Technology Consultant for Public Transit

NEORide is seeking proposals for a Technology Consultant for Public Transit. The scope of work/specifications is outlined in the Request for Proposal (RFP). The successful Proposer shall meet the terms and conditions set forth in this document and all other attachments.

All interested contractors must register as detailed in the solicitation. All questions should be submitted electronically via the Portal’s Question and Answer (Q&A) tab.

All proposals must be received electronically on or before Friday, May 8, 2026 at 12:00 am (EST) via the Portal

The right is reserved to accept any proposal/bid or any part or parts thereof or to reject any and all proposals/bids. Acceptance of any proposal/bid is subject to concurrence by the Ohio Department of Transportation and the United States Department of Transportation.

Any contract resulting from these proposals may be subject to financial assistance contract between NEORide, its partner agencies and the United States Department of Transportation and the Ohio Department of Transportation. Agreements are established through free, full, and open competition as described by the laws of the State of Ohio and are available for other NEORide entities anywhere in the United States, subject to each entity’s jurisdictional law and regulation. A Master Service Agreement will be developed with NEORide (a sample MSA can be found as attachment A). NEORide or its partner agencies wishing to utilize the contract will complete a partnership agreement (a sample partnership agreement can be round as attachment B) accepting the terms and pricing of the master service agreement. Billing can be done either directly to the NEORide agencies or to NEORide itself depending on the terms of the agreement.

• NEORide hereby notifies all proposers that, regarding any contract entered into pursuant to this RFP, advertisement or solicitation, disadvantaged business enterprises will be afforded full opportunity to submit proposals in response and will not be subjected to discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex or national origin in consideration for an award.

Purchasing Procedures:

• Agreements are established through free, full, and open competition as described by the laws of the State of Ohio and are available as a cooperative agreement for other NEORide members anywhere in the United States, subject to each entity’s jurisdictional law and regulation. Purchase orders or participation agreements are issued by participating governmental entities directly to the Vendor or vendor-assigned dealer. A copy of the purchase orders or participation agreement are sent to NEORide offices where they are reviewed by NEORide staff and forwarded to the Vendor. In some instances, the entity may send the purchase orders or equivalent directly to the vendor and report the purchase to NEORide. 
• Note: It is always the vendor's responsibility to report all sales under the agreement to NEORide.

Background

NEORIDE is a Council of Governments with the goal of supporting coordinated public transit. NEORIDE has a membership of over 40 regional transit agencies in 12 states. The 40 plus agencies that comprise NEORIDE run ahead of the curve in many aspects of public transportation from innovative program development and multi-county transit coordination.

NEORide is releasing this request for proposal (RFP) to procure a technology consultant specializing in public transit that will be made available to all NEORide Members through a Master Services Agreement.

NEORide's procurement is funded through an administration fee of .75% paid to NEORide by the awarded contractors. This fee will only apply to participation agreements signed by partner agencies and not should NEORide itself elect to use the agreement. The fee is based on the actual vendor projects sales. The vendor will pay the fee on the actual invoices and paid sales to the NEORide participant. Fees are not assessed to vendors for shipping costs, required bond costs, or any taxes that may be applicable.

Project Details

• Reference ID: 2026-RFP-02
• Department: NEORide
• Department Head: Katherine Conrad (Executive Director)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-04-10T04:00:00.000Z
• Answers Posted By: 2026-04-24T04:00:00.000Z

Addenda

• Addendum #1 (released 2026-03-30T15:55:05.687Z) —

  Please use the See What Changed link to view all the changes made by this addendum.

• Addendum #2 (released 2026-04-07T19:34:19.739Z) —

  Please use the See What Changed link to view all the changes made by this addendum.

Evaluation Criteria

• Hourly Price (15 pts) —

  Complete the "Pricing Sheet" tab with all requested prices as stated in the table (failure to include everything requested will deem your submission non-responsive and your proposal may not be evaluated). 

  NOTE: proprietary pricing sheets may be submitted for clarification ONLY and will not be evaluated as part of the formal proposal. 

• Project Understanding and Competency - ATTAIN Grant Project (25 pts) —

  Proposer must provide a narrative of their understanding of the ATTAIN Grant project and how they would implement key deliverables.

• Competency around General Information Technology (25 pts) —

  Proposer must provide a narrative of their understanding software application management, software vendor management, data engineering, change management, data analytics, report design, regulatory impact on technology and emerging technology.

• Experience and Project Quality (20 pts) —

  Proposer must provide visuals and information on three specific types of technology projects specific to public transit. The information provided should demonstrate an effective use of time and manpower, as well as creative customer relations strategies and materials.

• Technical Capacity (25 pts) —

  Proposer must provide an overview and description of the team that will be working with NEORide, including resumes for each Key Team Member. Proposer must also provide a brief narrative explanation as to proposer's availability to take on NEORide as an ongoing client for the desired term of the contract. 

Submission Requirements

• Company Authorized Representative (required) —

  Please enter the full name of Authorized Company Representative submitting this proposal.

• What is the FEI/FIN Number? (required) —

  Please enter your FEI/FIN Number.

• Is the Company a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise? —

  If so, attach your certificate.

• Technical Proposal (required) —

  Include The following

  1. Proposer Experience and Key Staff Resumes
  2. Project Plan
  3. References

  (Note: Pricing shall be submitted separately from the technical proposal. Inclusion of pricing information in any other portion of the proposal shall be deemed non-compliant and may be disqualified.)

