SOLICITATION NOTICE
A -- Innovative Small Research Projects for Transportation Planning
- Notice Date
- 6/24/2004
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 541690
— Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Office of Acquisition Management, HAAM, Room 4410 400 7th Street, S.W., Washington, DC, 20590
- ZIP Code
- 20590
- Solicitation Number
- DTFH61-04-RA-00004
- Response Due
- 7/27/2004
- Point of Contact
- Christian Hellie, Contract Specialist, Phone (202) 366-6714, Fax (202) 366-3705, - Rick Murray, Contracting Officer, Phone (202) 366-4250, Fax (202) 366-3705,
- E-Mail Address
-
christian.hellie@fhwa.dot.gov, rick.murray@fhwa.dot.gov
- Description
- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION******* FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION****** Title: Broad Agency Announcement for Innovative Small Research Projects for Transportation Planning********** Action: This is a notice of availability of funds for transportation research under a program to encourage and leverage innovative small projects in two transportation planning research topic areas described below. FHWA anticipates funding proposals of up to 12 months in duration and up $50,000 per award. FHWA anticipates awarding up to four awards and reserves the right to make additional awards based on proposals received and availability of funds.*********************** FHWA will consider as an option larger projects up to $100,000 and 24 months in duration if they consist of two distinct phases, each of which are less than $50,000. Awards will be made for the first phase, with an optional second phase that could be exercised depending successful progress of the first phase, relationship to agency and planning program research needs, and availability of funds.****************** Summary: FHWA is considering funding small research projects on transportation planning topic areas described below in accordance with FAR 35.106. This program is intended to increase the value of small projects to FHWA by working with partners that can ---- Identify novel, low cost tools and approaches for improving the statewide and/or metropolitan transportation planning process;--------- Test and evaluate innovative methods and new channels for technical transfer of research to key planning process stakeholders; and----------- Leverage FHWA research funds.************ Dates: Proposals must be submitted on or before 4:00 p.m. on July 27, 2004. Submittals must be printed hard copies consisting of one original and four copies along with one electronic copy on CD-ROM.****************** Addresses: Proposal(s) must be delivered to Christian Hellie at the FHWA Office of Acquisition Management, 400 7th Street, S.W., Room 4410, Washington, DC 20590 (Mail Stop HAAM-30). Please note that current security procedures may result in delays of USPS mail delivery.****************** For Further Information about FHWA Office of Planning programs and research related to the topic areas, please look at www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/rural/index.html and/or www.planning.dot.gov/Documents/AnnualReport/AnnualReport.htm. You also may contact David Kuehn in the FHWA Office of Planning at 202 366 6072 or david.kuehn@fhwa.dot.gov.**************** Background*** Within the context of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA); the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21); the likely forthcoming re-authorization for surface transportation; and closely related legislation such as the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA), transportation planning agencies at all levels of government have to meet the complex demands of identifying and responding to multi-modal transportation needs and the analysis of the transportation, environmental, economic and social impacts of proposed investment and operational alternatives in support of decision-making. ************ FHWA wants to assist the transportation community in using the transportation planning process to meet these needs. Agencies need to do more with less. Because the demands on transportation planning continue to grow, many state, metropolitan and local transportation planning agencies are seeking innovative application-oriented research and evaluation of planning approaches. These agencies, their staff and other key stakeholders in the transportation planning process are the audience for this research. To realize this research, FHWA is seeking the support and cooperation of multi-disciplined research partners to meet the challenges of transportation planning as we continue into the twenty-first century. The ability to bring in specialists in various fields, including those outside traditional transportation disciplines, is of greater significance today than at any other time. The ability to retain flexible and responsive support, available at any time to research, assist, and answer the questions related to planning for a world class transportation system is of utmost importance.****************** Purpose*** The purpose of this solicitation is to develop innovative approaches for improving transportation planning and decision-making. This may include new or improved planning applications; expanding planning applications to new audiences; and identification and testing new channels for disseminating information and expertise.************************** Transportation Planning Research Topic Areas**** The research will target specific needs and areas of interest that will support FHWA work in Transportation Planning Capacity Building. Each proposal should address one or the other topic area but not both. If an offeror wishes to address both topic areas, then they should submit two separate and complete proposals that will be evaluated separately.