[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 191 (Friday, October 2, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53266-53269]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-26614]
[[Page 53265]]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part VI
Department of Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
Federal Transit Administration
_______________________________________________________________________
Joint Partnership Program for Deployment of Innovation; Notice
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 191 / Friday, October 2, 1998 /
Notices
[[Page 53266]]
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Joint Partnership Program for Deployment of Innovation
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This Notice announces establishment of a new public/private
Joint Partnership Program for Deployment of Innovation (JPP) in the
mass transportation industry, describes the statutory bases of the JPP,
requests comments on the proposed approach, and solicits initial
proposals for JPP consideration. Section 3015 of the Transportation
Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), signed into law by President
Clinton on June 9, 1998, creates a new Section 5312(d) in Title 49,
United States Code, which authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to
enter into grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, and other
agreements, with competitively selected consortia to promote the early
deployment of innovation in mass transportation services, management,
operational practices, or technology that has broad applicability.
Under the JPP, competitively selected consortia will share costs,
risks, and rewards of early deployment of innovation in the transit
environment.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. A.M. (Tony) Yen, Deputy Associate
Administrator for Research, Demonstration and Innovation (TRI-2), at
(202) 366-0264, or Donald R. Durkee, Acting Director, Office of
Technology, at (202) 366-0942.
DATE: Proposals (2 copies) must be received by December 1, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Proposals shall be submitted to Donald R. Durkee, Acting
Director, Office of Technology, (TRI-20), Federal Transit
Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Room 6429, Washington, DC
20590 and shall reference JPP.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of contents
1. Background
2. General Authority
3. Joint Partnership Agreements
4. Definition Of Consortium
5. Financing
6. Technical Areas
7. Selection And Evaluation
8. Industry Consultation
9. Submission of Candidate Proposals
Attachment. List of Federal Transit Administration Regional Offices
1. Background
The U.S. Department of Transportation has long been recognized as a
national and international leader in promoting the benefits of
innovation in all fields of transportation. The Federal Transit
Administration (FTA), likewise, has been recognized as a leader in
sponsoring innovation in the field of mass transportation. Evidence of
FTA's support can be found in all areas, including FTA's Research,
Planning, Capital and other assistance programs. However, like many
Federal assistance programs, FTA's leadership in technology
introduction has been characterized as dealing with other stakeholders
at arm's-length, under sometimes inflexible policies, procedures and
practices which emphasize insulation of FTA from technological and
financial risk. Similarly, Federal intellectual property rules
governing ownership and access to intellectual property have tended to
discourage the private sector from investing in FTA supported
activities.
Increasingly, however, the benefits of partnering and assignment of
risk according to ability to best manage and control risk factors have
been recognized. This has been particularly evident in the FTA's
efforts to accelerate the deployment of innovation in mass
transportation. By accepting some share of the financial risks
involved, FTA has been able to bring significant amounts of new capital
into the industry. Innovative financing techniques, such as cross-
border leasing, well known in the airline industry, but relatively
little used in mass transportation, are a prime example. Another
example is the FTA's Turnkey Demonstration Program. FTA's Joint
Partnership Program for Deployment of Innovation is intended to further
develop and institutionalize this trend. In exchange for a greater
sharing of costs and risks of early deployment of innovation, FTA and
its partners will also share more equally in the rewards. For example,
Section 3015 of TEA-21 gives FTA greater flexibility to negotiate terms
and conditions for a JPP, such as those involving ownership and access
to intellectual property, than is available under FTA's other research
and capital programs.
2. General Authority
Chapter 53 of Title 49, United States Code, Section 5312(d)
authorizes the Secretary, under terms and conditions that the Secretary
prescribes, to enter into grants, contracts, cooperative agreements,
and other agreements with consortia, to promote the early deployment of
innovation in mass transportation services, management, operational
practices, or technology that has broad applicability. This program is
intended to be carried out in consultation with the transit industry by
merit-based competitively selected consortia that will share costs,
risks, and rewards of early deployment of innovation.
