INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS

  1. Sealed proposals shall be delivered to:

ILandus Hampton

Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations

Rich Township High School District 227

20000 Governors Drive, Ste 200

Olympia Fields, IL 60461

By 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, June 9th, 2009. No proposal received after the said designated time will be considered. The bidder assumes the risk of any delay in the handling or delivery of mail. Each proposal must be submitted with the required forms and documents in a sealed envelope marked Regular Student/Special Education Transportation Services Bid with opening date and time as well as the name and address of bidder.

  1. It is the responsibility of each bidder to examine all routes in detail to determine distances, timing, problem traffic areas, etc. The District will answer questions about the transportation operations at a mandatory bidder’s meeting on Wednesday, May 20th, at 9:00 a.m. at the District’s Administration Center. All prospective bidders must attend and register at this meeting. If a bidder does not attend the meeting, its proposal will not be considered by the District.
  2. The contract shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder in the exclusive judgment of the School Board. The Board of Education reserves the right to reject any and all bids, and waive any informalities, irregularities, or defects in any proposal, if it is in the best interest of the School District to do so. Regular Student and Special Education Transportation may be awarded to separate vendors at the discretion of the District. The Board of Education shall consider various criteria in awarding the contract for Regular Student/Special Education Transportation Services, including, but not limited to the following:

a.  Transportation Contractor has a minimum of two (2) years experience in the State of Illinois operating buses and transporting school children enrolled in grades 9 through 12, which can be demonstrated by resume to the satisfaction of the School District.

b.  Evidence of financial responsibility and financial capability to perform the contract.

c.  Evidence of management experience and reliability in bus operations and transportation of school children.

d.  Demonstrated ability and willingness to provide transportation vehicles equipped and maintained to provide for the safe, convenient, dependable and comfortable transportation of children.

e.  Evidence of adequate operations and maintenance facilities in an appropriate location, which will assure the proper performance of the contract. The operation and maintenance facilities are to be within the school district boundaries for accessibility. If the operations and maintenance facilities are located outside the School District boundaries, the Contractor shall have prior written approval from the School District that the location is appropriate and will assure proper performance of the contract. Such decision by the School District shall be final. If the operations and maintenance facilities are located outside the district boundaries, it cannot exceed 20 minutes outside of district boundaries.

f.  That the Contractor can show evidence of having employees with sufficient experience to maintain the fleet and adequate/appropriate maintenance facilities to meet District requirements.

4.  Each bid shall be accompanied by:

a.  A description of the bidder's present operations and a list of outstanding transportation contracts including the number of school buses used.

b.  The corporate or individual history of the bidder.

c.  A summary by narrative, brochure, chart or other means showing the bidder's special qualifications which may give the bidder the ability to satisfy all bid requirements.

d.  A current balance sheet and income statement prepared and certified by a Certified Public Accountant and a balance sheet and income statement prepared and certified by a Certified Public Accountant for the prior three years.

e.  A listing of all contracts the Contractor has defaulted on within the past seven years.

f.  A listing of all contracts the Contractor has entered into with school districts in the past three years, including the size of the contract, the number of buses, number of drivers and the name and telephone numbers of the school district personnel responsible for the contract.

g.  A listing of any litigation filed by or against the Contract in the past five years including the name and case number, court jurisdiction and summary of the case.

5.  Bids must be accompanied by a certified check or bid bond issued by a generally recognized insurance or bond company acceptable to the District in the amount of ten percent (5%) of the value of the bidder's bid for one (1) year of service. Checks will be returned to all bidders within ten (10) days of award of this contract.

6.  All bids are to be submitted per the attached forms. Any explanation of statement that the bidder wishes to make must be placed in the same envelope with the proposal but shall be written separately and independently of the proposal proper and attached thereto. Unless the bidder so dictates, it is understood that the bidder has bid in strict accordance with the specification requirements.

