of displaying alerts that BBB may deploy in future? (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• General Requirements Applicable to All System Modules
• Is the system turnkey? (required)
• Briefly describe the go-live strategy and average release timelines in the "comments" column. (required)
• Is the solution Software as a Service (SaaS) fully hosted on a cloud-based web platform? (required)
• Does the solution offer unlimited data storage? (required)
• Does the solution offer continuous software updates for the duration of the license/contract? (required)
• Will all data provided by the City and the Contract Work Product (as defined in the Software as a Service template) remain the property of the City? (required)
• User Experience and Reliability of System
• Are all components of the system based on the latest available technology? (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Are all components of the real-time information, alerting, and/or business analytics system(s) compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973? (required)
• Do all Graphic User Interfaces and public communications within or concerning the system meet the BBB brand guide (e.g., logos, color scheme, fonts, etc.), and no interface or communication will be released without approval of BBB staff? (required)
• Is the look and feel of Graphic User Interfaces intuitive and appealing to a broad audience, including users of all ages? (required)
• Does the system, including all components, data, and user app, operate reliably with no degraded performance, slow speed, or loss of functionality with at least a 99.99% rate of system availability and system accuracy on a weekly basis, excluding periods of scheduled maintenance, which, to the degree possible, shall be restricted to hours when BBB buses are not in service? (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Customer Service Support of System
• Does the vendor provide a dedicated Account Manager and ongoing technical/administrative support for BBB? (required)
• Does the vendor provide other ongoing support to include live chats with customer service representatives when the designated representative is unavailable by telephone and other communication channels such as email? (required)
• Can the vendor begin deployment and testing within 30-60 days after Notice to Proceed? (required)
• Does the vendor provide data system launch and support to begin start-up? (required)
• Will the City be provided with up to two business days of onsite train-the-trainer training for operations, community engagement, customer service, and other staff as applicable, before system launch?  (required)
• Will further training be provided as significant updates affecting procedures or workflows are released? (required)
• Will live user support be provided (preferably onsite) during launch of the system? (required)
• Does the solution include system health monitoring with automatic distribution of SMS and/or email notifications to a select group of BBB staff during system outages more than 30 minutes in length to enable BBB to provide proactive customer notifications? (required)
• Upon resolution of an outage, does the vendor provide the same select group of BBB users with an email notification that the outage has been resolved, including root cause and remedy? (required)
• Can the vendor respond to any service issues or requests submitted by BBB and seek to resolve and close any issues relative to their urgency and/or impact within the time frames described below? (required) —

  Level “A” Priority refers to a System error that renders the System inoperable. Can SaaS provider assign resources within 30 minutes and continue to work on the problem until the problem is resolved with an average resolution time  of less than three (3) hours?

  Level “B” Priority refers to the detection of a System error that seriously impairs System operations but does not render the System inoperable. Can the SaaS Provider assign resources within two (2) hours and continue to work on the problem until the problem is resolved with an average resolution time of less than 24 hours?

  Level “C” Priority refers to a minor problem, but of sufficient severity to warrant correction before the next scheduled Upgrade or Update. Can SaaS Provider assign resources sufficient to resolve the problem within no more than thirty (30) days?

  Level “D” Priority refers to any other minor problems that do not severely affect the operation of the System. Can SaaS Provider incorporate corrections into the next scheduled Upgrade or Update?

• Does BBB  have the ability within the application to escalate technical, service, or functionality issues to the proposer for review and resolution? (required)
• Does the application provide BBB staff the ability to report issues and submit comments and feedback for system improvement? (required)
• Will the application remain operational under any new operational system or other third-party software (including, but not limited to, security/firewall software) released at the City / BBB during the term of the contract? (required)
• System Administration and Reporting —

  Are all system reports exportable to standard, non-proprietary formats such as PDF (Portable Document Format), MS Excel, or comma-separated value (.csv) file?

• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Are all system reports exportable to standard, non-proprietary formats such as PDF (Portable Document Format), MS Excel, or comma-separated value (.csv) file? (required)
• Can the vendor develop additional custom reports or views following system implementation and/or an interface to allow BBB to build custom reports in a user-friendly manner? (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Security and Confidentiality of Data (Supplemental to Security Requirements Discussed in Technical Requirements Section)
• Does the system design ensure that all data is safeguarded from unauthorized access or use and programs are protected from virus, malware, and cyber-attacks? (required)
• Do all elements of the system comply with the City of Santa Monica’s privacy policy? (required)
• Does the vendor provide a plan as part of the proposal for monitoring, controlling, and updating security and encryption (if/where applicable) tools on an ongoing basis? If yes, please provide a summary of the plan in the "Comments" column. (required)
• Is the system fully compliant with latest industry security and (if applicable) encryption standards? If yes, please provide details in the "Comments" column. (required)
• Can the system be incorporated into the City’s disaster recovery plan by being capable of meeting BBB’s expected availability and recovery times? (required)
• Please respond as to whether the system can maintain the following standards of confidentiality: (required) —

  Is all Confidential and Protected Information, as defined in the attached Software as a Service Agreement, exempt from disclosure to the public or other unauthorized persons under state and federal statutes?

  Is all Confidential Information kept confidential and protected from disclosure to any persons other than employees, agents, officers or representatives of such Party who have a need to know?

