BACKGROUND 

Intercity bus service is an integral piece of the national mobility network, which provides access to employment, education, healthcare, and community services. The transportation industry seeks to increase the effectiveness of the intercity transportation system. Suggestions for improving the intercity bus network include encouraging partnerships among rural and tribal transit system organizations, increasing or establishing connections with the intercity bus network, and enabling the integration of local transportation resources with intercity and interstate transportation modes to provide a safe, interconnected mobility network. Lessons gleaned from establishing intercity bus service in tribal areas can often be transferred to non-tribal rural areas. However, research on tribal transport connections reveals different governance structures, historical experiences, and cultural norms. Updated research is needed to address the challenges related to technological, jurisdictional, political, and/or regulatory differences associated with connecting tribal and rural communities to intercity bus service. 

OBJECTIVE 

The objective of this project is to develop a guide and toolkit for expanding access to safe intercity transportation for tribal and rural communities, including successful practices for (1) fostering collaboration among federal, state, local, and tribal governments; (2) facilitating coordination between rural and tribal transit agencies and intercity bus providers; (3) connecting rural and tribal transit systems to the intercity bus network; and (4) providing protocols for intercity bus providers, local and tribal governments, and state departments of transportation (DOTs) to address business needs and cultural concerns while advancing safe intercity bus connections for tribal and rural communities. 

RESEARCH PLAN

The NCHRP is seeking the insights of proposers on how best to achieve the research objective. Proposers are expected to describe research plans that can realistically be accomplished within the constraints of available funds and contract time. Proposals must present the proposers' current thinking in sufficient detail to demonstrate their understanding of the issues and the soundness of their approach to meeting the research objective.

The research plan should (1) include a virtual kick-off teleconference with the research team and NCHRP convened within 1 month of the contract’s execution; (2) address how the proposer intends to satisfy the project objective; (3) be divided logically into detailed tasks necessary to fulfill the project objective and include appropriate milestones and interim deliverables; and (4) incorporate opportunities for the project panel to review, comment on, and approve milestone deliverables.

The research plan shall address the following questions:

1.  How can intercity bus service providers and interested partners provide safety and security along interconnected intercity bus routes?

2.  How can private-sector funds be leveraged to maximize the efficiencies of existing bus services and capital in rural and tribal areas?

3.  How can state government, metropolitan planning organizations, and regional transportation planning organizations incentivize local jurisdictions to fund intercity transportation to rural and tribal areas?

At a minimum, the research plan shall include the following tasks. 

PHASE I 

Task 1.  Prepare a literature review on advancing safe connections to the intercity bus network for tribal and rural communities. Include literature on protocols for intercity bus providers, local and tribal governments, and state DOTs addressing business needs and cultural concerns.

Note: Limit the literature review to the last 10 years. Germinal works more than 10 years old may be included. 

Task 2. Identify successful practices for (1) fostering collaboration among federal, state, regional, local, and tribal governments; (2) increasing coordination among rural and tribal service providers, transit agencies, and intercity bus providers; (3) branding and marketing to increase intercity bus ridership; (4) implementing innovative and equitable fare structures; (5) connecting rural and tribal transit intercity bus service networks; and (6) developing protocols for intercity bus providers, local and tribal governments, and state DOTs as they address business needs and cultural concerns. 

Task 3. Define the roles and responsibilities needed to provide safe, efficient, and interconnected intercity bus service. Include the roles and responsibilities of partners at all levels of government, intercity bus service providers, and transit agencies. 

Task 4. Prepare an interim report summarizing the findings from Tasks 1 through 3 and a detailed Phase II work plan describing how the findings from Tasks 1 through 3 will inform Phase II. 

Note: NCHRP approval of the Phase I interim report and the proposed update to the Phase II work plan are required prior to initiation. This approval shall occur at a virtual meeting with the NCHRP project panel. The NCHRP will cover the costs of teleconference services. 

PHASE II 

Task 5. Develop strategies for safe and efficient intercity bus service and facility standards that could be used by all intercity bus service partners. 

Task 6. Identify current and potential funding mechanisms for capital (e.g., infrastructure and technology) and operational improvements.   

Task 7. Develop a process for strategically planning safe intercity bus routes and interconnectivity to destinations. This planning includes integrating technologies, physically co-locating stops, aligning schedules, meeting regulatory requirements, and establishing interlined tickets. 

Task 8. Identify strategies for intercity bus service partners to quantitatively and qualitatively measure the value and benefits of providing intercity bus service. 