3. Joint Partnership Agreements
Historically, FTA has supported research, development,
demonstration, and deployment of innovation through the use of grants
and cooperative agreements. Since 1994, FTA has acted as agent for the
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which pioneered use
of ``other agreements'' as an alternative to grants and cooperative
agreements. These ``other agreements'' have proven successful in
situations where the other funding instruments did not provide
sufficient flexibility to induce non-government, particularly
commercial, entities to participate in partnership with the Government.
FTA sought and received ``other agreement'' authority in TEA-21. In
selecting from among grants, cooperative agreements and other
agreements, FTA will select the instrument best suited to the goals and
objectives of each Joint Partnership Project. Generally speaking, an
``other agreement'' will be used in those instances where one of the
more traditional instruments is determined, in consultation with the
potential partners, to be inappropriate for one or more reasons.
The Joint Partnership Program transcends all other FTA assistance
programs. As long as a proposed project meets the statutory
requirements of both the JPP and the other program (e.g., a Section
5308 clean fuels program project) it is an eligible candidate for Joint
Partnership assistance. In many cases, it may be preferable for both
the recipient and the Government to proceed as partners through use of
``other agreement'' authority afforded under a JPP to proceed under the
traditional relationship.
4. Definition of Consortium
An eligible consortium will be made up of:
(a) One or more public or private organizations located in the
United States that provide mass transportation service to the public,
and one or more businesses of any size incorporated in a State,
offering goods or services, or willing to offer goods and services, to
mass transportation operators; and
(b) as additional members that are public or private research
organizations
[[Page 53267]]
located in the United States or State or local governmental
authorities.
5. Financing
(a) Cost Sharing. Section 5312(d)(3) provides that a consortium
assisted under the JPP shall provide not less than 50 percent of the
costs of any joint partnership project. Any business, organization,
person, or governmental body may contribute funds to a Joint
Partnership Project. FTA intends to apply the same non-Federal share
rules to the JPP as apply to other FTA assistance programs in most
cases. Cash or in-kind contributions applicable to grants and
cooperative agreements with state and local governments (49 CFR part
18) or its companion (49 CFR Part 19) applicable to non-profit or
educational institutions, are acceptable.
Note: This program is not an independent source of funds. FTA
funding for JPP projects will come from other eligible funding
sources including specific annual congressional appropriations.
(b) Revenue Sharing. To the maximum extent practicable, a portion
of the revenues resulting from sales of an innovation project funded
under this program shall be made to the FTA. Such revenues are
authorized to be used for further funding of the Joint Partnership
Program. Similarly, FTA would expect all partners to negotiate
equitable revenue sharing commensurate with their own contributions to
a project.
6. Technical Emphasis Areas
(a) Notice. FTA will periodically give public notice of the
technical areas for which joint partnerships are solicited, required
qualifications of consortia desiring to participate, the method of
selection, and evaluation criteria to be used in selecting
participating consortia and projects, and the process by which
technology innovation projects will be awarded. Initially, FTA will
focus on introduction of innovative technologies and related
innovations, in such areas as Intelligent Transportation Systems,
magnetic levitation technology, composite materials as applied to
vehicles or facilities, clean fuels, communication based train control,
energy storage systems (such as batteries, etc.), chemical and
biological agent detection, other environmentally beneficial propulsion
technologies, integration software, construction methods, condition
testing of structures, and vehicle systems and subsystems which appear
sufficiently advanced as to be ready for deployment in the mass
transportation industry in the relatively near term, i.e., within five
years. Other technologies and related innovations which may be expected
to be ready for deployment further into the future will continue to be
supported through FTA's other research, development and demonstration
initiatives. As the Joint Partnership Program develops, consideration
will be given to partnership projects in mass transportation services,
management, and operational practices that are not technology based, as
well.
(b) Sample Technology Emphasis Areas. Energy Storage Devices.
