Agenda Item #13.5
For Council Meeting of: September 15, 2026
CITY OF SANTA ROSA
CITY COUNCIL
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: RACHEL EDE, DEPUTY DIRECTOR-TRANSIT
TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: COOPERATIVE PURCHASE UNDER THE CALACT-MBTA JOINT PROCUREMENT CONTRACT NO. 20-01 OF FOUR REPLACEMENT PARATRANSIT CUTAWAY VEHICLES AGENDA ACTION: RESOLUTION
RECOMMENDATION
The Transportation and Public Works Department recommends that the Council, by resolution: 1) approve the Assignment to Purchase Agreement for the purchase of four replacement paratransit cutaway vehicles under the CalACT-MBTA Joint Procurement Cooperative Contract No. 20-01; 2) and authorize the Purchasing Agent to issue a purchase order and with Model1 Commercial Vehicles Inc., Chino, California in the amount of $744,450 for the purchase of four replacement paratransit cutaway vehicles; and 3) authorize the City Manager to make non-substantive changes, subject to approval by the City Attorney, and to execute all documents necessary to execute purchase. This item has no impact on current fiscal year budget.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Transportation and Public Works Department seeks approval to issue a purchase order to replace four paratransit vehicles using a federally compliant competitively bid cooperative procurement conducted by the California Association for Coordinated Transportation (CalACT) and the Morongo Basin Transit Authority (MBTA) that meets the grant funding specification and has a competitive cost for vehicles. Funding from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) 5310 Program and state Transportation Development Act (TDA) will be used to replace the four paratransit fleet vehicles that have exceeded their scheduled useful life. This proposed purchase is consistent with the Council-adopted Santa Rosa CityBus Zero Emissions Bus Rollout Plan.
GOAL
This item relates to Council Goal #2 - Invest in the Development and Maintenance of the City's Infrastructure by replacing paratransit vehicles to support reliable service, minimize maintenance expenses, and ensure an appropriate average paratransit fleet age.
BACKGROUND/PRIOR COUNCIL REVIEW
Complementary ADA paratransit services to fixed-route transit services are required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Next-day ADA paratransit transportation services are provided citywide using cutaway vehicles characterized by a cab-on-chassis construction that can carry 12 seated passengers per vehicle including up to six wheelchairs or other mobility devices.
Santa Rosa Paratransit operates during CityBus service hours within three-quarters of a mile of existing CityBus routes. Given the stable population of individuals with disabilities in Santa Rosa, it is expected that there will be an ongoing demand for this transportation option in the future. Of the eleven accessible vehicles that make up the City’s paratransit fleet, the four oldest vehicles that have exceeded their useful life as established by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) are proposed for replacement.
In August 2023, Council held a public hearing and by Resolution RES-2023-142 authorized the filing of a grant for FTA Section 5310 funds for the replacement of four paratransit vehicles. FTA Section 5310 funds are appropriated to urbanized areas across the United States to support transportation services for older adults and people with disabilities. Santa Rosa area applications are managed by Caltrans with evaluations conducted by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). In the 2023 FTA 5310 grant cycle the City of Santa Rosa was awarded $222,719 to replace two of the 2014 ADA paratransit vehicles.
FTA 5310 funding historically does not cover the entire cost of the replacement of vehicles, and a local match is required. The Transit Division uses Transportation Development Act (TDA) Article IV to cover the remaining cost of vehicle purchases.
ANALYSIS
Santa Rosa City Code Section 3-08.160 allows cooperative purchases when advantageous to the City.
The use of the FTA Section 5310 funding requires the procurement of vehicles in compliance with federal regulations and requirements. The CalACT-MBTA Purchasing Cooperative is a federally compliant competitive procurement led by the California Association for Coordinated Transportation (CalACT) and the Morongo Basin Transit Authority (MBTA) to provide an economical and efficient vehicle purchasing mechanism for the 127 California transit agencies. The CalACT-MBTA vehicle purchasing contract meets the stipulations of the FTA Section 5310 grant. To maximize efficiency and to achieve a lower vehicle purchase price, Transit staff used the CalACT-MBTA competitive procurement to solicit quotes from different vendors.
Of the successful bidders to the CalACT-MBTA Purchasing Cooperative solicitation, Model1 Commercial Vehicles Inc. provided the most comparable vehicle specification to the existing fleet, and the price is competitive (total cost of $ 744,450). There are financial benefits in selecting a vehicle that matches the existing fleet so that repairs and maintenance are streamlined.
Since the contract exists between CalACT-MBTA and Model1 Commercial Vehicles, CalACT-MBTA has assigned Santa Rosa CityBus the options to purchase these four vehicles from the Joint Procurement Cooperative. With Council’s approval, the City of Santa Rosa will issue a purchase order with Model1 Commercial Vehicles Inc. following the price, terms, and conditions contained within the CalACT-MBTA agreement.
Transit staff have analyzed this purchase in light of the City’s adopted Zero-Emission Bus (ZEB) Rollout Plan which calls for the transition to an all-electric bus fleet by 2037. For these vehicle replacements, staff recommend purchasing gasoline cutaway vehicles due to current market limitations. The fact that the cutaway electric vehicle market hasn’t matured is recognized by the California Air Resources Board’s Innovative Clean Transit (ICT) regulation. CityBus will re-evaluate the cutaway vehicle market prior to each future cutaway purchase. As the cutaway vehicle market progresses, CityBus will look for opportunities to accelerate the adoption of electric cutaway vehicles and update the ZEB Rollout Plan accordingly. Currently, the City’s ZEB Rollout Plan sets a goal of purchasing the first electric cutaway in 2032 and being fully electrified by 2037.
FISCAL IMPACT
Approval of this action does not have a fiscal impact on the General Fund.
Funds for the purchase of four paratransit vehicles will include the 2023 FTA Section 5310 award in the amount of $222,719 combined with $521,731 from CityBus’ allocation of Transportation Development Act Article IV capital funds.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The Council finds that the proposed action is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under section 15061(b)(3) and 15378 in that there is no possibility that the implementation of this action may have significant effects on the environment, and that no further environmental review is required.
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS
On August 8, 2023, Santa Rosa City Council held a public hearing and approved a resolution prior to the application of FTA 5310 funds in accordance with Caltrans requirements in their administration of FTA Section 5310 program funds.
NOTIFICATION
Not applicable.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Assignment to Purchase Agreement
Resolution
PRESENTER(S)
Yuri Koslen, Transit Planner
COOPERATIVE PURCHASE OF FOUR PARATRANSIT CUTAWAY VEHICLES PAGE 3 OF 3