Task 9. Prepare an annotated outline for the proposed intercity bus service guide and toolkit. 

Task 10. Prepare an interim report summarizing the findings from Tasks 5 through 9 and provide a proposed Phase III work plan describing how the findings from Tasks 1 through 9 will inform the development of a practitioner’s guide and spreadsheet tool. 

Note: NCHRP approval of the Phase II interim report and the proposed update to the Phase III work plan are required prior to Phase III initiation. This approval shall occur at an in-person meeting with the NCHRP project panel to be convened in Washington, DC, at NCHRP offices. The NCHRP will cover the costs associated with meetings at NCHRP facilities, teleconference services, and panel member travel. 

PHASE III 

Task 11. Develop a decision-support spreadsheet comparing intercity bus network investment decisions. 

Task 12. Prepare a toolkit using the findings from Tasks 1 through 11 to inform the public, government, private-entity partners, and elected officials of the benefits of intercity bus services to heterogeneous tribal and rural areas. The toolkit shall include the decision-support spreadsheet developed in Task 11. 

Task 13. Prepare an intercity bus service guide using the findings from Tasks 1 through 12 for practitioners who plan and operate intercity bus services. Include intercity bus service and facility standards.

Task 14. Convene a virtual workshop after NCHRP approval of the draft guide and toolkit for intercity bus service partners to solicit feedback on the intercity bus service guide and toolkit.

Note: NCHRP approval of the list of workshop participants is required before initiating Task 14.

Task 15. Prepare a fact sheet for state DOT leaders and local decision-makers as they consider strategic planning and funding for intercity bus service.

Task 16. Prepare final deliverables that fulfill the project objective and include, at a minimum, the following:

1. A final research report documenting the entire research effort, including an executive summary and prioritized recommendations for future research;

2. A practitioner’s guide on advancing safe connections to the intercity bus network for tribal and rural communities; 

3. A toolkit conveying the benefits of intercity bus services to tribal and rural communities and an investment decision-support spreadsheet;

4. A presentation of findings to the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Council on Public Transportation or other committees or councils concerned with advancing safe connections to the intercity bus network for tribal and rural communities;

5.  A PowerPoint presentation describing the background, objective, research approach, findings, and conclusions; and

6. A stand-alone technical memorandum titled “Implementation of Research Findings and Products” (see Special Note K for additional information).

Proposers may recommend additional deliverables to support the project objective. 

Note: Following receipt of the draft final deliverables, the remaining 3 months shall be for NCHRP review and comment and for research agency preparation of the final deliverables. 

SPECIAL NOTES 

A. Proposers should be aware of the following completed, anticipated, or ongoing studies related to this research and take them into account when developing the proposed research plan to minimize the potential for duplication of effort: 

TCRP Report 79: Effective Approaches to Meeting Rural Intercity Bus Transportation Needs (2002) 

NCHRP 08-147/TCRP B-49, “Improving Public Transportation in Rural Areas and Tribal Communities” 

TCRP B-52, “Intercity Bus: The State Role Updated” 

B. The Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals for the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Programs were revised in May 2024. Please take note of the new and revised text which is highlighted in yellow. 

C. Proposals must be submitted as a single PDF file with a maximum file size of 10 MB. The PDF must be formatted for standard 8 ½” X 11” paper, and the entire proposal must not exceed 60 pages (according to the page count displayed in the PDF). Proposals that do not meet these requirements will be rejected. For other requirements, refer to chapter V of the instructions. 

D. The Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals for the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Programs have been modified to include a revised policy and instructions for disclosing Investigator Conflict of Interest. For more information, refer to chapter IV of the instructions. A detailed definition and examples can be found in the CRP Conflict of Interest Policy for Contractors. The proposer recommended by the project panel will be required to submit an Investigator Conflict of Interest and Disclosure Form as a prerequisite for contract negotiations. 

E. Proposals will be rejected if any of the proposed research team members work for organizations represented on the project panel. The panel roster for this project can be found at https://www.mytrb.org/OnlineDirectory/Committee/Details/7057. Proposers may not contact panel members directly; this roster is provided solely for the purpose of avoiding potential conflicts of interest. 

F. Proprietary Products - If any proprietary products are to be used or tested in the project, please refer to Item 6 in the Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals. 