*************** Transportation Planning in Rural Areas and Small Communities*** Summary of Topic Area: With constant changes in the field of transportation planning, it is increasingly important to ensure that transportation professionals and decision-makers located in the rural areas and small communities have access to tools and techniques developed for their unique needs and capacities. There are over 2,000 non-metropolitan Counties and hundreds of regional development districts outside of metropolitan areas in the United States. The transportation professionals and decision-makers frequently work in small and remote agencies so have less day-to-day contact with their peers to master the latest planning tools and techniques. They may not have the time, budget or staff to attend training or workshops on innovative planning tools. At the same time, a single transportation project in these areas may have considerable and long-lasting implications on the economic and social well being of the area. Accordingly, it is important that the professionals and decision-makers have the best available information about transportation needs and options so they can participate in the Statewide transportation planning process.****************** This past year, all States adopted a separate and discrete consultation process for involving non-metropolitan local officials in the transportation planning process. While some States have had a process for some time, many States more recently adopted processes to meet the new rule. Accordingly, many States DOTs and organizations representing local officials are looking for evaluation of consultation practices and success stories*********************** Past research in this planning research focus area has included applying readily available data and analysis tools for understanding transportation needs, review of inter-governmental processes and identification of centers of support for rural and small community planning.*************** Examples of Research Projects in the Topic Area:**** The FHWA research partner may conduct research on innovative techniques for providing remote training to professionals and decision-makers on the transportation planning process;----- The research partner may conduct research identifying illustrative examples of innovative transportation planning practice in rural areas and small communities;------ The research partner may synthesize information on emerging and current transportation issues facing rural communities in the 21st Century;------ The research partner may conduct research on evaluating and promoting innovative and measurable methods of dissemination to rural and small community audiences on transportation planning; and---------- The research partner may assess methods for strengthening the capacity of non-metropolitan local officials on issues such as growth management that balances environmental, economic, and community concerns through community-driven solutions, preservation of local identity, and safeguarding natural and cultural resources.****************** Specific Examples of Expertise Needed for Success in this Area:----- The FHWA research partner should demonstrate knowledge of multi-modal transportation planning;------ The research partner should demonstrate ability to assess transportation needs in rural areas and in small communities;----- The research partner should demonstrate the ability to facilitate the input and involvement of rural local officials in the planning and programming process both in meetings and through electronic networks; -------- The research partner should demonstrate experience promoting peer networking and learning opportunities; -------- The research partner should demonstrate experience with public-private partnerships and innovative ways of working together on issues such as the environment, sustainable communities and balancing local context with regional or statewide needs.******************************* Intermodal Planning in Statewide and Metropolitan Processes*** Summary of topic area: A key component of successful transportation systems is interaction between and among modes. To do this agencies that are responsible for the development or management of parts of the system need both technical tools and organizational approaches for cooperation within a metropolitan area or state in order to develop and engage in multi-partner processes.********************* Examples of Research Projects in the Topic Area:------------ The FHWA research partner may test tools and approaches for intermodal activities such as cooperative forecasting, goal setting, visioning, plan development or STIP/TIP processes.---------- The research partner may conduct research identifying illustrative examples of innovative intermodal transportation planning practice; ------------ The research partner may evaluate innovative and measurable methods of intermodal transportation planning;----------- The FHWA research partner may pilot education and training opportunities for transportation planning practitioners, policymakers and key stakeholders;------------- The research partner may test programs and publications for helping bridge the communication gap among the public, practitioners, researchers and policymakers;----------- The research partner may assess methods for strengthening the capacity of key stakeholders on multimodal planning issues.------------ Specific Examples of Expertise for Success in this Area:------ The research partner should demonstrate expertise in the statewide and metropolitan transportation planning process;---------- The FHWA research partner should demonstrate expertise of multi-modal transportation planning;--------------- The research partner should demonstrate an understanding of key professional and public audiences for the research;--------- The research partner should demonstrate the ability to facilitate the input and involvement of key audiences both in meetings and through electronic networks; --------------- The research partner should demonstrate experience promoting peer networking and learning opportunities; and--------------- The research partner should demonstrate experience with public-private partnerships and innovative ways of working together.