REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
Northern Scott County Transit Service Analysis and Evaluation
April 22, 2015
PROPOSALS DUE BY WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2015.
A. Study Purpose
The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive review of current local transit service
in northern Scott County, including the cities of Prior Lake, Savage and Shakopee, and to
examine unmet needs, opportunities for additional local routes or service, and connections to
existing service.
B. Study Objectives
1. Review the existing transit services available to northern Scott County residents for local
connections between the cities of Prior Lake, Savage and Shakopee, and other potential
destinations (such as Burnsville, Golden Triangle, the 494 corridor, the 169 corridor,
etc.).
2. Recommend a service plan that meets the existing local service needs but that can also
be used to expand future transit service. The recommended service plan(s) should
include routing, a draft schedule, a cost estimate, fleet/facility needs, a phasing plan,
and bus stop and/or shelter locations.
3. Option: Complete a Title VI Service Equity Analysis, depending upon extent of service
recommendations. The cost for this task should be identified separately.
C. Study Area
The study area encompasses northern Scott County, including the cities of Prior Lake, Savage
and Shakopee.
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D. Background
Opt-Out Status
Eligible cities, including Prior Lake, Savage, and Shakopee, were granted authority to “opt-out”
of the regional transit system by Minnesota Statutes Section 473.388 in 1984. Prior to January
1, 2015, the city of Savage was a member of the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA),
and the cities of Prior Lake and Shakopee operated individual transit services. In September,
2014, the cities of Prior Lake and Shakopee became members of the MVTA, and on January 1,
2015, the MVTA took over all transit operations for the cities. The Scott County Transit
Operations and Capital Plan has guided transit investments and growth in recent years. This
plan can be used as an informative tool for work on the Northern Scott County analysis and
evaluation.
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority
The Minnesota Valley Transit Authority is a joint powers agency that acts as the public transit
provider for the cities of Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Rosemount, Prior Lake, Savage and
Shakopee. The MVTA was founded in 1990 and began operating its own service in 1991. Since
its founding, MVTA has grown to be the third largest transit agency in the State of Minnesota,
currently transporting more than 10,000 riders per weekday. Express bus ridership accounts for
about 70 percent of the riders. The MVTA’s website is www.mvta.com.
MVTA operates daily fixed route transit service, both local and express, with approximately 150
buses. The buses provide approximately 860 platform hours on weekdays, and 109 platform
hours on Saturdays and Sundays. The MVTA also operates the Red Line, a bus rapid transit
service on the Cedar Avenue corridor from Apple Valley to the Mall of America. MVTA operates
six transit stations and eight park and ride lots, with a combined capacity of more than 6,300
spaces. With operating expenditures budgeted at approximately $25 million in 2015, the MVTA
operates with a staff of 13 people. It currently provides its transit service through one contract
vendor.
Existing Fixed Route Transit Service in Prior Lake, Savage and Shakopee
Existing fixed-route service in the study area is currently focused on express service from the
four existing park and ride lots to downtown Minneapolis, Route #490, #493, and #464. There
are two reverse commute routes serving Prior Lake and Shakopee from downtown
Minneapolis, Route #491 and #492.
In addition, there are two local routes serving the Savage area. Route #421 is a flexible route
serving portions of Savage and Burnsville. The route is designed to allow passengers to board at
fixed stops at set times and also to deviate off-route to serve individuals within the designated
Flex Area. Route #444 is a regular, fixed route, with designated bus stops, providing service
from Savage and Burnsville Center to the Mall of America.
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The only local route serving the area west of Savage is Route #496, a local circulator route
providing hourly weekday service in the City of Shakopee. There is no local route serving the
City of Prior Lake.
Based on preliminary evaluations by MVTA, we believe there are opportunities to improve the
efficiency of Route #496, to transition Route #421 toward a true fixed route service, and to restructure Route #464. MVTA also has 2014 system-wide survey data available and will be
conducting a 2015 non-rider survey over the summer.
A service summary of existing routes in the study area is listed below:
Route #
Route Type
Location
421
444
464
Local – Flex
Local
Express
490
Express
Savage to Burnsville
Savage to MOA
Savage to Minneapolis
Prior Lake/Shakopee to
Minneapolis
Prior Lake/Shakopee to
Minneapolis
Shakopee to
Minneapolis
Shakopee to
Minneapolis
Shakopee
491
492
Express – Reverse
Commute
Express – Reverse
Commute
493
Express
496
Local Circulator
# Daily Trips
Weekday Weekend
6
19
9
21
-
Average Daily Ridership
Weekday Weekend
35
953
600
250
658
21
-
6
-
40
3
-
19
6
-
69
12
-
74
-
Total ridership in the month of March 2015, on all of these routes was 52,524. Express
ridership was 22,115 (Route 493 began service on February 23, 2015) and local ridership was
30,409. Route 444 carried the vast majority of local riders (27,995).
Dial-A-Ride Service
Dial-a-ride service in the study area is provided by SmartLink Transit, the dial-a-ride provider for
both Scott and Carver Counties. Buses run Monday-Friday from 6:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
SmartLink Transit also provides medical assistance service through a contract with the State of
Minnesota. ADA dial-a-ride service to the area is provided by the Metropolitan Council through
a contract with a private provider.
Resources (available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6oOgbgdljORQkpaMl85cUN0TW8/view?usp=sharing)
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Scott County Transit Operations and Capital Plan
MVTA Demographic Maps
Route Driver Maps
MVTA Title VI Plan
Route descriptions (www.mvta.com/routes)
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E. Scope of Study
The purpose of the transit service analysis and evaluation is to better understand the missing
links in the transit services available in the study area and to recommend service
improvements.