G. Proposals are evaluated by the NCHRP staff and project panels consisting of individuals collectively knowledgeable in the problem area. The project panel will recommend their first choice proposal considering the following factors: (1) the proposer's demonstrated understanding of the problem; (2) the merit of the proposed research approach and experiment design; (3) the experience, qualifications, and objectivity of the research team in the same or closely related problem area; (4) the plan for ensuring application of results; (5) how the proposer approaches inclusion and diversity in the composition of their team and research approach, including participation by certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprises; and, if relevant, (6) the adequacy of the facilities. A recommendation by the project panel is not a guarantee of a contract. The National Academy of Sciences (NAS - the contracting authority for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine) will conduct an internal due diligence review and risk assessment of the panel’s recommended proposal before contract negotiations continue. 

Note: The proposer's approach to inclusion and diversity as well as participation by Disadvantaged Business Enterprises should be incorporated in Item 11 of the proposal. 

H. Copyrights - All data, written materials, computer software, graphic and photographic images, and other information prepared under the contract and the copyrights therein shall be owned by the National Academy of Sciences. The contractor and subcontractors will be able to publish this material for non-commercial purposes, for internal use, or to further academic research or studies with permission from TRB Cooperative Research Programs. The contractor and subcontractors will not be allowed to sell the project material without prior approval by the National Academy of Sciences. By signing a contract with the National Academy of Sciences, contractors accept legal responsibility for any copyright infringement that may exist in work done for TRB. Contractors are therefore responsible for obtaining all necessary permissions for use of copyrighted material in TRB's Cooperative Research Programs publications. For guidance on TRB's policies on using copyrighted material please consult Section 5.4, "Use of Copyrighted Material," in the Procedural Manual for Contractors. 

I. The text of the final deliverable is expected to be publication ready when it is submitted. It is strongly recommended that the research team include the expertise of a technical editor as early in the project timeline as possible. See Appendix F of the Procedural Manual for Contractors Conducting Research in the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Program for technical editing standards expected in final deliverables. 

J. Proposals should include a task-by-task breakdown of labor hours for each staff member as shown in Figure 4 in the Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals. Proposals also should include a breakdown of all costs (e.g., wages, indirect costs, travel, materials, and total) for each task using Figures 5 and 6 in the brochure. Please note that TRB Cooperative Research Program subawards (selected proposers are considered subawards to the National Academy of Sciences, the parent organization of TRB) must comply with 2 CFR 200 – Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards. These requirements include a provision that proposers without a "federally" Negotiated Indirect Costs Rate Agreement (NICRA) shall be subject to a maximum allowable indirect rate of 10% of Modified Total Direct Costs. Modified Total Direct Costs include all salaries and wages, applicable fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to the first $25,000 of each lower tier subaward and subcontract. Modified Total Direct Costs exclude equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs and the portion of each lower tier subaward and subcontract in excess of $25,000. 

K. The required technical memorandum titled “Implementation of Research Findings and Products” should (a) provide recommendations on how to best put the research findings/products into practice; (b) identify possible institutions that might take leadership in applying the research findings/products; (c) identify issues affecting potential implementation of the findings/products and recommend possible actions to address these issues; and (d) recommend methods of identifying and measuring the impacts associated with implementation of the findings/products. Implementation of these recommendations is not part of the research project and, if warranted, details of these actions will be developed and implemented in future efforts. 

The research team will be expected to provide input to an implementation team consisting of panel members, AASHTO committee members, the NCHRP Implementation Coordinator, and others in order to meet the goals of NCHRP Active Implementation: Moving Research into Practice, available at http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/docs/NCHRP_ActiveImplementation.pdf 

L. If the team proposes a Principal Investigator who is not an employee of the Prime Contractor, or if the Prime Contractor is proposed to conduct less than 50% of the total effort (by time or budget), then section five of the proposal should include: (1) a justification of why this approach is appropriate, and (2) a description of how the Prime Contractor will ensure adequate communication and coordination with their Subcontractors throughout the project. 

M. All budget information should be suitable for printing on 8½″ x 11″ paper. If a budget page cannot fit on a single 8½″ x 11″ page, it should be split over multiple pages. Proposers must use the Excel templates provided in the Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals for the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Programs.  

N. The National Academies have an ethical and legal obligation to provide proper attribution whenever material from other sources is included in its reports, online postings, and other publications and products. TRB will review all Cooperative Research Programs draft final deliverables using the software iThenticate for potential plagiarism. If plagiarized text appears in the draft final deliverable, the research team will be required to make revisions and the opportunity to submit future proposals may be affected.