Middlesex County to seek competitive contractor for transit dispatch system; public asks for telephone reservation option

During the meeting’s public-comment period, Charlie Cradiville, editor of New Brunswick Today, asked about agenda item 25-1054, described on the agenda as a bidding process for a power transit dispatch and scheduling system.

“Kaleed” (a county staff member) responded that the county currently uses TripMaster, a reservation-based scheduling system, and that the county plans to procure a replacement via a competitive contract. When Cradiville asked whether the new specifications would preserve telephone reservations for riders who cannot use online systems, staff said telephone access would remain part of the service.

Cradiville asked whether a specific vendor was targeted; staff said the procurement would be competitive and did not name a preferred vendor. The public exchange did not produce a formal board vote on that item during the public-comment segment. A separate portion of the agenda excluded resolution 25-1083 to be voted on separately.

The record of the meeting shows the county’s transportation software in current use is TripMaster, and staff acknowledged the procurement is intended to move to a competitive contract for a modern dispatch and reservation platform. The county did not provide procurement documents or a procurement timeline during the exchange; staff directed the commenter to county offices for further questions.