[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 106 (Friday, June 1, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29861-29867]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-13791]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Highway Administration
Participation in the Intelligent Transportation Infrastructure
Program
AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice; request for participation.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. DOT \1\ is interested in working with State and local
governments and an existing private sector partner to develop an
ability to measure the operating performance of the roadway system at a
regional and national level and to produce other valuable streams of
information. The U.S. DOT is interested in assisting State and local
transportation agencies to have access to real-time and archived
performance data to assist in their planning, evaluation, and
management activities. To achieve these objectives, the U.S. DOT is
seeking applications from State and/or local transportation agencies
interested in forming a public/private partnership, with a private
partner preselected by the U.S. DOT, to participate in the Intelligent
Transportation Infrastructure Program (ITIP).
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\1\ The FHWA is the implementing agency.
DATES: Applications to participate in the ITIP must be received by 4
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p.m., e.t., July 31, 2001.
ADDRESSES: Applications to participate in the ITIP should be submitted
directly to the Federal Highway Administration, Office of Travel
Management, HOTM-1, Attention: Chung Eng, 400 Seventh St., SW., Room
3404, Washington, DC 20590. Applications may be submitted
electronically to: [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Chung Eng, Office of Travel
Management (HOTM-1), (202) 366-8043, or Mr. Wilbert Baccus, Chief
Counsel Service Business Unit (HCC-40), (202) 366-0780, Department of
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Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, 400 Seventh St., SW.,
Washington, DC 20590. Office hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.,
e.t., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The point of
contact for the preselected private partner is as follows: Mr. John
Collins, Traffic.com, Chesterbrook Corporate Center, 851 Duportail
Road, Suite 220, Wayne, Pennsylvania, Telephone: (610) 407-3412.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The U.S. DOT is interested in developing an ability to measure the
operating performance of the roadway system at a national level. The
U.S. DOT is also interested in State and local transportation agencies
having access to roadway system performance data to assist in their
planning, evaluation, and management activities. The ITIP provides
Federal funding for the integration of intelligent transportation
infrastructure in major metropolitan areas with a population exceeding
300,000. The ITIP will enhance existing surveillance infrastructure
through integration, along with strategic deployment of supplemental
surveillance infrastructure.
In addition, the U.S. DOT is interested in facilitating public/
private partnerships and the commercialization of traveler information
data to create the opportunity for self-sustained systems that attract
private capital. To be useful for the purposes described, roadway
system performance data must be measured continuously, and be available
in both real-time and archived formats. There is consensus within the
transportation community that travel time and travel time reliability
are among the best measures for these purposes. These and other desired
measures are described in further detail within this solicitation.
The path to achieving these objectives presents an opportunity to
serve public agency needs in true public/private partnerships. It is
recognized that the same data that is useful to the public
transportation agencies also has value for commercial traveler
information applications. Thus, the potential exists for a public/
private partnership that would collect system performance data to serve
national and local needs and, at the same time, use the same data for
commercial traveler information purposes.
Such a partnership was envisioned in section 5117(b)(3) of the
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), Pub. L. 105-
178, as amended by title IX of Pub. L. 105-206, which requires the
provision of private technology commercialization initiatives as part
of a program to ``advance the deployment of an operational intelligent
transportation infrastructure system for the measurement of various
transportation system activities to aid in the transportation planning
and analysis while making a significant contribution to the ITS
program.'' To that end, the U.S. DOT has retained a private sector
Consortium consisting of Traffic.com; Signal Corporation; Michael Baker
Jr., Inc.; L.R. Kimball & Associates, Inc.; and PB Farradyne, Inc. to
experiment with the collection and archiving of performance monitoring
data that will ultimately be used to measure national system
performance while also using this data for commercial traveler
information purposes. The leader of this Consortium is Traffic.com,
with the remaining members primarily playing support roles.
To date, the U.S. DOT and the Consortium have tested this public/
private partnership in two (2) cities: Pittsburgh, PA and Philadelphia,
PA. Briefly, the deployments in the two (2) initial cities feature the
following:
Over one hundred (100) sensors deployed in each city along
freeways and other major arterials capable of providing data on volume,
speed, lane occupation, and limited vehicle classification;
Archived database function;
Free web-based access to basic real-time as well as
archived data for public agency stakeholders;
Free web-based traffic condition information to the
general public;
Additional value-added commercial services on a fee basis;
Firm, fixed price contract where the private partner owns,
operates, and maintains the system;
Integration of at least one legacy system (e.g. the
Pennsylvania DOT's Traffic Operations Center in Pittsburgh);
Private funding contribution toward infrastructure; and
Sharing of gross revenues to support system enhancements.
