Request for proposals for pupil transportation services for the 2026-2027 school year.

 Legal Notice # 21928114 LEGAL NOTICE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR TRANSPORTATION OF PUPILS FOR THE 2026-2027 SCHOOL YEAR Longwood Central School District 35 Yaphank Middle Island Road Middle Island, New York 11953 The Board of Education of the Longwood Central School District (hereinafter referred to as the "School District") hereby invites the submission of sealed proposals from reputable and qualified bus transportation companies for furnishing student transportation services for the School District for the period of July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, with the option to extend in accordance with applicable law, for each of the following contracts: (1A) Home to School Transportation (Small Buses and Wheelchair Accessible Vans) with School District providing fuel; (1B) Home to School Transportation (Small Buses and Wheelchair Accessible Vans) with Contractor providing fuel; and (2) Summer Transportation (Small Buses and Wheelchair Accessible Vans) with Contractor providing fuel. In the best interest of the School District, the Board of Education reserves the right to award the transportation contracts for one (1) year, three (3) years or five (5) years. Future one-year or multiple-year contract extensions may be awarded at the discretion of the Board of Education. The award of multi-year contracts is subject to and shall be conditioned upon the approval of the School District voters. In the event the voters do not approve a multi-year contract, the School District will entertain the award of a one-year contract. This Request for Proposal (RFP) was originally advertised on February 13, 2026. Due to inclement weather, the pre-proposal conference originally scheduled for February 24, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. has been rescheduled to March 3, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. at the School District Purchasing Department, located at 35 Yaphank Middle Island Road, Middle Island, New York 11953. All interested Proposers are strongly encouraged to attend. Attendance at this meeting is restricted to a maximum of three (3) representatives per firm. All interested Proposers including those who previously received the original specifications must request copies of revised specifications. The Request for Proposals, including forms for proposals, certifications, conditions, and specifications may be obtained from the School District's Purchasing Department located at 35 Yaphank Middle Island Road, Middle Island, New York 11953 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays, prior to the time and date specified for the receipt of said proposals. Proposers may immediately request copies of the Specifications for electronic transmission or pick-up by appointment via electronic mail to the Purchasing Agent, Samantha Neff at samantha.neff@longwoodcsd.org. In all cases, it must be understood that the conditions and specifications set forth in the Request for Proposals issued by the School District shall apply. Sealed proposals shall be sent to the attention of Samantha Neff, School District Purchasing Department at 35 Yaphank Middle Island Road, Middle Island, New York 11953 and shall be clearly marked "RFP#031326 Pupil Transportation Proposal Do Not Open Until March 18, 2026, at 11:00 a.m." Sealed proposals will be received until March 18, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. in the School District's Purchasing Department at which time and place all proposals will be publicly acknowledged. All interested Proposers may attend the public acknowledgement of proposals. If mailing proposals, Proposers are strongly advised to ship proposal responses via US Mail, Fed-Ex, UPS, and/or any authorized carrier that is able to officially track a proposer's response. It is further advised that arrangements be made for proposals to be delivered prior to the opening date and time to avoid any issues with delivery delays on the date of opening. The School District will not assume responsibility for any delay as a result of the failure of the mails to deliver proposals on time. Proposers shall be solely responsible for the timely submission and receipt of their proposal(s). In no event shall the School District consider any proposal that is mailed but not actually received by the School District's Purchasing Department on or before March 18, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. Separate and independent proposals shall be submitted for each contract. In the event that the School District offices are closed due to inclement weather, any emergency, or for any other reason on the dates scheduled for a pre-proposal conference or opening of proposals respectively, the pre-proposal conference or opening of proposals (as applicable) shall be held on the next day that the School District offices are open for business at the same time and location herein specified for each event. Questions regarding this Request for Proposals will be accepted by the Purchasing Agent until March 5, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. and answers to all questions requiring a response, as deemed necessary by the School District, will be distributed in the form of a written addendum to all potential Proposers by email. Please submit your questions in writing via email to samantha.neff@longwoodcsd.org. The Board of Education reserves the right to consider experience, service and reputation in the student transportation field, as well as the financial responsibility and specific qualifications set out herein of the prospective bidder, in considering proposals and awarding the contracts. The Board of Education reserves the right to reject any and/or all proposals in whole or in part, when in its sole discretion it deems that it will serve the best interests of the School District to waive technical defects, irregularities and omissions; to negotiate any portion of a proposal; and to select in its sole discretion which of two or more identical bidders shall be awarded the contract. The Board of Education shall evaluate each proposal from a responding contractor according to criteria established by the Commissioner, which criteria shall include at a minimum (i) the previous experience of the contractor in transporting pupils, (ii) the name of each transportation company the contractor has been an owner or a manager and previous experience, (iii) a description of any safety programs implemented by the contractor, (iv) a record of accidents in motor vehicles under the control of the contractor, (v) driving history of employees of the contractor, (vi) inspection records and model year of the motor vehicles under the control of the contractor, (vii) maintenance schedule of the motor vehicles under the control of the contractor, (viii) financial analysis of the contractor, (ix) compliance with insurance requirements, and (x) total cost of the proposal. Proposals will be evaluated and awarded based on the following criteria established by the School District pursuant to Section 305 and 3625 of the Education Law and Section 156.12 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education, together with all other applicable laws, rules, regulations and ordinances. Category Weight 1 Previous Experience of Proposer in School Bus Transportation, including the 15 name of each additional transportation company in which proposer is or has been a principal and the proposer's experience with same. 2 Evaluation of management in the performance of contracts to Districts. 5 3 Description of Safety Programs Implemented by the Proposer. 15 Including supporting documents in proposal. 4 Record of Accidents in Vehicles under the control of the Proposer for the past 5 5 years, if applicable. List insurance runs and ratio of injury vs. physical damage. 5 Driving History of Employees of the company and driving practices. 7.5 Include abstracts of driving records. 6 Inspection Records and Model Year of the motor vehicles under the Control of 10 the Proposer NYS DOT BUSNET score. Include BUSNET for ALL NYC, Nassau and Suffolk locations. 7 Maintenance Schedules of motor vehicles under Control of the Proposer. 7.5 List programs and preventive maintenance programs implemented and followed. 8 Financial Analysis of the Proposer (include financial statements). 5 9 Compliance with the state and local insurance and bonding requirements. 5 Include insurance certificate. 10 Overall Cost of Proposal over the period of time requested. 25 TOTAL 100 The above-referenced scoring of the criteria will be used for each of the contracts for the term of the contract awarded under this Request for Proposals for transportation services. Each category's weight will range from 5 to 25 with a total possible score of 100 and will be provided in the Specifications. The School District requires a minimum score of 85 (eighty-five) for award. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special, or local law or charter, the School District's Board of Education, pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated by the Commissioner of Education, may award a contract for the transportation of pupils in