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Agenda Report
May 18,2026
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
THROUGH: Finance Committee
FROM: Department of Transpori:ation
SUBJECT: AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT
FOR THE PURCHASE OF SEVEN BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLES
FROM COACH WEST FOR PASADENA DIAL-A-RIDE FOR A NOT TO
EXCEED AMOUNT OF $2,921,713
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the City Council:
1. Find that the proposed action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3);
2. Authorize the City Manager to enter into a contract with Coach West for the procurement of seven battery electric vehicles, for the Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet, through the California Association for Coordinated Transportation (CALACT)/Basin Transit Purchasing Cooperative pricing, for an amount not-to-exceed $2,921,713, which includes a base contract of $2,656,102 and a contingency of $265,611 (10%) to provide for any necessary change orders;
3. Authorize the City Manager to approve no-cost amendments to the subject contract, including durational extensions;
4. Amend the FY 2026 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Budget by appropriating $745,455 as detailed in the Fiscal Impact section; and
5. Find that neither Competitive Bidding nor Competitive Selection are required pursuant to City Charter Section 1002(1-1) contracts with other governmental entities or their contractors for labor, materials, supplies or services, and Pasadena Municipal Code Section 4.08.049(8), contracts for which the City's best interests are served.
MEETING OF5/18/2026AGENDA ITEM NO.2
Authorize the Purchase of Seven Battery Electric Vehicles for Pasadena Dial-A-Ride May 18,2026
BACKGROUND:
In alignment with the City's conservation and sustainability initiatives and in compliance with the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) Innovative Clean Transit (ICT) Regulation, the City continues to focus its procurement on zero-emission transit vehicles.
On January 30, 2023, the City Council adopted the Pasadena Zero Emission Bus Rollout Plan (Rollout Plan), which outlines the phased approach to transitioning the City's public transit fleet to zero-emission vehicles. The proposed action would transition half of the Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet to zero-emission vehicles and maintain progress toward achieving 100% zero-emission Dial-A-Ride vehicles by 2030.
Pasadena Dial-A-Ride provides essential demand-response transportation services for older adults and people with disabilities. The Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet is composed of cutaway vehicles and vans that operate daily across a wide range of local streets and service conditions. Several vehicles in the existing Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet have reached the end of their useful life and require replacement. Vehicles operating beyond their useful life experience increased maintenance needs, reduced reliability, and higher operating costs. This can result in service disruptions and decreased availability, directly impacting riders who depend on Pasadena Dial-A-Ride service for mobility and access to essential services.
The Department ofTranspori:ation has evaluated available battery electric cutaway vehicles through the California Association for Coordinated Transportation (CALACT)/Basin Transit Purchasing Cooperative pricing (CALACT Cooperative) cooperative purchasing program and identified the Endera cutaway, provided by Coach West, as the only current model that meets the City's operational requirements, seating configuration, and applicable grant funding constraints for this vehicle replacement purchase. Based on this evaluation, staff is proposing the procurement of Endera battery electric cutaways, provided by Coach West, to replace the seven internal combustion cutaway vehicles purchased in 2017.
PROCUREMENT:
In order to help medium, small, rural, and specialized transportation providers meet rigorous federal transit vehicle procurement requirements, Basin Transit, which serves the Morongo Basin and is a member of the CALACT, formed the CALACT Cooperative. This is not a sole source agreement but a competitively procured cooperative that has become the State's purchasing cooperative for smaller agencies to ensure federally compliant procurements.
The CALACT Cooperative developed bid documents and product specifications for a federally compliant, competitive, price-based procurement process for several classes of transit vehicles to be used by participating government agencies. The CALACT Cooperative executed contracts with various public transit vendors to establish pricing for transit vehicles. The selection process followed by the CALACT Cooperative meets the more than 30 federal requirements specific to federally compliant transit procurements. As a participating member of CALACT, the City is eligible to utilize these contracts for the purchase of transit vehicles. Using this agreement, the City will receive the same pricing Authorize the Purchase of Seven Battery Electric Vehicles for Pasadena Dial-A-Ride May 18,2026
and terms as other governmental agencies, consistent with Section 1002(1-1) of the City Charter and Pasadena Municipal Code Section 4.08.049(8), which exempts the contract from competitive selection in the City's best interests.
