TAHOE TRANSPORTATION DISTRICT 128 MARKET STREET, SUITE 3-F STATELINE, NEVADA REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS ADDENDUM #2 NORTH LAKE TAHOE EXPRESS SCHEDULED AIRPORT SERVICE May 4, 2012 Addendum # 2 Please see the following attached documents regarding above referenced proposal: Minutes of mandatory pre-proposal conference May 4, 2012 Responses to questions submitted May 7, 2012 North Lake Tahoe Express FY 2010-2011 STATS North Lake Tahoe Express Route Analyses Bidders are instructed to list this Addendum #2 in the space provided. Approved: District Manager, Tahoe Transportation District
NORTH LAKE TAHOE EXPRESS SCHEDULED AIRPORT SERVICE Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference May 4, 2012 Gordon Shaw called the meeting to order at 10:29 AM at the North Tahoe Event Center in Kings Beach, California. Present were: Jan Colyer and Jaime Wright Truckee North Tahoe Transportation Management Association (TNT TMA) Gordon Shaw LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Ron Treabess North Lake Tahoe Resort Association (NLTRA) Will Garner Placer County (via teleconference) Tom Parker, Jr. of El Camino Charter Chip Bell of Airport Mini Bus Bob Aube of Divine Transportation Jan explained the purpose of today s mandatory meeting is to clarify the Request for Proposals (RFP) and for potential bidders to have any questions answered before submitting a proposal to operate the airport shuttle service. Gordon reviewed the agencies involved in operating the service, stating the RFP was released by the Tahoe Transportation District (TTD), which has authority for interstate transportation. The main funding comes from Placer County, TTD authorizes the contract and they, along with TNT TMA, oversee the contract. The billing process has been changed from previous contracts and operators will bill on a per trip basis. Bob Aube asked if there is passenger data from this past winter, noting it was challenging because of the lack of snow. Jan said ridership was actually up 12% from the previous winter and year-to-date revenue is up 3%. Ridership statistics were distributed showing data from FY 2006/07 to 2011/12, including monthly revenue, passenger counts, expenditures, funding, and what has been paid for operations. Gordon explained the operating subsidy that is available if needed and how revenues are collected and distributed. Bob asked about opportunities for the operator marketing the service to increase ridership. It was explained the TMA handles marketing and reservations. Jan added that providing excellent, safe customer service is the biggest marketing tool and that is the operator s responsibility. Bob clarified that a minimum of 6 vehicles are required to provide continuous service on the 3 routes. He asked if routes could be combined during slow times to maximize costs. Jan said that may be possible, but passengers should not have to wait on a bus for an extended period of time in order to combine routes. Gordon stated there may be strategies to combine routes, but the schedule has to be served and the service promised cannot be affected. Jaime distributed a report showing the service per route, summary of vehicle size, and stop percentage per route. Discussion followed. It was agreed that requests for additional data will be honored until Tuesday, May 8, 2012. Jan described the reservation system. Passengers must make reservations at least 24 hours in advance so the operator can plan accordingly. Bob asked about passengers booking at the airport. Gordon said the operator is not expected to have additional drivers on standby, but if passengers can be accommodated on an alreadyscheduled run, that would be acceptable. Bob asked about group business. Jaime said the service does accommodate groups. She tries to determine the heaviest travel times so the operator can plan. Usually big groups can provide arrival and departure manifests in advance, which are given to the operator. North Lake Tahoe Express Pre-Proposal Conference May 4, 2012 Page 1 of 2