This notice and request for participation extends the existing
relationship with the Consortium, along with any necessary changes in
support role members, to two (2) additional metropolitan areas. Lessons
from the initial deployments as well as additional elements of national
interest are reflected in this notice and request. This includes an
increased emphasis on integrating existing data, and added requirements
for calculating reliability performance measures using the data to be
collected, and monthly submittal of performance measure reports to the
U.S. DOT.
This expansion of the ITIP provides for the selection, under the
current task order contract with the Consortium, of two (2) additional
metropolitan areas to receive Federal grants of no more than $2 million
each. The focus in these two (2) expansion metropolitan areas is to
enhance existing surveillance infrastructure through integration, along
with strategic deployment of supplemental surveillance infrastructure.
The enhanced surveillance infrastructure and performance data generated
will be used to: (1) Aid the public sector partner in carrying out
system management activities including operations, planning, analysis,
and maintenance; (2) support the provision of free basic traveler
information to the public; (3) provide opportunities for
commercialization of other Advanced Traveler Information Services
(ATIS); and (4) support submittal of data and system performance
measure reports to the U.S. DOT on a monthly basis.
Preference will be given to the top 78 metropolitan areas in
support of the 1996 U.S. DOT ITS goal to deploy a complete Intelligent
Transportation Infrastructure in these areas within the next decade.
Preference will also be given to metropolitan areas that are currently
experiencing significant congestion problems; and which already have
substantial infrastructure in place such that much of the $2 million in
Federal funds can be used to fill in data gaps, and to facilitate
system integration and data management.
Objectives: This solicitation addresses the program provided for
under section 5117(b)(3) of the TEA-21. The U.S. DOT is providing
funding to:
Accelerate the integration and enhancement of intelligent
transportation infrastructure in major metropolitan areas to enable and
help manage the continuous monitoring of the roadway system for
purposes of providing real-time as well as archived data to aid in the
operation, planning, analysis, and maintenance activities of the U.S.
DOT and State and local agencies;
Enhance the quality, availability, and accessibility of
transportation system performance data to enable the calculation of
mobility performance and system reliability measures while satisfying
system operational needs at the same time;
Provide to the U.S. DOT performance data and reports
which, at a minimum, include data outlined in the Technical Plan
description under Selection Criteria;
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Provide a traveler information service that includes free
public access to basic traveler information, and supports provision of
a 511 based telephone service; and
Realize and publicize the benefits of regionally
integrated and interoperable intelligent transportation infrastructure
capable of supporting regional as well as national needs.
As stated in section 5117(b)(3) of TEA-21, additional program
objectives include:
Providing private technology commercialization initiatives
to generate revenues which will be shared with the U.S. DOT;
Collecting data primarily through wireless transmission
along with some shared wide area networks;
Aggregating data into reports for multipoint data
distribution techniques; and
Utilizing an advanced information system designed and
monitored by an entity with experience with the U.S. DOT in the design
and monitoring of high reliability, mission critical voice and data
systems.
Funding: The U.S. DOT will select two (2) metropolitan areas to
participate in this expansion of the ITIP. A total of $2 million in
Federal funds per metropolitan area will be made available
incrementally over the next two (2) calendar years to the metropolitan
areas selected through this solicitation. The Federal funding will be
made available to the selected partnerships through an existing
contract involving the Consortium.
Federal funding for the ITIP shall be used to support:
1. Creation of a process and mechanism to collect, integrate,
archive, manage, and report new and existing transportation data for
mobility and performance monitoring, planning, evaluation, and other
similar purposes;
2. Creation of a data repository of new and existing real-time
traveler information for dissemination to the traveling public through
a variety of delivery mechanisms, including support for a 511 based
telephone service, provision of free basic traveler information to the
public, and commercial traveler information services;
3. Creation of a regional transportation information system that
integrates and supplements existing surveillance infrastructure to
support public sector transportation management needs and private
sector commercialization; and
4. Accommodation/integration of existing transportation data
collection, archiving, and dissemination mechanisms.
