Valley Transit board approves TransTrack extension, router purchase and RDR commissioning contract

The Valley Transit Board voted to approve a set of vendor contracts and routine payments at its March meeting, including an extension of the agency's data-management system and certification work for automatic passenger counting (APC), approval of new routers and antennas for buses, and a commissioning-agent contract for the Whitman Phase 2 facilities project.

Board members moved and approved the items on voice votes after staff presentations. Dave, a transit staff member who led procurement presentations, said the two TransTrack projects together carry a one-year price of $132,590 and "the total 8 year cost is just over, it's almost $734,000," and recommended an eight-year contracting approach with termination rights if work is unsatisfactory. "TransTrack is our current data management system...they've done this for other transit systems," he said, adding the APC certification requires a qualified statistician and a new database module to cleanse counts so ridership sensors can be used for federal reporting.

The board also approved a router-and-antenna purchase for the agency's fleet, with the memo citing a project cost of $82,238. The transcript shows the memo identifies a low quote from a vendor called "Bacom" and also states the recommendation to award to "AECOM." The record contains this inconsistency; the Board approved the purchase as presented. (The vendor naming in the meeting transcript is inconsistent and is noted for verification in procurement records.)

For the Whitman Phase 2 facilities contract, Ron Torrance described two bids for a commissioning agent: RDR at $27,600 and IMEG at $49,600. Staff recommended awarding to the low bid, RDR, with a 5% contingency for a not-to-exceed amount of $28,980. The board approved that award on a voice vote.

Routine payments and the minutes were also approved earlier in the meeting on voice votes without a roll-call tally. Chair-led motions were seconded and carried with members saying "aye"; the transcript records no named roll-call vote tallies.

The approvals move forward three procurement steps for Valley Transit: finalizing TransTrack's expanded scope and APC certification so the agency can report federally certified ridership, replacing aging routers and antennas on vehicles, and securing third-party MEP commissioning oversight for an ongoing capital facility project. The board did not record any substantive dissent during the motions.

Next steps: staff will execute the approved contracts and return to the Board if amendments or contract changes are required. The Board's next regular meeting is scheduled for March 24.