Hybrid-electric transit bus designers have identified the need for
affordable, compact, and light-weight energy storage systems. A hybrid-
electric bus uses an internal combustion engine-generator set in
combination with an energy storage device to provide for hotel and
propulsion power requirements over a variety of transit duty cycles.
The hybrid system is designed such that charging or replacement of the
energy storage device is only required at a minimum of six year
intervals. Significant improvements in current hybrid-electric bus
operating performance and efficiency will be possible with an
affordable high-power density energy storage system to replace
conventional battery packs now in use (i.e., lead-acid and nickel-
cadmium). Further development and testing of promising technologies
such as ultra-capacitors, advanced battery chemistries, advanced
battery construction such as spiral wound thin film batteries, and
flywheel technology are potential candidates for hybrid-electric
transit bus applications.
Advanced Train Control. Several efforts are underway to develop and
test Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) systems to improve
capacity and safety in rail rapid transit without additions to existing
infrastructure. CBTC systems have the potential to improve safety at
grade crossings while minimizing disruption to traffic flow and
concurrently improve train throughput for commuter and light rail
systems which operate in dedicated right of way. CBTC systems offer
great flexibility in operations for schedule adherence and recovery,
quick turn-around in coupling or decoupling of trains, and ancillary
functions such as energy management and real-time customer information.
Additional work is needed to exploit full potential of CBTC systems in
different rail transit modes.
Magnetic Levitation. Numerous studies around the world have focused
on cost and feasibility of high speed (up to 300 mph) Maglev systems.
Due to increasing metropolitan area traffic congestion, air pollution,
and relatively stagnant rail technology, there is increasing interest
in the potential of low speed (less than 50 mph) Maglev technology to
serve as an alternative to the existing family of rail technologies.
Low speed Maglev systems might operate in an intracity or city-to-
suburb type of service. Additional tests, evaluation and demonstration
of components, subsystems, vehicles and systems are needed to bring the
technology to the point where a reliable revenue service system could
begin.
Composites: FTA is interested in further testing and validation of
the long-term structural integrity, maintainability, and life-cycle
costs of vehicles manufactured utilizing a composite primary bus
structure in a transit operating environment. Proposals for two or
three pre-production quality, light-weight composite, low-floor, heavy-
duty transit buses are solicited. All Joint Partnership Projects must
contribute to the accomplishment of one or more goals of the FTA
Strategic Plan through one or more Program Areas of the FTA Research
and Technology Five-Year Plan. This Plan, developed in consultation
with the U.S. transit industry and other stakeholders, is specifically
designed to contribute to accomplishment of the FTA Strategic Plan and
the U.S. Department of Transportation Strategic Plan.
(c). FTA Strategic Goals
(1) Safety and Security--Promote the public health and safety by
working toward the elimination of transit-related deaths, injuries,
property damage, and the improvement of personal security and property
protection.
(2) Mobility and Accessibility--Shape America's future by ensuring
a transportation system that is accessible, integrated, efficient, and
offers a flexibility of choice.
(3) Economic Growth and Trade--Advance America's economic growth
and competitiveness domestically and internationally through efficient
and flexible transportation.
(4) Human and Natural Environment--Protect and enhance communities
and the natural environment affected by transit.
(5) Quality Organization--Ensure a quality organization that is
responsive to employees' needs, empowers its employees, and provides
excellence in customer service.
