DATE: April 1, 2025
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Director of Public Works
SUBJECT: Adopt a Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Award a Contract to Specialized Bicycle Components, Inc., and Trek Bicycle Castro Valley for Purchasing Bicycles and Bicycle Safety Equipment as Part of the Active Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program, Project No. 06937
RECOMMENDATION
That the City Council adopts a resolution (Attachment II) authorizing the City Manager to award a contract to Specialized Bicycle Components, Inc., (Specialized) and Trek Bicycle Castro Valley (TBCV) for purchasing bicycles and bicycle safety equipment as part of the Active Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program. This is a key action to enable staff to implement the Hayward Rides bicycle distribution program.
SUMMARY
The City of Hayward (City) has been awarded funding from the California Air Resource Board’s (CARB) Clean Mobility in Schools (CMIS) and Sustainable Transportation Equity Project (STEP) Grant Programs to implement Safe Routes and Active Transportation for Schools and Underserved Communities in Hayward (Project). A core component of this effort is Hayward Rides, a program to distribute bicycles to eligible residents to promote safe, affordable, active transportation. Following a competitive procurement process, staff recommends awarding a purchasing contract to Specialized and TBCV bicycle shop for bicycles and bicycle safety equipment as part of the Active Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program.
BACKGROUND
On April 23, 20241, City Council accepted a grant award from CARB’s CMIS and STEP programs to support Project Nos. 06937, Active Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program, and 06941, Safe Routes to School Implementation Project. The Active
1 https://hayward.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=6642374&GUID=011AC041-028D-4871-BBEC-5F6C655F83C6&Options=&Search=
Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program includes funding for a large-scale bike distribution program named Hayward Rides, which will provide bicycles to residents to promote sustainable transportation.
On January 29, 20252, Staff presented an update on the bike program to the City Council Infrastructure and Airport Committee (CIAC), outlining key findings from the community outreach3. Staff received feedback on program design, including considerations for bicycle selection, program administration, and long-term sustainability. A key finding of the outreach to date is that the program should be centered on building a bicycle culture in Hayward, including planning for long term sustainability of the program.
DISCUSSION
Based on the outreach conducted for the program and feedback from CIAC and Youth Commission members, staff have been working on a plan to distribute bicycles through partnerships with community organizations. To enable that to take place, the City would make a bulk purchase of bicycles and safety equipment to support distribution events, which would take place over the next two years.
To support this effort, staff released a Request for Quotes (RFQ) on February 26, 2025 to select a vendor(s) that could supply bicycles in alignment with the City’s program goals.
The RFQ requested quotes per item, including bicycles, helmets, locks, lights, and any other items recommended by the vendor. Giving the City the option to select more than one vendor, allows the City to select the most appropriate combination of bicycles and safety equipment. Staff received quotes from two vendors: Specialized and TBCV. Evaluation criteria for the quotes included:
Bike selection
Pricing and discount structures
Order fulfillment and delivery capabilities
Value-added services or recommendations
Following individual review and discussion, staff recommend awarding contracts to both Specialized and TBCV. TBCV provided a comprehensive set of quotes including several bicycle models that fit the program’s needs and supplemental accessories such as locks, kickstands, and flat repair kits. Specialized was only able to provide pricing for helmets and lights, but at price levels that are beneficial for the overall program. Staff recommends awarding contracts to Specialized in an amount not to exceed $150,000 and TBCV in an amount not to exceed $1,500,000 to provide bicycles and safety equipment for Hayward Rides. This cost will allow the City to distribute up to 1,600 bicycles and 2,100 helmets, locks, lights, and flat repair kits through this program.
2 https://hayward.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7107211&GUID=F7FDA16F-7C53-4CDD-8E01-E24124D351F2&Options=&Search= 3 https://hayward.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1277412&GUID=3C831A8A-5746-47A6-808E-85B70F34C517&Search=
Staff plan to distribute bicycles through the Hayward Rides program over six to ten events over the next two years. Bicycles and safety equipment would be purchased over time, not all at once. Staff plans to conduct a pilot event in late Spring or early Summer and will use that event to evaluate the program. Staff will return to City Council and the Youth Commission to provide an update on the process after the pilot bicycle distribution to confirm or revise the current direction.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
City residents, including students and their families, will benefit from receiving a bicycle that provides an affordable, alternative transportation option. Transportation costs are a significant portion of expenses for many households and reducing these costs can free up resources for other, more productive expenditures.
FISCAL IMPACT
This item has no impact on the General Fund. The Active Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program Project is budgeted in Fund 460, Transportation System Improvement.
The Project was previously approved and allocated funding by City Council, with only $3,500 in City funding included in the project to cover survey incentives that are not allowable under the CARB grant.
STRATEGIC INITIATIVES
This agenda item supports the Strategic Priority of Confront Climate Crisis & Champion Environmental Justice and Invest in Infrastructure. Specifically, this project relates to the implementation of the following projects:
Confront Climate Crisis & Champion Environmental Justice
Project C6: Improve e-bike adoption through the creation of an e-bike rebate program and ensuring that electric transit infrastructure such as EV chargers also serve e-bike and not just electric cars
SUSTAINABILITY FEATURES
The implementation of the Project would encourage and incentivize walking and biking for the residents thereby contributing to the residents’ health and reducing automobile dependency and greenhouse gas emissions over time.
PUBLIC CONTACT
This Project has included significant community outreach, being led by TEA and TransForm. TEA and Chabot College students have conducted over 1,000 interviews and
surveys over the summer and fall semesters. TransForm is in the process of conducting outreach with students and families through HUSD.
The City is also conducting direct outreach to community organizations to help inform the design of the program, including the grant sub-recipients and other organizations that may be able to help implement the program. The City also presented findings to the Hayward Youth Commission and to the Neighborhood Health Empowerment Network of the Hayward Promise Neighborhoods initiative.
Robust public outreach and engagement will continue as the project moves forward. All necessary stakeholders and affected neighborhoods, agencies, community-based organizations and businesses will have opportunities for input and be done in a way that is equitable.
NEXT STEPS
If the City Council approves this request, the City Manager will award a contract with Specialized Bicycle Components, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $150,000 and Trek Bicycle Castro Valley in an amount not to exceed $1,500,000, for the purchase of bicycles and bicycle safety equipment as part of the Active Transportation Incentive and Promotion Program.
Prepared by: Colin Patterson, Associate Transportation Planner Hugh Louch, Deputy Public Works Director – Transportation
Recommended by: Alex Ameri, Director of Public Works
Approved by:
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Dr. Ana M. Alvarez, City Manager