************** General Requirements*** Deliverables ? The ability to communicate, both written and oral, for a wide variety of purposes is critical in the successful completion and implementation of projects. Communication may include translation and presentation of innovative transportation practices and tools. Communication also may include other qualitative research techniques.*********************** All products submitted under this cooperative program will need to meet the FHWA requirements for published and electronic formats. All products will need to be Section 508 compliant. Typical formats for electronic deliverables include MS Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat PDF and HTML files (Office 2000 compatible). ************************ All products submitted under this program become the property of FHWA and may be disseminated or used for government purposes subsequent to the completion of the work. The developer of the material also may have continued incidental use of the products for the purpose of additional research or marketing but may not sell or offer the products without prior approval of FHWA.*************** Proposals should demonstrate professional-level competencies at layout, design, editing and proofreading for both print publication and for posting on an Internet web site. Prior experience working with Federal Government Printing Office (GPO) standards and Federal Internet web sites are a bonus.************************ Reporting ? Should a proposal be selected, the selected organization shall submit a brief monthly report until the work is completed. The report should describe in brief (e.g. in outline format) work completed the prior month, work anticipated in the upcoming month, approximate percent of work completed and approximate amount of resources expended.********************** Submission Requirements**** Organizations that are interested in partnering with FHWA on transportation planning research are invited to submit one or more proposals. Each proposals should include:------------- 1. The full name, address, point of contact, a telephone number, fax number and an electronic mail address for the organization;--------------------------- 2. The number and name of the research focus area for the proposal;------------------------- 3. A detailed description of proposed work describing---- a. Audience or audiences (one page)----- b. Need or problem statement (one page)---- c. Technical approach (up to two pages or up three pages if the proposal includes a second phase)----- d. Past performance relevant to current proposal with points of contact (up to two pages and may include references to readily accessible documents)-------------- 4. The period of performance (time line) for the work (up to one page);------------- 5. Tailored biographies of key staff including relevant expertise (up to one page for each key researcher and one page for all other staff);-------------- 6. Description of facilities and equipment needed to support the proposal (one page); and------------- 7. A cost proposal indicating staffing levels, hours, hard costs for the total project and amount of funding expected from FHWA (not to exceed $50,000.00 from FHWA per award per phase).*********** What if the proposal addresses both topic areas? If a proposal addresses both topic areas, then it should be submitted twice. FHWA will evaluate the proposal as two separate proposals, one for each topic area, though only one award will be made.************************* What if the proposal is in two phases? If a proposal includes two phases, the proposal should clearly indicate the work conducted in each phase. FHWA will not award both phases at once. Depending on the successful progress on phase one, continued research need, and availability of funds, FHWA may consider awarding phase two.********************* Timeline*** Submissions of proposals must be made by the date and time identified at the beginning of this announcement. FHWA will review proposals and inform submitters of approval, request for modification or non-selection of award based on evaluating the proposal against the criteria below and the availability of funds. *********************** Evaluation Criteria*** The principal basis for selecting proposals will be the technical importance to Agency programs and fund availability in the following order of descending importance(sub items are of equal importance).******************* A) Technical importance and innovation -- 1) Clear identification of a specific audience or audiences-- 2) Justification of need or problem identification-- 3) Alignment with planning program and Agency research goals-- 4) Realistic work plan and technical approach/ Demonstrated likelihood of successful completion--- 5) Demonstration of necessary facilities and equipment to successfully perform the work--- B) Cost of proposal/ funds leverage--- 1) Ability to leverage FHWA funding--- 2) Relationship of cost to staffing and technical approach-- 3) Overall value of deliverables in support of FHWA planning research-------- C) Past performance related to proposed project ---- 1) Demonstrated knowledge and experience with Statewide and/or metropolitan transportation planning processes;---- 2) Demonstrated knowledge and experience with methods of disseminating technical information to specific audiences (e.g. transportation professionals, transportation agency board members);-------------- 3) Demonstration of completing deliverables and meeting project objectives----------------- 4) Relationship of these qualifications to the proposed project---------
- Record
- SN00609428-W 20040626/040624211926 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
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