Staff evaluated available battery electric cutaway vehicles through the CALACT cooperative purchasing program and determined that only the Endera model, provided by Coach West, met the City's required specifications. Other available models did not satisfy key criteria, including the required passenger and wheelchair securement configuration and operational needs, nor did they align as closely with the design characteristics of the City's existing fleet. Based on this evaluation, the Endera vehicle, provided by Coach West, was identified as the only operationally compatible option for this vehicle replacement procurement for the Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet.
COUNCIL POLICY CONSIDERATION:
The proposed action is consistent with the adopted Pasadena Zero Emission Bus Rollout Plan and supports the City's Climate Action Plan (CAP), which establishes strategies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and transition municipal operations to cleaner energy sources. The purchase of these vehicles will replace fossil fuel vehicles with zero- emission battery electric vehicles, advancing the CAP'S goals to improve local air quality, reduce transportation-related emissions, and promote sustainable mobility.
In addition, this procurement supports City Council direction to accelerate the transition to a zero-emission public transit fleet. The proposed vehicles will enhance the reliability and efficiency of the Pasadena Dial-A-Ride system by replacing aging vehicles with modern, zero-emission alternatives that better align with current operational needs.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
The proposed action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") under State CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), the "common sense" exemption that CEQA applies only to projects which may have a significant effect on the environment.
This procurement involves no construction or physical environmental changes, and the replacement vehicles will operate within existing routes and facilities. The new vehicles are zero-emission and would not generate greenhouse gas or air pollutant emissions. As the proposed new vehicles would replace existing Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet vehicles, there would be no change in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) associated with the new vehicles. Finally, the new vehicles generate less operational noise than the existing public transit fleet vehicles (e.g., engine/motor humming, occasional squealing tires, reverse warning tones, etc.). Such noise would be well below the noise standards of the City's Noise Ordinance and General Plan Noise Element and, in the case of warning tones, would provide for enhanced safety.
Authorize the Purchase of Seven Battery Electric Vehicles for Pasadena Dial-A-Ride May 18,2026
FISCAL IMPACT:
The cost of this action will be up to $2,921,713 with $2,176,258 funded by various grants listed in the table below. Funding for this action will be addressed through the utilization of existing FY 2026-2030 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budgeted appropriations in the Purchase of Zero-Emission Pasadena Dial-A-Ride Vehicles Project (CIP 75930) and by appropriating $745,455 from the Proposition A Local Return (Fund 208) fund balance and transferring the funding to the CIP (Fund 301) for project 75930. The Department is leveraging multiple federal, state, and regional funding sources to support this purchase.
The tables below summarizes the total project cost and funding sources for the procurement of seven vehicles for the Pasadena Dial-A-Ride fleet. There is no impact to the General Fund.
Vendor/
ManufacturerQuantityj Contingencyi (10%)
Coach West /
Endera7$2,656,102$265,611
Total
$2,921,713
FUNDING SOURCES
Grant Revenue
Source
Federal Transit
Administration Section
5310
4 Existing
AppropriationsI
Requested
Appropriations
$1,050,000
Total
$1,050,000
Metro Zero Emission
J?alL£)LfJO!^.i
Transit Intercity Rail
Capital P'rogram^
$500,000
$250,000
Low Carbon Transit
Operation Program$376,258
Local Match
(Local Prop A)
Total Project Funding$2,176,258
$745,455
$745,455
$500,000
$250,000
$376,258
$745,455
$2,921,713
Authorize the Purchase of Seven Battery Electric Vehicles for Pasadena Dial-A-Ride May 18, 2026
This purchase is eligible for funding under the State of California's Hybrid and Zero- Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP), which provides point-of-sale vouchers to assist fleet operators in transitioning to zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles. If approved by the CARB, HVIP vouchers will reduce the local amount of funds by up to $546,000.
The replacement vehicles will be operated and maintained under the City's existing transit operations contract.
Respectfully submitted,
JOAQUIN T. SIQUES
Director
Department of Transportation
Prepared by:
Sebastian Andres Hernandez
Principal Planner
Approved by:
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MATTHEW E. <4AWKESWORTH
Interim City Manager