• Notice of Exception (required) —

  NEORide intends to award a Contract based on the terms, conditions, and attachments contained in this RFP. Bidders are strongly advised to not take any exceptions. Bidders shall submit Proposals which respond to the requirements of the RFP. An exception is not a response to an RFP requirement. If an exception is taken, a “Notice of Exception” must be submitted in this field. The “Notice of Exception” must identify the specific point or points of exception and provide an alternative.

  Proposers are cautioned that exceptions to the terms, conditions, and attachments may result in rejection of the Proposal.

  If Proposer is not requesting any exceptions to the this RFP, type "N/A" in this field.

• Approved Request for "Approved Equal" (required) —

  If Proposer requested an "approved equal" and received approval from NEORide, Proposers shall upload and submit the approved document with their Proposal here.

  If Proposer did not submit a request for an "approved equal" or received a rejection of their request for an "approved equal," Proposer shall upload their rejection here or download this document, type "N/A" and upload/submit this form here.

• Federal Clause - Government-wide Debarment and Suspension (required) —

  GOVERNMENT-WIDE DEBARMENT AND SUSPENSION

  2 CFR part 180

  2 CFR part 1200

  2 CFR § 200.213

  2 CFR part 200 Appendix II (I)

  Executive Order 12549

  Executive Order 12689

  Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility and Voluntary Exclusion

  The Contractor shall comply and facilitate compliance with U.S. DOT regulations, “Non-procurement Suspension and Debarment,” 2 C.F.R. part 1200, which adopts and supplements the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (U.S. OMB) “Guidelines to Agencies on Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Non-procurement),” 2 C.F.R. part 180. These provisions apply to each contract at any tier of $25,000 or more, and to each contract at any tier for a federally required audit (irrespective of the contract amount), and to each contract at any tier that must be approved by an FTA official irrespective of the contract amount. As such, the Contractor shall verify that its principals, affiliates, and subProposers are eligible to participate in this federally funded contract and are not presently declared by any Federal department or agency to be:

   

  1. Debarred from participation in any federally assisted Award;
  2. Suspended from participation in any federally assisted Award;
  3. Proposed for debarment from participation in any federally assisted Award;
  4. Declared ineligible to participate in any federally assisted Award;
  5. Voluntarily excluded from participation in any federally assisted Award; or
  6. Disqualified from participation in ay federally assisted Award.

  By signing and submitting its bid or proposal, the bidder or proposer certifies as follows:

  The certification in this clause is a material representation of fact relied upon by the AGENCY. If it is later determined by the AGENCY that the bidder or proposer knowingly rendered an erroneous certification, in addition to remedies available to the AGENCY, the Federal Government may pursue available remedies, including but not limited to suspension and/or debarment. The bidder or proposer agrees to comply with the requirements of 2 C.F.R. part 180, subpart C, as supplemented by 2 C.F.R. part 1200, while this offer is valid and throughout the period of any contract that may arise from this offer. The bidder or proposer further agrees to include a provision requiring such compliance in its lower tier covered transactions.

• Federal Clause - Lobbying Restrictions (required) —

  LOBBYING RESTRICTIONS

  31 USC § 1352

  2 CFR § 200.450

  2 CFR part 200 Appendix II (J)

  49 CRF part 20

  The undersigned certifies, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief, that:

  1. No Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid, by or on behalf of the undersigned, to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of an agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with the awarding of any Federal contract, the making of any Federal grant, the making of any Federal loan, the entering A-48 into of any cooperative agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
  2. If any funds other than Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with this Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement, the undersigned shall complete and submit Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure Form to Report Lobbying,” in accordance with its instructions.
  3. The undersigned shall require that the language of this certification be included in the award documents for all sub-awards at all tiers (including subcontracts, sub-grants, and contracts under grants, loans, and cooperative agreements) and that all subrecipients shall certify and disclose accordingly.

  This certification is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when this transaction was made or entered into. Submission of this certification is a prerequisite for making or entering into this transaction imposed by section 1352, title 31, U.S. Code. Any person who fails to file the required certification shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such failure.

• Evidence of Insurability (required) —

  Evidence of the following coverage

  1. Bureau of Worker’s Compensation Certificate
  2. Employer Liability Insurance Certificate
  3. Commercial General Liability Insurance Certificate
  4. Commercial Auto Liability Insurance Certificate
  5. Proposer's Warranty Information (as required)
• References —

  Please provide three (3) references that we are permitted to contact in the event your proposal is selected.

• Reference 1 (required) —

  Name:

  Company/Project:

  Phone Number:

  Email Address:

• Reference 2 (required) —

  Name:

  Company/Project:

  Phone Number:

  Email Address:

• Reference 3 (required) —

  Name:

  Company/Project:

  Phone Number:

  Email Address:

• General Procurement Type (required) —

  Select Goods or Services

• Federal Procurement Type (required)
• Location of RFP Services (required)
• CONTRACT TERM (required) —

• Is this Project in excess of $10,000? (required)
• Is this Project in excess of $25,000? (required)
• Is this Project in excess of $100,000? (required)
• Is the Project in excess of $150,000? (required)
• Is the Project in excess of $250,000? (required)
• Will the awarded vendor use subcontractors?
• Will this Project involve property that may be transported by ocean vessel? (required)
• Will this project involve foreign transport or travel by air? (required)

Questions & Answers