Bob asked if it would benefit the operator to use larger motorcoaches in order to do fewer trips. Discussion followed regarding cost per run versus cost per vehicle hour, the capacity of equipment, and how this issue can be addressed most equitably. It was noted that the RFP does not specify the size of equipment to be used. The following amendment to the RFP was agreed to: For purposes of this RFP, costs associated with provision of vehicles larger than 25 passenger capacity can be considered to be in addition to the cost-per-run bid offer, as part of the final contract negotiation. Chip asked how no shows would be handled. Discussion followed regarding the difference between a no show, i.e., someone who made a reservation and just doesn t show up versus a late cancellation, when the passenger actually cancels the reservation just prior to the trip, at what point costs are incurred, and how to handle road closures due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances. The following amendment to the RFP was agreed to: For purposes of the RFP, assume the contractor shall be paid for passenger no-shows, cancellations within 24 hours, or in the event the trip cannot be completed due to road closures. Chip asked about reservation procedures. Jaime said passengers can only use credit cards. No cash is collected from passengers going from the Lake to Reno. There are some instances where a property such as the Resort at Squaw Creek will collect cash from a client, with the TMA then billing the property for the service. The driver is not involved in collecting fares at the Lake. However, walk-ups at the airport may pay cash at the desk. Chip asked about the section in the RFP requiring an initial training session for all staff for 8 hours, then two 3-hour re-training sessions each year. Discussion followed on training for drivers, dispatchers, and others involved in the operation and potential costs to operators if, say, 20 employees need to be paid for re-training time. The following amendment to the RFP was agreed to: Section 2.11, second sentence will be revised to say: On an ongoing basis the offerer shall make all employees available for up to 1 hour of training from the TNT TMA twice a year. Bob clarified what is required of the operator at the airport Welcome Desk and how reservations are made. Jaime explained the process, saying most reservations are made on-line, but if the passenger is traveling within 24 hours, they need to phone in their booking (and are not guaranteed service). The operator is expected to book phone reservations and staff accordingly at the Desk. If there are groups being transferred, more than 1 staff person may be required. Bob asked if service to the Sacramento airport has been considered. Gordon replied that it has come up, but for a variety of reasons, including winter travel challenges, the focus is on the Reno airport. Bob asked the expectation in bad weather. Gordon said that if the roads are closed, that is outside the control of the operator and the operator should be paid. Chip said that in his experience, public transit can usually get through. NOTE: see above for second amendment to RFP regarding road closures. There being no further questions, Gordon thanked everyone for attending and the meeting adjourned at 11:40 AM. Respectfully submitted, Judy Friedman, Recording Secretary THE PAPER TRAIL SECRETARIAL & BUSINESS SOLUTIONS North Lake Tahoe Express Pre-Proposal Conference May 4, 2012 Page 2 of 2
Questions Regarding NLTE RFP Submitted 5/07/12 TTD responses are provided in italics, below. 1. Utilizing your data for the YTD 2010-2011, can you supply the length of runs performed (mileage). Mileage tracking was not required as part of the contract for service. We have done an analysis based on number of trips on each route and percentage of stops at each location. This analysis was conducted with the 2010/2011 stats and route analysis for each route handed out in the pre-bid meeting. It should be taken into consideration that many of the To/From trips could have been combined which would have a significant effect on estimated mileage. Green Route Mileage for runs TO Airport - Estimate only = 51,746 Green Route Mileage for runs FROM Airport Estimate only = 45,560 Red Route Mileage for runs TO Airport Estimate only = 100,925 Red Route Mileage for runs FROM Airport Estimate only = 108,637 Blue Route Mileage for runs TO Airport Estimate only = 88,687 Blue Route Mileage for runs FROM Airport Estimate only = 95,168 2. Can you provide, based on YTD 2010-2011, the amount of Vehicle Trips performed based on your definition of a vehicle trip which is different from # of runs. Barring the issue of missed trips, late cancellations and trips not operated due to road closures, this is equal to the number of scheduled runs. If you refer to the stats provided for 2010/2011 you will find total number of runs per route with the percentage of runs both to and from airport. 