Volume 43 - Issue 24 - June 13, 2024

State of Kansas

Department of Transportation

Request for Proposals

Notice to Consulting Firms

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is seeking a qualified consulting firm or team of firms to perform professional services for the Southwest Kansas Highway Mobility and Expansion Strategy as described. Interested consultants must submit a summary of the proposed approach by 12:00 p.m. (Central Time) June 26, 2024, to be considered for selection. The summary of the proposed approach shall not exceed 15 pages in length.

Consultant Prequalification

Interested consulting firms must be prequalified by KDOT or otherwise demonstrate qualification in category(s):

• 161 – Corridor/Project Feasibility Studies
• OR 201 – Location and Design Concept Studies/Corridor Studies
• AND 162 – Long Range Planning

If a firm is not currently prequalified by KDOT in any of the required categories, a proposal may still be submitted. Firms not prequalified must also provide documentation that demonstrates the firm is qualified for each specified category listed in this solicitation for the project. Firms must use the KDOT prequalification form to provide this documentation. KDOT 1050 Prequalification Category Definitions (Blue Book) can be found at http://www.ksdot.org/descons.asp. Consultants may create a team to meet the prequalification requirements. All firms doing business with KDOT must be registered and in good standing under the laws of the State of Kansas at the time of contracting and must comply with applicable state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.

Background and Scope of Project

The Eisenhower Legacy Transportation Program (IKE) features an innovative and robust public involvement process, known as Local Consult. This process takes place every two years to get input on potential expansion and modernization projects across the State of Kansas.

During the past three (3) rounds of Local Consult, KDOT has heard a clear and consistent message from southwest Kansas, that there is substantial local desire to improve and expand various highway corridors in this part of the state.

Approximately $1.4B worth of potential expansion and modernization projects were discussed in District Six during the most recent round of Local Consult (October of 2023). This dollar amount far exceeds available resources; therefore, investments will need to be made strategically and over time.

By way of this solicitation, KDOT invites qualified firms to provide planning, engineering, and associated professional services to prepare a long-range highway expansion strategy for southwest Kansas. This strategic document will better inform investment decisions and help stakeholders understand the thresholds for investments to be made, along with the safety, mobility, and economic benefits of an improved highway system.

Anticipated Consultant Scope

KDOT anticipates the following to be included in the consultant’s scope:

• Planning/Engineering Study Service
• Discovery Phase Services
• Public Involvement Services

Potential Scope Items

Key elements to be considered include but are not necessarily limited to:

1. Creation of a public and stakeholder involvement plan.
2. Grant Application Support
   • Data collection and review.
   • Identify strategies for maximum points.
   • Prepare cost estimates as needed.
   • Coordinate with KDOT for required information.
   • Draft support letters for public, elected and appointed officials, stakeholders and other relevant entities as identified by KDOT and advance the application.
   • Establish application schedule.
   • Coordinate and lead meetings.
   • Consultant shall prepare the grant application based on NOFO requirements.
   • Provide tables and graphics as necessary.
   • Provide final draft grant documents for review that will be coordinated with the Grant Lead, project team and others that are relevant in the process.
3. Assessment of existing/future traffic, and travel characteristics along key highway corridors.
   • Existing and projected safety experience; the safety analysis must consider crash history and risk factors and link desired safety outcomes to improvement recommendations.
   • High-level origin/destination study to understand travel patterns.
   • Analysis of intrastate vs. interstate travel along subject corridors.
   • Considerations surrounding freight mobility and accessibility; including emergent freight technologies, such as CAV, platooning, and the US-83 Advanced Technology Project.
     • Oversize/Overweight freight traffic and super loads.
   • Existing/future traffic projections.
     • Capacity analysis, etc.
     • Vehicle type and classification.
   • Baseline (high-level) land use and future (probable) development patterns.
   • Consideration of economic development opportunities within the study area.
4. Identify reasonable corridor-level improvements and thresholds or “triggers” for implementation. Recommendations must consider:
   • The relative statewide and regional benefit of 4-lane corridors, versus 2-lane corridors and 2-lane “Super 2” corridors with passing lanes.
   • Safety, regional economic development, and travel reliability/efficiency.
   • Costs associated with the various alternatives; this includes initial costs along with long-term maintenance/preservation costs.
5. Comprehensive implementation strategy
   • Establish thresholds or “triggers” for improvements.
   • Identification of funding opportunities and strategies.
     • Federal (i.e. Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, etc.)
     • State and local programs.
     • Partnership opportunities with the private sector.
   • The implementation strategy should be forward-thinking and practical.
     • Recommendations should be future-proofed, to the extent possible.
     • Maximize value and service life of previous investments.

This will be a comprehensive planning effort and we are seeking and encouraging innovative ideas for delivery of the plan.