7.  All bids shall be deemed final, conclusive and irrevocable; therefore, no bid shall be subject to correction, amendment for any error or miscalculation. No bid shall be withdrawn without the consent of the School Board after the closing time for the reception of bids. All bids shall be valid for a minimum of sixty (60 days after the date established for the bid opening.

8.  All figures given for passenger, routes, or lengths of routes are based on estimates from our present operation. Included in this document is a listing of the current routes. Routes are subject to change at the sole discretion of the District and such changes shall not affect the Contract price.

9.  Listed are the bell times to which the Contractor shall deliver students. The arrival and dismissal times are set by the School Board and the District reserves the right to change both start and end times at the sole discretion of the District. The Contractor’s pricing cannot change if the District changes its bell times.

10.  Each bid must be accompanied by a Certificate Regarding Sexual Harassment Policy certifying that the Bidder has a written sexual harassment policy as required by Section 2-105 of the Illinois Human Rights Act (775 ILCS 5/2-105). The form of the Certificate Regarding Sexual Harassment Policy is included within the bid documents. No bid shall be considered responsive unless accompanied by a Certificate Regarding Sexual Harassment Policy.

11.  Each bid must be accompanied by a Certificate of Eligibility to Bid certifying that the Bidder is not barred from bidding on public contracts due to a conviction for the violation of Section 33E-3 (Bid Rigging) or Section 33E-4 (Bid Rotating) of the Illinois Criminal Code of 1961 (720 ILCS 5/33E-3, 5/33E-4). The form for Certificate of Eligibility to Bid is included within the bid documents. No Bid shall be considered responsive unless accompanied by the signed Certificate of Eligibility to Bid.

12.  Each Bid from a Contractor with twenty-five (25) or more employees must be accompanied by a Certificate of Compliance with the Illinois Drug-Free Workplace Act certifying that the Bidder shall provide a drug-free workplace for employees engaged in the performance of work under the contract and that the Bidder is not barred from bidding on public contracts due to a violation of the Illinois Drug-Free Workplace Act (30 ILCS 1 et seg.). Each bid from an individual must be accompanied by the Certificate of Compliance with the Illinois Drug-Free Workplace Act certifying that the Contractor shall not engage in the unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensation, possession, or use of a controlled substance in the performance of the contract and that the Contractor is not barred from bidding on public contracts due to a violation of the Illinois Drug-Free Workplace Act. The forms of the Certificate of Compliance with the Illinois Drug-Free Workplace Act are included within the bid documents. No bid shall be considered responsive unless accompanied by a signed certificate where applicable. The contract award shall be subject to suspension of payments or termination, or both, if it is determined that the Bidder has made false certification or that the Bidder has violated the certification by failing to carry out the requirements of the Illinois Drug-Free Workplace Act.

13.  Each bid must be accompanied by a copy of the Contractor's current drug and alcohol testing procedures that must be in strict compliance with State and Federal regulations.

14.  The contract amount will be based on Net Total Bid for all three (3) years, Schedules A, B and C, inclusive of all additional information requested in every section contained herein. Bid Bond shall be also based on Schedules A, B, and C.

15.  The successful Bidder must enter into the Transportation Agreement in the form included in the Bid Documents.

RICH TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT NUMBER 227,

COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS

AGREEMENT FOR REGULAR STUDENT/SPECIAL EDUCATION TRANSPORTATION SERVICES

1. DEFINITIONS

Contractor: Contractor is the awarded firm by the District to provide contractual student transportation services governed by these bid specifications, including all drivers, supervisors and buses.

School: A building serving one attendance area of the District and the building administrative staff thereof.

District: Rich Township High School District Number 227, Cook County, Illinois, the Board of Education thereof, the Superintendent and Central Office Staff thereof.