1. Existing Transit Services Baseline
The consultant will provide a brief description and inventory of transit services in the
study area, focusing on Route # 421 and #496, including boardings by stop, origin and
destination points, general characteristics of each fixed route, and performance trends.
Deliverable: An existing conditions report that describes the transit services and transit
facilities and includes a map(s) of these items.
2. Stakeholder Analysis
The purpose of the stakeholder analysis is to learn more about the public's perspective
of transit in the study area in order to help improve the service and capture new riders.
The stakeholders could include current system users, corporations, students, and
potential users of the system.
The consultant will work with MVTA staff to create a list of up to 10 stakeholders to be
contacted. The consultant will be responsible for scheduling and conducting interviews
with each stakeholder and providing a written summary of findings.
Deliverable: Summary report of findings from interviews.
3. System Assessment
The purpose of this task is to identify inefficiencies and/or deficiencies in the transit
system. The assessment will evaluate current system performance to determine how
effectively transit serves the study area. Information and findings from the first two
tasks will also be used to make the assessment.
The consultant will review current service to determine:
 If there are any routes that should be modified, added or eliminated.
 If there are any routes that should run more or less frequently.
 If there are destinations that should be added or removed.
 Other recommendations for improvement, such as fleet and facility needs.
 Phasing plan for implementation, if appropriate.
Deliverables:
 Summary report of system performance and efficiency, and preliminary
recommendations for improvement for review and comment by staff.
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
A final recommended service plan, incorporating staff comments, should include
routing, a draft schedule, a cost estimate, fleet/facility needs, a phasing plan,
and bus stop and/or shelter locations.
4. Final Plan and Presentation
The consultant will prepare the final plan document, which shall be a compilation of the
deliverables from tasks 1 through 3 plus an Executive Summary of findings and
recommendations. All documents shall be provided in a digital format.
Deliverables:
 5 color hard copies of the complete final plan document.
 1 CD or flash drive containing the Microsoft Word and PDF files of the final plan
document. All map files must be ESRI compatible.
 Electronic copy of the MVTA Board meeting presentation and hard copies for
distribution at the meeting.
5. Option 1: Title VI Service Equity Analysis
Upon approval and direction by MVTA staff, the consultant will complete a Service
Equity Analysis consistent with Federal Transit Administration guidelines (Circular
4702.1B) and MVTA’s Title VI Major Service Change Policy. This component includes 1
public hearing led by the consultant. The cost for this task should be identified
separately in proposals.
Deliverable: Title VI Service Equity Report analyzing impacts of proposed service changes
to minority and low income populations within MVTA’s service area.
6. Option 2: Public Involvement Plan
Recommend activities to engage and receive feedback from the public. Elements such as
an open house, a project website, a project email, direct mailings, and online forum, or
other tools may be appropriate. The cost for this task should be indentified separately in
proposals.
Deliverable: Public Involvement Plan for engaging the general public.
7. Schedule
Questions regarding this project must be submitted in writing to Jane Kansier at
jkansier@mvta.com, by April 30, 2015. Responses will be made available by May 6,
2015. Proposals must be submitted by Wednesday, May 13, 2015, at 4:30 p.m.
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Selection of a consultant will be made at MVTA’s Board meeting on May 20, 2015. Work
on this project will be expected to begin immediately following a signed contract, with
completion on the study by December 31, 2015, or as agreed upon.
F.
Proposals
MVTA requests that interested parties submit proposals to provide professional services for this
project. Proposals should not exceed 20 total pages. Proposals should include:
1. A brief description of the consultant and qualifications for this project, including any
special expertise in transit analysis planning and operations.
2. A description of experience preparing transit-related studies and similar projects,
including a list of specific projects completed and the contact people knowledgeable
about those projects.
3. Identification of the person principally in charge of this project and the amount of time
that person will devote to the project. Brief resumes of any other personnel to be
significantly involved with the project are also requested. The office location for each
project team member should be identified.
4. A description of the proposed work plan to complete the tasks listed above. The work
plan should identify the number of meetings, site visits, and other related tasks. The
consultant is encouraged to suggest modifications and/or additions to the listed tasks
that they feel will better meet the study objectives.
5. A proposed weekly timetable and description or outline of the process that will be used
for this project, including the estimated number of hours of consultant time each task
will require, and the associated hourly fees.
6. The estimated fee for the project, the fee structure used by the consultant, and a "not
to exceed" charge for the proposal.
7. Any additional services that we have not included in our request that your firm believes
would improve the value of the study.
G. Selection
After reviewing the proposals, consultants will be selected by MVTA staff for follow-up, either
in-person or via telephone. Subsequently, a recommendation will be made for approval of a
proposal. Proposals will be evaluated using criteria including but not limited to the following:
1.
2.
3.
4.
The quality and thoroughness of the proposal.
The consultant's direct experience and demonstrated expertise with similar projects.
References and recommendations from other clients for similar types of projects.
The proposed cost of the services.
H. Other Information
Proposals must be submitted by Wednesday, May 13, 2015, at 4:30 p.m. One electronic and
four hard copies should be submitted and addressed to:
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Northern Scott County Transit Service Analysis and Evaluation
Attention: Jane Kansier, Senior Project Manager
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority
100 Highway 13 East
Burnsville, MN 55337
All questions about this Request for Proposals must be directed to Jane Kansier, Senior Project
Manager, at jkansier@mvta.com.
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