(d) FTA Research and Technology Five-Year Plan Program Areas
(1) Safety & Security
Railroad Grade Crossing Safety
Information Security
Crime Prevention and Anti-Terrorism
[[Page 53268]]
(2) Equipment & Infrastructure
Bus Technology
Advanced Technology Subsystems
Small Durable Bus
Bus Testing
Fuel Cell Transit Bus
Hybrid Electric and Electric Vehicle
Rail Equipment and Systems
Communication-Based Train Control Systems
Light Weight Rail Transit Vehicles
Specialty Guided Technologies
Civil Infrastructure
Infrastructure Project Delivery Innovations
Tunnel Design and Construction
Transit Station Design
Advanced Simulation
Design
Testing
Training
Innovative Financing
(3) Fleet Operations
Transit Capacity and Quality of Service
Transit Intelligent Transportation Systems
Bus Rapid Transit
Mixed Rail Corridor Operations
(4) Specialized Customer Services
Welfare to Work
Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities
Elderly Services
Low Density Transportation Services
Mobility Management
(5) Planning and Policy
Transportation Institutional Reform
Multimodal System Evaluation
Planning Technology
Sustainable Development
Livable Communities Initiative
Smart Growth
Intermodal Connectivity
(6) Professional Capacity Building
Attracting a Quality Workforce
Training a Quality Workforce
Retraining a Quality Workforce
Technology Sharing
(e) FTA Investment Principles. FTA's approach to technology
investments is guided by several fundamental principles. In making R&D
investment decisions, FTA will:
Favor investments that focus on both the short and long
term, potentially high-payoff activities and outcomes that may not
occur in the absence of a Federal presence.
Favor activities that employ merit-based competitive,
peer-review processes.
encourage collaborative arrangements with other government
agencies, transit agencies, industry, academia, non-profit
organizations, state and local governments, and appropriate overseas/
foreign counterparts.
7. Selection And Evaluation
(a) Candidate Pools. Joint partnership projects shall be selected
from two candidate pools: (1) new merit-based competitive proposals,
and (2) renegotiation of existing assistance agreements previously
awarded through a merit-based competitive process by either FTA or an
FTA grant or cooperative agreement recipient.
(b) Selection Process. FTA envisions a two step selection and
evaluation system for establishing partnerships with candidates from
each pool. In step one, proposed projects would be described at a broad
conceptual level which would be subjected to an initial screening
process. Sponsors of projects determined by FTA following initial
screening that warrant further consideration for partnership will be
invited to submit detailed proposals to include such elements as:
statements of work, technical risk, benefits to transit, milestones
associated with accomplishment of specified tasks, financing plans,
deployment/commercialization plan, etc.
(1) Initial screening. Proposed projects will be screened by a
combination of Federal, state, or local officials, and representatives
of private industry, who will be invited to evaluate proposed candidate
projects within discrete technological groupings such as ITS,
propulsion, clean fuels, bus, rail, electronics, etc. The reviewers
would provide their individual assessments of the relative merits of
proposed projects against established criteria.
(2) Final evaluation and selection. Utilizing the information
provided by the reviewers, FTA will further screen the proposals and
invite candidates for partnership to submit detailed proposals as a
basis for negotiation of a JPP agreement.
(c) Selection Criteria. In screening and selecting partnership
candidates, FTA will employ the following criteria:
(1) New Initiatives:
a. Relevance to goals of the FTA Research and Technology Five-Year Plan
and FTA R&D Investment Criteria
b. Management Capability
c. Technical Expertise
d. Cost and benefits (payback) of proposed work
e. Time to complete test and evaluation of the concept or technology.
f. Realistic probability of achieving production (commercialization)
g. Relative technical and financial risk
(2) Renegotiation: Deployment of technological innovations
involving ongoing research, development, and demonstration projects
awarded through a merit-based competitive process prior to enactment of
TEA-21, will also be considered for inclusion in the JPP, and will be
evaluated against the same criteria as new projects.
8. Industry Consultation
(a) Pre-Proposal Meeting. FTA will hold a pre-proposal meeting with
interested parties at FTA headquarters in Washington, D.C., on a date
to be announced. The purpose of the meeting is twofold: (1) to answer
questions on the program as outlined in this notice, and (2) a
listening session to receive industry input on how best to refine or
recast the program to best serve the needs of the transit industry.