RICH CENTRAL RICH EAST RICH SOUTH

3600 W. 203RD St. 300 Sauk Trail 5000 Sauk Trail

Olympia Fields, IL. 60461 Park Forest, IL. 60466 Richton Park, IL. 60471

2. EQUIPMENT

Contractor shall keep all equipment used in the transportation of students in accordance with the State of Illinois Standards for school buses, and such equipment shall be maintained in good mechanical order and operating condition at all times and such buses shall likewise be so maintained as to pass any required school bus inspections. Buses shall be kept in a clean and sanitary condition. All vehicles may be inspected from time to time by the District or its designee, with or without notice to the Contractor, and may be accompanied by such other persons as the District deems appropriate. Note: Semi-annual state safety inspection certificates shall be presented to the District documenting the safety compliance of each vehicle with state standards. In addition, maintenance records on each vehicle shall be made available to the District or its representatives upon demand.

Contractor further agrees that the school buses and coaches herein described must at all times be maintained in such condition as to meet the requirements set forth by the Director of Transportation, State Board of Education, Secretary of State, or Illinois Department of Transportation. All vehicles are subject to inspection by the Board, any other authorized governmental body, or by any such person or persons as may be duly authorized. Such vehicles shall not be continued in use after being declared unsatisfactory or unsafe or in need of repair by any of the above named agencies, and shall not be returned to service until such unsafe conditions have been corrected. Any state inspection fees incurred in the periodic inspection of the vehicles herein described shall be at no cost to the Board and Contractor shall bear all labor costs connected with complying with all applicable inspection, maintenance and repair requirements.

It is understood that all equipment furnished shall comply with all statutes, school bus inspections, and safety regulations in force, and if any bus equipment owned or used by the Contractor is not in full compliance with all statutes, regulations and specifications, becomes inoperable, unusable, or unsafe in whole or in part, or is in need of repair, or is declared unsatisfactory or unsafe by any duly authorized governmental body or agent of such body, it shall be replaced by the Contractor without claims for adjustments to per diem or per trip charges, or other claims under this Contract.

If the Contractor fails to perform their services they shall receive no compensation for the day or days involved. Furthermore, if the District must hire the service of others because of failure of the Contractor to provide any service under this Contract, the District shall charge the Contractor the greater of the cost incurred by the District for substitute service or 125% of the amount the Contractor would have been paid for such service if the Contractor had performed the service. Should the District be required to perform or obtain substitute services that the Contractor should have performed but was unable or unwilling to perform, the District will be entitled to receive from the Contractor either reimbursement from the Contractor or credits against amounts owed by the District to the Contractor, as the District may choose. These provisions shall not apply to bus services for co-curricular events.

All buses or vehicles placed in operation by the Contractor, under this Contract, shall be owned by the Contractor, or if not owned, the Contractor shall furnish the Board of Education with a statement setting forth the name and address of the owner of each bus.

Sufficient standby buses shall be available and maintained in good working condition and shall be used in the event any buses regularly transporting students shall be inoperable. Contractor shall keep enough stand-by equipment available to assure that uninterrupted service can be provided in the event of mechanical breakdowns.

All vehicles shall be clearly labeled with the name of the company.

The Contractor agrees to maintain electrical heating facilities for the motors of all the buses or indoor garage facilities for times when the buses are not in actual use so that buses will be in operable condition during the winter; and that said buses shall comply with the state law with respect to heating requirements and inside temperature.

All units shall have floors swept and cushions cleaned as may be required to provide clean buses for the following day of service.

All interior walls and ceilings shall be cleaned as necessary in conformity with good housekeeping. Any obscene and abusive writings or markings shall be immediately removed. In the event the Contractor, or its drivers, has knowledge as to the person causing such writings or markings, that person's name and relevant information shall be reported to the appropriate school officials. All units shall be washed and cleaned on the outside as may be necessary under existing weather conditions and so as to maintain "clean" buses on the road. Each unit shall be inspected daily for any mechanical defects or unsafe conditions which must be corrected or repaired before the unit is dispatched on another trip.