There is a twenty percent (20%) matching share ($500,000) that must
be from non-Federally derived funding sources, as statutorily required.
For the purposes of this program, this matching share must consist of a
cash contribution to the project. The non-Federally derived funding may
come from State, local government, or private sector partners. Note
that funding identified to support continued operations, maintenance,
and management of the system will not be considered as part of the
partnership's cost-share contribution.
In an ITS partnership, as with other U.S. DOT cost-sharing grants,
it is inappropriate to include a fee in the proposed budget as part of
a partner's contribution to the project. This does not prohibit
appropriate fee payments to vendors or others that may provide goods or
services to the partnership. It also does not prohibit business
relationships with the private sector which result in revenues from the
sale or provision of ITS products or services. The U.S. DOT regulations
require grant income to be deducted from expenditures before billing.
Given prior approval, grant income can be used either as match or cost
share.
The U.S. DOT and the Comptroller General of the United States have
the right to access all documents pertaining to the use of Federal ITS
funds and non-Federal contributions. Non-Federal partners must maintain
sufficient documentation to substantiate these costs. Such items as
direct labor, fringe benefits, material costs, consultant costs, public
involvement costs, subcontractor costs, and travel costs should be
included in that documentation.
Program-Wide Evaluation of Benefits
The U.S. DOT may use its resources to conduct independent
evaluations of the benefits resulting from the ITIP at the selected
metropolitan areas. The decision to evaluate benefits at a specific
metropolitan area will be made on a case-by-case basis, reflecting
information needs at the U.S. DOT. The ITIP partners shall cooperate
with the independent evaluators and participate in evaluation planning
and progress review meetings to ensure a mutually acceptable,
successful implementation of the independent evaluation.
Eligibility
To be eligible for participation in this limited expansion of the
ITIP, applicants must establish a partnership with the Consortium that
is currently under contract with the U.S. DOT to initiate this program
in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Applicants must also be
willing to work within the current contractual mechanism for the
initial deployments. This will involve the following:
1. The FHWA has a contractual arrangement with the Consortium in
the form of a work order under the U.S. DOT's Information Technology
Omnibus Procurement (ITOP) program to develop and deploy systems in
Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Since this program expansion involves
exercising an option within the current ITOP work order, the Federal
funds provided will continue to be made available to the selected
partnerships through this ITOP arrangement. This involves direct
payment to the private partner of the Federal funds to be provided; and
2. The selected metropolitan areas/States are expected to negotiate
their own agreements with the Consortium, henceforth referred to as the
preselected private partner, to facilitate their financial
contribution, and the work to be performed. The ITOP work order(s),
including payment schedule, will be adjusted as necessary to reflect
the agreements that have been individually negotiated between the
selected metropolitan areas/States and the preselected private partner.
Information on U.S. DOT's ITOP program can be found at http://itop.dot.gov/itop/.
In addition, applications must:
1. Demonstrate that the population in the metropolitan area where
the proposed deployment will occur currently exceeds 300,000;
2. Demonstrate that the metropolitan area where the proposed
deployment will occur currently experiences significant vehicular
traffic congestion based upon metrics acceptable in the transportation
industry;
3. Demonstrate that the metropolitan area where the proposed
deployment will occur has already made significant investments in ITS
infrastructure;
4. Demonstrate that the metropolitan area where the proposed
deployment will occur provides an environment supportive of
commercialization of traffic data;
5. Demonstrate that the proposed deployment will achieve the
objectives described in the ``Objectives'' section of this
solicitation;
6. Demonstrate that sufficient funding is available to successfully
complete all aspects of the proposed deployment while complying with
the cost sharing and matching requirements described in the ``Funding''
section of this solicitation;
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7. Commit to sharing existing surveillance data with the
preselected private partner;
8. Provide access to rights-of-way for installation of additional
surveillance infrastructure by the preselected private partner;
9. Contain a Technical Plan, a Management and Staffing Plan, and a
Financial Plan; and
10. Demonstrate a commitment to a schedule whereby the proposed
deployment will be operational within one year from the date of award.
Instructions to Applicants
An application to participate in the ITIP shall consist of a
Technical Plan, a Management and Staffing Plan, and a Financial Plan.
Together, these shall not exceed fifty (50) pages in length including
title, index, tables, maps, appendices, abstracts, and other supporting
materials. Copies of Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs), or other
similar appropriate documents described below shall be attached to the
application and shall not exceed fifteen (15) pages. A page is defined
as one (1) side of an 8\1/2\ x 11 inch sheet of paper, with a type
font no smaller than 12 point. Applications greater than fifty (50)
pages will not be accepted.
Applications shall be submitted in an electronic format compatible
with Microsoft Office 2000. The cover sheet or front page of the
application shall include the name, address, and phone number of an
individual to whom correspondence and questions about the application
may be addressed. Any portion of the application or its contents that
may contain proprietary information shall be clearly indicated;
otherwise, the application and its contents shall be non-proprietary.
Selection Criteria
Applicants must submit acceptable Technical, Management and
Staffing, and Financial Plans that together provide sound evidence that
the proposed partnership can successfully meet the objectives of the
ITIP.
The FHWA will assess applications submitted in response to this
notice using the selection criteria set forth below, to determine: (1)
the proposed project's potential for achieving and showcasing the
benefits of using ITS technology for highway performance monitoring and
management; (2) the proposed partnership's ability to complete the
proposed infrastructure integration within one (1) year after award;
(3) the proposed project's potential for fostering private
commercialization initiatives, and (4) the responsiveness of the
proposed technical, financial, and management approaches.
The following criteria will be used in selecting metropolitan areas
for participation in the ITIP.
A. Partnership
The proposed partnership demonstrates a strong commitment to
cooperation among agencies, jurisdictions, and the preselected private
partner.
1. The application discusses proposed working relationships,
cooperation, and information-sharing among participating public
transportation agencies and the preselected private partner for the
collection, management, and use of transportation system performance
data, and the dissemination of travel information services, including
support for a 511 telephone service.
2. The proposed partnership demonstrates a strong commitment to
cooperation among agencies, jurisdictions, and the preselected private
partner, on both long-range investment decisions and short-range
operation and management issues. Documentation that clearly defines the
responsibilities and relationships of all parties, including
institutional relationships, revenue sharing, and other financial
agreements needed to support the intelligent transportation
infrastructure deployment, are attached.
3. The proposed partnership results in an arrangement where the
public sector partners will be provided an ongoing data stream and the
preselected private partner will be responsible for operating and
maintaining the data gathering system implemented as part of this
project under a fixed price contract.
B. Technical Plan
The Technical Plan must address the development, deployment,
operation, and management of intelligent transportation infrastructure
that: 1) enhances the quality, availability, and accessibility of both
real-time and archived transportation system performance data for
transportation operations, planning, analysis, and maintenance
purposes; 2) supports monthly submittal of such data to the U.S. DOT;
and 3) provides a traveler information service, including support for a
511 based telephone service as well as commercial value added services.
1. The Technical Plan must contain an operational concept and
technical approach that demonstrates how the proposed deployment will
operate when fully implemented, as well as during any incremental
deployment steps leading to full implementation. The technical plan
must define the operational roles and responsibilities of the partners
during operations (and key operator functions), as well as the
functions performed by the ITS infrastructure elements. The technical
plan should describe the changes to existing systems and additional
elements. Emphasis should be placed on operational aspects of the
proposed deployment that will achieve the goal of improving the
performance of the transportation system. The technical plan should
address the opportunities for generating/supporting commercial products
with the data.
2. The Technical Plan must contain a description of existing
monitoring infrastructure and describe the monitoring and traffic data
needs of the community; and the proposed approach for meeting local, as
well as National needs.
3. The Technical Plan must contain a technical approach to submit
all data aggregated as part of this project, including new and existing
data, to the U.S. DOT on a monthly basis. At a minimum, the performance
data are to include the elements outlined below in Table 1.
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In addition, the technical approach must include quality assurance
processes for both real-time and archived data. For real-time data, the
data collected should be in accordance with the appropriate data
quality levels specified in the document ``Closing the Data Gap:
Guidelines for Quality Advanced Traveler Information System (ATIS)
Data, Version 1.0, September 2000.'' \2\ For archived data, three (3)
facets of quality control procedures must be addressed:
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\2\ The ``Closing the Data Gap: Guidelines for Quality Advanced
Traveler Information System (ATIS) Data, Version 1.0, September
2000,'' can be obtained for review by contacting
[email protected].
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(1) Identification of faulty data;
(2) Editing procedures once faulty data is detected; and
(3) Treatment of missing values.
Any breakdown in the accepted quality assurance processes must be
reported immediately. Additionally, any significant data gaps (one (1)-
day or more) identified will be reported along with the monthly
submission of data.
The Technical Plan must also contain a technical approach for using
the data aggregated as part of this project to calculate the
performance measures identified in the Table 2 below, and submitting a
monthly report of these performance measures to the U.S. DOT.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN01JN01.002
The preselected private partner shall be responsible for submitting
the above data and reports to the U.S. DOT. Data for each area shall be
delivered on compact disk (CD-ROM) and made downloadable via the
Internet monthly by the private sector partner, not more than four (4)
weeks following the end of the month. Data shall be delivered in a
granularity and format to be agreed upon prior to initiation of
delivery. The standard Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS) \3\
and Traffic Monitoring Guide \4\ formats may be used where applicable.
Definitions to be used shall be those contained in the Traffic
Monitoring Guide, or the archived data standards (currently in
development by ASTM), or the traffic management data dictionary (TMDD)
standards, if available.
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\3\ The Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS) field
Manual is available for review at the URL: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ohim/hpmsmanl/hpms.htm.
\4\ The Traffic Monitoring Guide is available for review at the
URL: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ohim/tvtw/tvtwpage.htm.
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4. The Technical Plan must contain a technical approach that
demonstrates how consistency with the Regional ITS Architecture (or
with the National ITS Architecture where a Regional ITS Architecture
does not yet exist) will be achieved; and how use of appropriate ITS
standards will be considered, consistent with the Final Rule on ITS
Architecture and Standards, 23 CFR Part 940, 66 FR 1446, January 8,
2001.
5. The Technical Plan must include an approach for developing the
project based on a systems engineering analysis, consistent with the
Final Rule on ITS Architecture and Standards, 23 CFR Part 940, 66 FR
1446, January 8, 2001.
6. The Technical Plan must address issues related to ownership and
disposition of equipment deployed as part of this project; rights to
data collected by infrastructure deployed as part of this project; and
rights to reports generated from this data.
C. Management and Staffing Plan
The Management and Staffing Plan must demonstrate a well thought
out estimate of the level of effort and skills needed to successfully
complete the proposed deployment, along with the identification of
which partners will supply the staff needed, including the names and
qualifications of key staff. This plan must also describe the proposed
lines of communication between the partners, and define the
responsibilities of each partner.
1. The Management and Staffing Plan must demonstrate a sound
management and organizational approach and schedule that will ensure
that the proposed deployment is operational within one (1) year of the
award of funds.
2. The Management and Staffing Plan must demonstrate a commitment
to hire or assign a project manager and adequate full-time staff to
ensure timely deployment of the project. Proposed staff should have
demonstrated skills for effective operations and management, or the
commitment to acquiring the necessary skills in relevant technical
areas.
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D. Financial Plan
The Financial Plan must demonstrate that sufficient funding is
available to successfully complete all aspects of the proposed project
as described in the Technical Plan.
1. The Financial Plan must include a clear identification of the
proposed funding for the proposed deployment, and a commitment to
provide a minimum twenty percent (20%) matching share that must be from
non-Federally derived funding sources. All financial commitments from
both the public and private partners, including any details of revenue
sharing, must be documented.
2. The Financial Plan must include a sound financial approach to
ensure the timely deployment and the continued long-term operation and
management of the system without continued reliance on Federal funding.
The Financial Plan must include documented evidence of continuing
fiscal capacity and commitment.
3. The proposed project must include corresponding public and/or
private investments that minimize the relative percentage and amount of
Federal funds.
Authority: 23 U.S.C. 315; Sec. 5117(b)(3) of Public Law 105-178,
as amended; 49 CFR 1.48.
Issued on: May 25, 2001.
Vincent F. Schimmoller,
Deputy Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 01-13791 Filed 5-29-01; 2:44 pm]
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