(b) Continuing Consultation. As noted in section 7b(2) above, it is
intended that proposed projects will be screened by a combination of
Federal, state, or local officials, and representatives of private
industry, who will be invited to evaluate proposed candidate projects
within discrete technological groupings. FTA also intends to utilize
these and other groups with experience in technology transfer such as
the Transportation Research Board, and the American Public Transit
Association, as a resource for continual assessment of the program
focus and direction.
9. Submission of Candidate Concept Proposals
FTA is soliciting initial concept proposals for the JPP. These
preliminary proposals should outline the following In Abbreviated Form:
(1) overview of the proposed effort, or proposed concept; (2) list of
partners; (3) state of the technology; (3) work to be performed, (4)
physical and/or operating characteristics of the innovation; (5)
development of prototype equipment/process or pilot program; (6)
project output; (7) schedule; (8) total project cost, including source
of matching funds (private, non-profit, commercial, Title 49
discretionary or formula, CMAQ, ITS, etc.); (9) assessment plan; (10)
relationship to FTA Research and Technology Five-Year Plan program
areas listed in paragraph 6(c) of this Notice and the FTA investment
principles listed in paragraph 6(d).
As previously mentioned, proposals (2 copies) must be received by
December 1, 1998. Proposals should be sent to the name and address in
the ``Addresses'' section of this Notice. A copy of the proposal also
should be sent to the appropriate FTA Regional Office, whose addresses
are listed at the end of this Notice.
[[Page 53269]]
Issued On: September 30, 1998.
Gordon J. Linton,
Administrator.
List of FTA Regional Offices
Mr. Richard H. Doyle, Regional Administrator, Region I, Federal Transit
Administration, Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Kendall
Square 55 Broadway, Suite 920, Cambridge, MA 02142-1093, 617-494-2055
Fax: 617-494-2865
Ms. Letitia A. Thompson, Regional Administrator, Region II, Federal
Transit Administration, 26 Federal Plaza, Suite 2940, New York, NY
10278-0194, 212-264-8162 Fax: 212-264-8973
Mr. Sheldon A. Kinbar, Regional Administrator, Region III, Federal
Transit Administration, 1760 Market Street, Suite 500, Philadelphia, PA
19103-4124, 215-656-7100 Fax: 215-656-7260
Ms. Susan E. Schruth, Regional Administrator, Region IV, Federal
Transit Administration, Atlanta Federal Center, 61 Forsyth Street, SW,
Suite 17T50, Atlanta, GA 30303-8917, 404-562-3500 Fax: 404-562-3505
Mr. Joel P. Ettinger, Regional Administrator, Region V, Federal Transit
Administration, 200 W Adams Street, Suite 2410, Chicago, IL 60606-5232,
312-353-2789 Fax: 312-886-0351
Mr. Lee O. Waddleton, Regional Administrator, Region VI, Federal
Transit Administration, 524 E Lamar Boulevard, Suite 175, Arlington, TX
76011-3900, 817-860-9663 Fax: 817-860-9437
Mr. Lee O. Waddleton, Acting Regional Administrator, Region VII,
Federal Transit Administration, 6301 Rockhill Road, Suite 303, Kansas
City, MO 64131-1117, 816-523-0204 Fax: 816-523-0927
Mr. Louis F. Mraz, Jr., Regional Administrator, Region VIII, Federal
Transit Administration, Columbine Place, 216 16th Street, Suite 650
Denver, CO 80202-5120 303-844-3242 Fax: 303-844-4217
Mr. Leslie T. Rogers, Regional Administrator, Region IX, Federal
Transit Administration, 210 Mission Street, Suite 2210, San Francisco,
CA 94105-1800, 415-744-3133 Fax: 415-744-2726
Ms. Helen M. Knoll, Regional Administrator, Region X, Federal Transit
Administration, Jackson Federal Building, 915 2nd Avenue, Suite 3142
Seattle, WA 98174-1002 206-220-7954 Fax: 206-220-7959
[FR Doc. 98-26614 Filed 10-1-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-U
