Bid Opportunities

Interurban Requests for Proposals


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Dispatch Software RFP

Interurban is seeking an Dispatch Software System at our Douglas, Michigan Facility

Click here for the complete bid package.  Bids are due 2/29/2024 

Question received:  Will emailed copies of the proposal vs hard copies be accepted?

Answer:  Emailed proposals will be accepted in place of hard copies.

Question received:  Can ITA please allow the use of verified e-signatures for this submission?

Answer:  Yes, ITA will allow the use of verified e-signatures

Additional questions and answers

1.      Of the 8 buses in the ITA fleet, it reads as if 5 vehicles are used daily, on average. Will ITA please confirm this assessment and address how many are in use daily, on average, for this project?

Interurban provides service in a resort area. Summer months (June-August) run with 4 to 7 buses daily. The other months average only 2 to 4 vehicles on the road each day


2.      Of the 20 employees, will ITA please address the number of office staff that will need access to the software?  

Always one dispatcher, a second dispatcher on our peak demand periods (approximately 15 days) plus one administrator to access reports.


3.      Do the 8 buses in the ITA fleet include the Mobility On Demand service or does that comprise of a different fleet? If a different fleet or different number of vehicles are used for the Mobility on Demand Service, will ITA please address that total number of vehicles, daily, on average?

All vehicles in our fleet are On Demand vehicles, they’re just not all on the road at the same time.


4.      Section 6. Web Portal Technology – (Optional). The header including “Optional” conflicts with the first paragraph which states “Software must include….”. Will ITA please clarify if Web Portal Technology should be included in the base proposal or if it should be listed as optional?

Web portal technology should be listed on the price proposal form as an option.


5.      Will ITA please clarify the due date? February 29th is the due date on the cover sheet, February 23rd is the due date in the submittal instructions, and February 28th is the due date on the website.

The due date is February 29. The website has been updated.


6.      Will ITA please confirm your physical address for Fedex delivery? Fedex does not delivery to PO Boxes.

Our physical address is 100 E Wiley Road, Douglas, MI 49406. Per above received questions, Interurban will accept mailed or electronic proposal copies.


more questions and answers

1.      How many days should the bid be valid for? See page 8 of RFP

2.      Would you consider electronic submission? Yes

3.      Please confirm the maximum number of paratransit vehicles and fixed route or other vehicles at peak service on any given day is 8 vehicles? How many are agency vehicles and how many are TP’s vehicles? Our service is entirely demand response, peak service of 7 vehicles occurs a few times a year

4.      How many of your vehicles are used for fixed route? Deviated Fixed Route? Demand Response? ADA? NEMT? See above

5.      Do you have interview dates for short listed vendors? None are set up at this time

6.      Does the price proposal need to be in a separate document from the technical proposal?  Also, may we submit our own price sheet as a supplement to the price sheet in the proposal? Please complete attachment B. Your price sheet could be attached to attachment B

7.      What are some of the biggest concerns seen with the current solution that you would change immediately if you could? See paragraph 4 in section 2 of RFP

8.      What is the budget for this project? 45,000

9.      What is the funding source for this project? Funding through Federal and State DOT

10.  Can you please ascribe percentages to the scoring criteria? Listed in highest to lowest in section IV of RFP

11.  What are the funding deadlines/timelines for this project, ie, when does the money need to be spent? September 2025

12.  Do the agencies provide any other types of service that may be used by the awarded solution?   no

13.  It appears an IVR option is desired. Do you currently have IVR and, if so, who is it through? Our phone system and dispatch software are not connected

14.  Do you want Night Before IVR? On the way IVR? Floodgate IVR? Some or all of these options?

15.  Do you need any languages besides English? no

16.  How many trips do you provide per day, on average? 180

17.  It appears an SMS notification is desired. Can you give us an estimate of the number of SMS notifications you expect to send per day? This is not an option we currently have. I would think it would start with 25% of our riders so 50 per day.

18.  Mention is made of an optional mobile app with self service web portal. We can provide optional pricing for this module. In addition, would like pricing for an upgrade to the agency branded version of the mobile app? Please only include pricing for one of the mobile app options

19.  Do you have any outside Transportation providers and, if so, how many trips do the TP’s provide per day, on average? no

20.  If you use private contractors/subcontractors to provide trips, how are these contractors paid, by the trip or by the hour?  n/a

21.  If you use subcontractors, will those subcontractors need go-live support on site? n/a

22.  Is there a consultant involved with this RFP? If yes, what is the name of the firm or individual? no

23.  How many in-office users will you have? One dispatcher all the time, a second on approximately 15 peak days throughout the year and access for one administrator to run reports

24.  Do you want the chosen vendor to do all the driver training or are we training the trainers? If training the trainers, how many of those are there?  Most drivers should be trained by vendor. We have one trainer who can train drivers that were not available to attend vendor training

25.  What is the total number of Drivers to be trained? How many of these are volunteers? 16, 0

26.  How many depots do you have if more than 1? We have only one location

27.  Will (agency) allow proposers to provide a demo of the software before awarding the contract? Selection committee may request interview with selected vendors before award. Interview could include software demo

28.  What are expectations related to data conversion from the current system? See page 3 of RFP

29.  Are there any interfaces required to external sources such as Medicare? If so, what other external source no

30.  How many dispatchers do you have? 6

31.  How many reservation agents do you have? 0

32.  How many hybrid positions (i.e., reservations/dispatch scheduling) in one position does your agency have?  0

33.  Are the Drivers and/or Dispatchers represented by a Union? If so, which Union?  no

34.  What counties / service area do you encompass?  See page 2 of RFP

35.  How many group trips does your agency currently provide per week? What percentage of all trips are group trips?  Data not available

36.  What are the current Rides per Hour (RPH)? See page 2 of RFP

37.  What is the weekly average number of declined trips? unknown

38.  What is the average number of one-way trips provided? unknown

39.  Does the agency provide subscription trips (standing orders)? If so, what percentage of trips are subscription trips? Estimate 20%

40.  What is the current size of your client population? 1000 active riders in the last 12 months

41.  What is the peak number of calls handled per hour? 70

42.  Are driver tablets and mounts are requested as part of the bid. Will your agency install them? No, yes

43.  Do have an anticipated award date? April at the earliest




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