TRANSPORTATION MASTER PLAN UPDATE RECOMMENDATION OF AWARD

TRANSPORTATION MASTER PLAN UPDATE RECOMMENDATION OF AWARD

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the Transportation Master Plan Project N-105 be awarded to Bunt and Associates Engineering Ltd in the amount of $199,284 net of GST.

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS:

Option #2: THAT the Transportation Master Plan Project N-105 be awarded to WATT Consulting Group in the amount of $203,260 net of GST.

AND THAT staff amend the budget accordingly.

WATT is more familiar with the Town’s Active Transportation Network Plan (WATT created the document) and is the consultant creating the City of Langford’s Transportation Master Plan. While these are good synergies to have, Bunt’s proposal still rated higher as Bunt provides a comparable and higher level of service in its proposal.

Option #3: THAT the Transportation Master Plan Project N-105 be awarded to Urban Systems in the amount of $207,878 net of GST.

AND THAT staff amend the budget accordingly.

Urban Systems is more familiar with the Town’s Official Community Plan (Urban Systems is currently working with Town staff on the OCP update) and is the consultant creating the City of Colwood’s Transportation Master Plan Update. While these are good synergies to have, Bunt’s proposal still rated higher as Bunt provides comparable and higher level of service in its proposal.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to provide a recommendation of award for the Transportation Master Plan Update Project N-105. The request for proposals closed on June 13th, 2025. Due to significant interest and competitive prices, Town staff needed additional time to provide a fulsome review of all proposals.

PROPOSAL REVIEW:

Seven (7) proposals were submitted for the project, ranging from local firms to firms located on mainland BC. Each proposal was evaluated based on the team, past performance, methodology & proposed schedule, proposal quality and fees & resource allocation, for a total possible score of 100. The results are summarized in the Table below:

• All proposals are evaluated as being within budget. See Financial Implication below for details

Staff recommend the award of the project to Bunt & Associates Engineering Ltd. (“Bunt”) on the basis that they have been evaluated with the highest rating. Moreover:

• Bunt has a local firm in Victoria and has extensive local expertise and knowledge of the challenges and issues in the region;
• Bunt is very aware of the challenges and complexities that the Town faces from a transportation perspective, having provided the Town with numerous transportation assessments, warrants and plans (including the Six Mile Road Corridor Study and Speed Reduction Policy Review);
• Bunt has direct experience in working with local governments that undergo simultaneous official community plan and transportation master plan projects;
• Bunt’s proposal will provide a more robust and expansive assessment of the Town’s road networks compared to the other firms;
• Amongst the three firms that rated the highest (Watt Consulting Group and Urban Systems were the other firms), Bunt have the lower fee total;

WATT Consulting Group and Urban Systems do have an advantage in that they are involved in adjacent Transportation Master Plans and / or are involved with other Town Projects: Urban Systems is involved with the City of Colwood’s Transportation Master Plan and currently involved with the Town’s Official Community Plan; WATT Consulting Group is involved in the City of Langford’s Transportation & Active Transportation Plans. However, staff have assessed that the benefits of utilizing Bunt identified above outweigh these advantages.

ANALYSIS:

Impacts and implications can be summarized as follows:

Community Impact:

OCP engagement has confirmed that traffic congestion is one of the top priorities for the Town to address. Therefore, it is paramount that the Town award this project to the firm with adequate experience and has a close pulse on Town and regional transportation issues: taking best value for money and considering lowest cost be a second priority.

Financial Implication:

The budget for this project is $200,000. Staff mistakenly indicated the budget for this project in the RFP to be $208,000. However, given that a very minor budget amendment would be required to cover taxes for the recommended firm, Casino Revenue has been confirmed to be able to cover the additional cost for any of the top three proponents (Bunt ,WATT or Urban Systems).

Inter-governmental Relations Impact:

Engagement will be an important piece of the project, both internally (especially with Development Services regarding the OCP) and with neighbouring local governments, provincial government and First Nations.

ALIGNMENT:

The recommended option aligns with the Town’s following core guiding documents as follows:

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION GOAL:

The desired level of public participation for the recommended option is: [X] Inform [ ] Consult [ ] Involve [ ] Collaborate [ ] Empower [ ] N/A

Per the Terms of Reference, IAP2 spectrum of engagement for the project will be inform & consult, with opportunities for involvement and collaboration at key stages. Staff will inform Council of the finalized engagement plan once staff have engaged with the awarded firm.

TIME CRITICAL:

Completion of this project is expected to take over a year (fall 2026). An immediate start is important in order to phase the work with future projects (i.e. Development Cost Charge Bylaw update).

CONCURRENCE:

REVIEWED BY: