TAMRMS#: B06
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Courval Scheduling Inc. Software Contract Award
Presented by: Anthony Lake, Director, Public Works and Transit
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RECOMMENDATION(S)
recommendation
That Council approve the sole source contract award of $217,043.00 for transit scheduling software to Courval Scheduling Inc. (CSched).
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PURPOSE OF REPORT
City of St. Albert procurement policies requires that sole sourced contracts above $100,000.00 be approved by Council.
ALIGNMENT TO PRIORITIES IN COUNCIL’S STRATEGIC PLAN
Strategic Priority #3:
Building a Transportation Network: Integrated transportation systems.
Administration Activity #3.4
Continue to pursue an integrated Regional Transit Commission.
ALIGNMENT TO LEVELS OF SERVICE DELIVERY
Service Name: Conventional Fixed Route Transit Services
Service Definition: Provision of convenient, affordable and effective public transit services within St. Albert and to major destination areas in Edmonton, including Downtown, the University of Alberta, NAIT/Royal Alexandra Hospital, and West Edmonton Mall.
ALIGNMENT TO COUNCIL DIRECTION OR MANDATORY STATUTORY PROVISION
N/A
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The contract to provide transit scheduling software was sole-sourced after considerable research and evaluation; research that included an assessment and recommendation conducted on behalf of the regional transit partners by LTK Engineering. In order to be a part of the regional Smart Fare/Smart Bus systems, St. Albert Transit (StAT) and Strathcona County Transit (SCT) must utilize scheduling software that is compatible with, and can interface with Edmonton Transit’s Hastus (brand name) system. In the process of determining if an interface could be developed to allow our current scheduling software to channel into Hastus, it was identified that an interface could not be developed without a major adjustment to Edmonton’s system. The reprogramming of their much-larger system was not supported by Edmonton as it was deemed too costly and could potentially compromise the integrity of their system. Therefore, the decision was made by the Project Working Committee to discontinue the use of StAT’s and SCT’s current software in favor of one that allows for communication with Hastus.
The product selected is a software package called Hastus by CSched. CSched is affiliated with GIRO (the company that produces Hastus) and is the exclusive North American sub-licensor of Hastus. CSched provides a fully-hosted version of Hastus software intended for use by smaller Transit agencies.
No other practical option exists to assure compatibility with our regional partners, which is critical to the goal of the regionalization efforts of all Councils. For these reasons, the product purchase was sole-sourced.
A Notice of Intent to Award ITT19-0011 Smartfare Software was posted to the City Website and to Alberta Purchasing Connection (APC) as per the City's Purchasing Policy and the New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA) and the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) requirements. There were no inquiries during the 2-week posting.
It should be noted that the procurement of new scheduling software was always part of our commitment to the Regional Smart Fare System (RSFS) project. The bulk of the contract is loaded to the first year and will be capitalized and paid out of the existing approved Smart Fare budget. Licensing for the remaining years will be paid out of StAT’s current operating budget and will be partially offset by the discontinued use (and annual fees) of our current software.
STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS OR ENGAGEMENT
Collaboration with our regional cost sharing partners; City of Edmonton (ETS) and County of Strathcona (SCT)
IMPLICATIONS OF RECOMMENDATION(S)
Financial:
The contract is to be entered into with CSched represents a total amount of $217,043 over a five-year term. $99,779 of this amount will be capitalized and paid through the overall Regional Smart Fare project - the budget for which has been established and St. Albert’s contribution approved by order of Council. Years 2 to 5 will see costs of $28,000 to $30,000 and will be covered as part of StAT’s on-going operational budget.
CSched and Hastus will be the systems of choice utilized by both Edmonton and Strathcona County. Failure to purchase compatible scheduling software will result in the inability of St. Albert Transit to communicate with the central system, and, as a further consequence, the overall Regional Smart Fare System (RSFS). This would spell the end of StAT’s participation in this project. Because of commitments made to date with our regional partners, there will be implications regarding funds already spent, and grant funding allotments.
Legal / Risk:
All contracts to be entered into with CSched have been vetted and approved by the legal representatives of the City of St. Albert and Strathcona County.
The City of St. Albert would likely face legal challenges as a result of our withdrawal of participation in the RSFS project, both in terms of funding provided by the City of St. Albert and possible reimbursement to Province of grant funding.
Program or Service:
The product being considered is a transit scheduling software that integrates all aspects of the three partner agencies (routes, schedules, digital mapping, driver assignments, etc.) and interfaces with Smart Bus and Smart Fare technology. It is the CSched/Hastus platform that will be utilized by our regional partners.
The real-time technology enabled by the RSFS project would replace our current real-time data infrastructure that is soon to reach the end of its life span. By the end of 2019, it will no longer be supported by the supplier. If our participation in the RSFS project is withdrawn as a result of incompatible scheduling software, there will still be a need for future investment in real-time bus technology of our own. Such a system would be completely separate from our regional partners and would not be linked to the Regional Smart Fare program.
Organizational:
N/A
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED
If Council does not wish to support the recommendation, the following implications should be considered:
With no compatible means to communicate with the other regional systems, the City St. Albert would have to withdraw from the overall Regional Smart Fare System. The City would face significant financial and legal implications based on commitments already made. Furthermore, the City would still have to make an investment in a real-time data system to replace the system currently in place that becomes obsolete and unsupported at the end of 2019, and then subsequently in a smart fare system of our own.
Report Date: February 19, 2019
Author(s): Anthony Lake
Committee/Department: Public Works and Transit
Chief Administrative Officer: Kevin Scoble