2011/2012 YTD runs per route were pulled from our reservation system on 5/8/12 and are provided below: Green Route total runs to and from airport 2011/2012 YTD = 845 Red Route total runs to and from airport 2011/2012 YTD = 2,142 Blue Route total runs to and from airport 2011/2012 YTD = 2,116 3. Was Airport MiniBus the only provider since this service began in 2006? It was the only publically subsidized provider. There are smaller operators (such as taxis) also providing service, along with van service provided by individual lodging properties. Since 2006, the number of other providers has dropped as the NLTE program has grown. 4. We assume that the supplied data describes monthly reimbursement of Operations to Airport MiniBus. We assume that the compensation in previous years is different than the
proposed compensation method. Therefore, did Airport MiniBus get paid differently than the proposed, per vehicle trip compensation? Airport Mini Bus (AMB) has been paid based on subsidy requests from AMB if AMB chose to not submit a request for subsidy, no subsidy was provided. The change in compensation is being made in part to provide better public information regarding actual revenues and costs. 5. Are there any hurdles or obstacles in place to discourage a competitive entity to offer similar routes and service at a lower price? For example, the following two scenarios. Hyatt Lake Tahoe with over 4000 runs decides to provide their own service. Another transportation company begins service with similar routing at a lower cost. There are the typical regulatory restrictions to providing a new service, but overall there is nothing stopping another firm from entering the market. However, (1) the large lodging properties such as the Hyatt are strong supporters of the NLTE, and (2) since 2006, there has not been any significant new entities entering the market. 6. Can bids be submitted based on fuel remaining under $5 a gallon? And include fuel surcharges if fuel increases throughout the 3-5 year agreement? If your firm feels that an exception to your proposed per trip fee is necessary to guard against fuel cost increases (over whatever value you feel is appropriate), your proposal will still be considered.
North Lake Tahoe Express FY 2010-2011 STATS Location #Runs From Tahoe From Airport #pax Red Route-Granlibakken 2138 48% 52% 8858 Svalley Tcity Green Route-Northstar 1216 53% 47% 3502 Truckee Blue Route-Hyatt 2554 49% 51% 8691 Crystal Bay Kings Beach to Carnelian Bay Total: 5908 21051
NLTE Blue Route PU/DO Summary 7/1/10-6/30/11 Property To Airport From Airport Hyatt at Lake Tahoe 2224 74% 2027 64% Tahoe Biltmore - Crystal Bay 181 6% 166 5% Incline Village Rec Center 118 4% 125 4% Parkside Inn 35 1% 36 1% Kings Beach 226 8% 281 9% Tahoe Vista 134 4% 145 5% GarWoods Grill & Pier 83 3% 72 2% Tahoe Mountain Resorts Lodging / The Village at Northstar 0 0% 87 3% Northstar-at-Tahoe 0 0% 92 3% Ritz-Carlton Highlands 0 0% 84 3% Larkspur Hotel 0 0% 5 0% Truckee Tahoe Airport 0 0% 2 0% Truckee Train Depot 0 0% 49 2% TOTAL 3001 100% 3171 100% Check Total 6172 6172 ok
NLTE Green Route PU/DO Summary 7/1/10-6/30/11 Property To Airport From Airport Tahoe Mountain Resorts Lodging / The Village at Northstar 360 32% 225 23% Ritz-Carlton Highlands 191 17% 154 16% Northstar-at-Tahoe 193 17% 217 22% Truckee Train Depot 259 23% 270 28% Truckee Tahoe Airport 33 3% 37 4% Larkspur Hotel 55 5% 46 5% Cedar House Sport Hotel 22 2% 20 2% TOTAL 1113 100% 969 100% Check Total 2082 2082 ok
NLTE Red Route PU/DO Summary 7/1/10-6/30/11 Property To Airport From Airport The Resort At Squaw Creek 461 18% 521 19% Tahoe City 349 14% 390 14% Granlibakken Conference Center 372 15% 392 14% Sunnyside Resort 235 9% 278 10% Squaw Valley 947 38% 985 36% River Ranch - Alpine Meadows 95 4% 67 2% Truckee Train Depot 57 2% 132 5% TOTAL 2516 100% 2765 100% Check Total 5281 5281 ok