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TO: |
Board of Trustees |
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THROUGH: |
Jay Fox, Executive Director |
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FROM: |
Nichol Bourdeaux, Chief Planning and Engagement Officer |
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PRESENTER(S): |
Jaron Robertson, Acting Planning Director |
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TITLE:
title
Change Order: On Demand Technologies Service Order No.2, Amendment No.2 - Southern Salt Lake County Service Contract Increase (River North Transit, LLC / “Via”)
end
AGENDA ITEM TYPE:
Procurement Contract/Change Order
RECOMMENDATION:
Approve the amendment to Service Order No. 2 and authorize UTA’s Executive Director to execute the amendment and associated disbursements with River North Transit, LLC (Via) by increasing the 2022 Not-to-Exceed amount of $3,054,967 by $595,033 for a 2022 total of $3,650,000
BACKGROUND:
The southern Salt Lake County microtransit service (UTA On Demand southern Salt Lake County) became a permanent UTA service as part of the August 2021 change day and UTA’s Five-Year Service Plan. The service area is approximately 71 square miles and operates in the cities of Bluffdale, Draper, Herriman, Riverton, and sections of Sandy, and South Jordan. Customers can request a UTA vehicle to pick them up on demand through the use a smart phone or by calling and requesting a ride for $2.50. Service is available Monday - Friday 4:00 am to 12:15 am, and Saturday from 6:00 am to 1:15 am.
UTA has contracted with River North Transit, LLC (Via) through a Master Services Agreement (MSA) which was approved by the Board of Trustees on August 25, 2021 and executed in September 2021 after completing a competitive procurement process for a long-term, on-demand microtransit vendor to support expanded and new on-demand services and programs (UTA Contract 20-03399).
Service Order No. 2 of the MSA (UTA Contract 20-03399-2), which was approved by the board on December 15, 2021, defines a Transportation-as-a-Service (TaaS) solution for the UTA On Demand southern Salt Lake County service. Via provides all day-to-day operations including mobile phone technologies, customer service, drivers, vehicles, vehicle maintenance and cleaning services. Service Order No. 2 further defines funding parameters for full-service operations and is a three-year contract with Not-to-Exceed (NTE) annual expenses defined for each year. NTE amounts are not guaranteed spending amounts and are above the estimated cost to operate the service in years 2023 and 2024.
Amendment No. 1 to Service Order No. 2, executed in December of 2021, provided for one time wheelchair accessible upfitting for Via vehicles at a cost of $175,000. Other service orders under the MSA have been executed to provide service in other parts of the UTA service area.
DISCUSSION:
Ridership in 2022 has far exceeded projections for the service, including growing over 100% between January and August as the agency moves past the COVID-19 pandemic. UTA staff and Via have made efforts to improve the service quality but are constrained by the number of allotted service hours for 2022 due to the established NTE in Service Order No. 2. Staff is requesting approval of Amendment No. 2 to Service Order No. 2 which increases the 2022 NTE amount by $595,033, bringing the total NTE for 2022 to $3,650,000 and the total value of Service Order No. 2 to $13,371,175.
Staff will provide an update to the UTA Board of Trustees regarding service performance since January 2022. Discussion topics will include the following:
• Overview of service performance including ridership, key performance indicators, customer experience, and travel patterns
• Successes and challenges with the service
• Need and request for increasing the 2022 NTE
CONTRACT SUMMARY:
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Contractor Name: |
River North Transit, LLC (Via) |
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Contract Number: |
20-03399-2-2 |
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Base Contract Effective Dates: |
January 1, 2022 - December 31, 2024 |
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Extended Contract Dates: |
N/A |
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Existing Contract Value: |
$16,953,912 |
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Amendment Amount: |
$ 595,033 |
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New/Total Contract Value: |
$17,548,945 |
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Procurement Method: |
RFP |
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Budget Authority: |
2022 IMS and Planning & Engagement Budgets |
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ALTERNATIVES:
UTA staff in partnership with Via have made adjustments to the service over the past several months in an effort to maximize service quality within the existing NTE. Efforts include increasing customer wait times, tighter aggregation parameters, and adjusting driver’s schedules and hours to better align with travel demand patterns. Other alternatives to adding additional driver hours could include:
• Maintain current service levels and limit ridership growth
• Reduce service hours by starting service later or ending service earlier
• Reduce Saturday service to 30-45 minute wait times
FISCAL IMPACT:
The cost of additional service hours for 2022 can be absorbed in the 2022 IMS and Planning & Engagement budgets.
ATTACHMENTS:
• UTA Contract No. 20-03399-2-2: Southern Salt Lake County 2022 NTE Amendment