KDOT, at the Secretary’s discretion, reserves the right to retain for subsequent phases of design and consulting services the consultant selected to provide services associated with the Request for Proposals. Scope in subsequent phases will likely include, but is not limited to, plan development through preliminary and final design as well as traffic engineering.

Anticipated Schedule and Key Dates

1. Proposals are due by or before 12:00 PM Central Time June 26, 2024.
2. Ranking of proposals is expected to occur on or around July 1, 2024. Negotiations with the most highly ranked firm are expected to begin on or around July 15, 2024. An executed agreement is anticipated around July 29, 2024.
3. The program fiscal year for this project is FY2025 (July 2024–June 2025).
4. DRAFT report by Spring/Summer of 2025.

Instructions for Proposal

1. No cost or pricing information shall be submitted with the proposal. Proposals including cost or pricing information will be considered non-responsive and withdrawn from further consideration.
2. The consultant’s proposal must not exceed 5 pages total (including any cover letter, index, etc.). All pages shall be standard letter size (8.5” x 11”). Any page larger than standard letter size will be counted as two or more pages depending on size.
3. A single PDF (10 MB maximum size) of the proposal must be uploaded to the appropriate bid form on Bid Express by the proposal due date and time.
4. The proposal PDF file name must read:
   1. “106 P-1804-24 -SW KS Hwy Mobility and Expansion Strategy FIRM NAME”
5. The proposal must be accompanied by Special Attachments No. 8 (“Tax Clearance Certificate”), No. 10 (“Policy Regarding Sexual Harassment”), and No. 12 (“Certification of Company Not Currently Engaged in the Procurement or Obtainment of Certain Equipment, Services, or Systems”). If you need a Tax Clearance Certificate, you can request one at https://www.ksrevenue.gov/taxclearance.html. Allow 2-3 business days for processing. Both attachments are required for every firm involved in a multi-consultant team. Upload these files as instructed in Bid Express.
6. The outline in Table 1 below describes the expected proposal organization and content sections.
7. Depending on the number and quality of responses received, KDOT anticipates shortlisting (based on proposals) and holding interviews prior to final selection (which may be based on both proposal and interview content). If KDOT deems interviews to be necessary, interview details and requirements and evaluation criteria for the interview will be distributed to shortlisted consultant teams in advance.
8. Table 2 lists the evaluation criteria and associated weights which will be used to shortlist respondents and may be considered in final selection.

Table 1: Proposal Content
Section	Description of Intent	Page Limit
Cover Letter		1 Page
Project Approach	Demonstrate a unique approach to accomplish the design efficiently and to a high standard. Include cost-effective and optimized solutions to address the anticipated improvements in the design. Include unique qualifications or experience related to the project approach.
Approach to Schedule	Describe the approach to accomplish the scope of services within the schedule requirements. Include anticipated key milestone dates and availability of staff.
Approach to Quality Control	Describe methods or procedures your firm will use to provide all drawings, reports and other services with professional quality and technical accuracy.
Qualifications and Experience	For key personnel to be assigned to the project provide names, office location, qualifications, education, training, and expertise. Identify their area(s) of responsibility and percent of their time dedicated to the project. List work for which you do not have in-house capability and name the firm you propose to subcontract with.
Past Performance	Describe team’s past performance with respect to ability to meet project schedules; quality of work; and ability to control costs on similar transportation projects, especially those performed for KDOT. Include three references and contact information.
Familiarity with KDOT and Project Area	Describe team’s familiarity with KDOT’s design process and standards. Describe familiarity with the project area and any identified special site conditions.

Table 2: Evaluation Factors
Evaluation Factor	Weight
Qualifications and experience of project manager and other key project team members proposed for services	20%
Proposed Project approach	15%
Approach and commitment to meet advertised schedule	10%
Past performance history for similar projects/services for KDOT	10%
Understanding of the project area – Relevant planning experience in Southwest Kansas	15%
Availability to respond to the work described in this solicitation	15%
Unique qualifications of the consultant team	10%
Degree to which proposed approach incorporates innovative practices	5%

Contract Terms and Conditions

A standard KDOT agreement for engineering and technical services will be used for professional services projects. The following special attachments will need to be provided by the selected consultant and all subconsultants with the signed work order following negotiations and will become attachments to the contract.

• Special Attachment No. 8 (“Tax Clearance Certificate”)
• Special Attachment No. 10 (“Policy Regarding Sexual Harassment”)
• Special Attachment No. 12 (“Certification of Company Not Currently Engaged in the Procurement or Obtainment of Certain Equipment, Services, or Systems”)

Special Contract Conditions

Schedule: DRAFT report by Spring/Summer of 2025.

Questions

All questions regarding this Request for Proposals shall be submitted via Q&A section of bid form in Bid Express.

Questions can be submitted until June 13, 2024; answers will be provided to all prequalified consultants on June 20, 2024.

Calvin Reed
Secretary
Department of Transportation

Doc. No. 052192