  Is all Confidential Information held in the strictest of confidence and not disclosed, disseminated or revealed to any other third party without the prior written permission of an authorized representative of the SaaS Provider, the Director of the City’s Department of Transportation, and the City Attorney?

• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Project Management
• Will the vendor establish a Project Management Team to manage and perform all functions and activities, including:  (required) —

  Overall project management?

  Project timeline and milestones?

  Resource allocation?

  System/software development, operations, and upgrades (if applicable)?

  Ongoing project quality review?

  Contract administration interface with BBB?

  Performance reporting?

  Risk assessment?

  Issue tracking and resolution benchmarks?

• Will the vendor provide a Project Management Plan, including: (required) —

  A description of the management organization of the project including organization chart, identification of key personnel assigned to it with their responsibilities and relationships?

  A detailed project schedule that will allow BBB to monitor progress effectively?

  A full description of project management controls on progress, performance, quality, costs, schedule, and risks?

  A schedule of communications including frequency of activity and status reports, reporting method, and individuals responsible for each communication?

• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Quality Assurance and Quality Control
• Can the vendor provide detailed descriptions of quality processes employed to assure that the quality of the system (including all software, materials, functionality, operation, and customer service response) are of a level that meets or exceeds the design goals, performance, and reliability requirements stated herein? If yes, please provide a brief summary of the vendor's quality assurance program in the "Comments" column.
• Please list benchmarks against which the quality-of-service delivery can be measured, to include a system reliability (uptime) benchmark of no less than 99.99%. (required)
• Please briefly describe actions taken to prevent, detect, notify BBB of any systemic problems and the process to alleviate future systematic problems. (required)
• Please briefly describe actions taken to avoid and eliminate potential security breaches. (required)
• Implementation Plan (required) —

  Does the vendor have experience with providing an implementation plan with the following components:

  Detailed milestones and schedule for development, marketing, training, launch, and acceptance? Please provide details in the "Comments" column.

  A detailed interface (narrative and schematic) to internal and external (if applicable) systems?  Please provide details in the "Comments" column.

  Details of the implementation support required of BBB?  Please provide details in the "Comments" column.

  A communication plan for launch of customer-facing features and upgrades?  Please provide details in the "Comments" column.

• System Implementation and Integration
• Upon contract execution, will the vendor identify a dedicated project manager to serve as primary point-of-contact and develop a detailed plan for completing the implementation process?  (required)
• Please confirm that the implementation will be submitted to BBB for approval prior to proceeding. (required)
• Please confirm that as part of the discovery process, the vendor will submit a gap analysis report and a data conversion plan for moving existing real-time predictions and operational analytics data into the system.   (required)
• Please confirm that the implementation plan will include a ninety-day testing period in which the new system shall run in parallel with the existing system. (required)
• Please confirm that a plan for providing training on the new software for BBB personnel as well as videos and other training materials to be used for refresher and new employee training in the future.  (required)
• Please confirm that upon implementation completion, the vendor shall deliver full system documentation, including configuration records and a complete data dictionary. (required)
• If you have any comments to questions in this section, identify the question number and include your comment. This is not a requirement.
• Measure of Success
• Does the system provide real-time bus arrival predictions and schedule data that are transparent and improve customer experience by measurably improving prediction accuracy across all communication channels? Please provide examples referencing past implementations. (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Does the system consistently and measurably provide accurate, reliable schedule data and real-time bus arrival predictions to customers using electronic devices to access third-party and/or the proposer’s own app, if available? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Does the system consistently and measurably provide active, reliable arrival prediction data to BBB’s network of real-time signs? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Does the system effectively and reliably provide predictions to customers using SMS and IVR to request the data? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Customer Alerts Metrics
• Does the system consistently and measurably generate service updates and alerts automatically or with minimal user intervention (no more than one input) across a variety of communication channels including email, web, SMS, and social media? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Does the system consistently and measurably provide accurate, timely service alerts via API to third-party applications such as Transit, Moovit, Google Maps, and others? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Does the system consistently and measurably provide accurate reliable alert data to BBB’s network of real-time signs? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Project Delivery Metrics
• Schedule: Is the vendor confident that the project can be completed on schedule, based on such elements as milestone achievement and earned value analysis? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Quality: Is the vendor confident that the project will meet quality metrics based on defect burn down rates and customer satisfaction? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• Budget: Is the vendor confident that the project can be delivered within the budget? (required) —

  Answer Yes or No.  If yes, provide examples referencing past implementations.

• System Performance Metrics
• Please confirm the real-time information app will track any failures in functionality in all phases and features and report these for root cause analysis and permanent eradication of the issue via update or other means.  (required)
• Please confirm that all components, data, and user app, shall operate reliably with no degraded performance, slow speed, or loss of functionality with at least a 99.99% rate of system availability and system accuracy on a weekly basis. (required)
• Please confirm that timely responses and resolutions to all support-related inquiries shall be provided within the service level agreement standards listed in this RFP. (required)
• Please confirm that the real-time information app will provide data for total cost of ownership (TCO) analysis. (required)
• Initial Term (required) —

  Please enter the initial contract term. For example "one (1) year" or "three (3) years".

• Options to Renew (required) —

  How many options to renew? For example, "five (5) options" or "one (1) option".

• Option Period (required) —

  What is the Renewal Option Period? For example "one (1) year" or "twelve (12) months".

• Is this Living Wage? (required)