USCGA Commencement Bus Service

The U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, is soliciting contractor-provided transportation services for its annual commencement events scheduled for May 19–20, 2026, due to severely limited on-site parking. The contract, identified as USCGA Commencement Bus Service under solicitation number 70Z03926QCGA00200, is a firm-fixed-price, total small business set-aside under NAICS code 485510, with proposals due by May 12, 2026. The contractor must supply a total of 15 motor coaches—three 54-passenger vehicles on May 19 and twelve 52-passenger coaches plus one 38-passenger shuttle on May 20—along with two on-site dispatch personnel on the 20th. All vehicles must be ADA-compliant, meet Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and Department of Transportation regulations, and carry a minimum of $5 million in liability insurance. Drivers must be licensed, trained in ADA protocols, and adhere to Hours-of-Service rules, while all vehicles must pass federal and state inspections. Contractors are required to comply with extensive operational, security, and administrative protocols detailed across eight attachments, including satellite parking locations, campus bus routes, staging area procedures, traffic flow plans, security access rules, emergency contacts, weather contingency plans, and an operational timeline. All personnel and vehicles must be pre-approved, with driver rosters and vehicle information submitted five business days in advance; vehicles are subject to inspection upon entry, and access may be denied for noncompliance. The contractor must respond to vehicle breakdowns within two hours, ensure all buses arrive within 15 minutes of scheduled times, maintain vehicle cleanliness, and avoid substantiated driver complaints. Reporting is mandatory, requiring electronic submission of post-trip data and invoices via the Invoice Processing Platform within three business days after service completion, with all invoices referencing the Unique Entity Identifier and contract number. The contract uses a Lowest Price Technically Acceptable evaluation method, where offers are first screened for full technical compliance—failure to meet any requirement results in rejection—before price is considered. The offeror must maintain an active SAM.gov registration with a valid UEI and CAGE code, certify compliance with federal acquisition supply chain security provisions, and affirm no involvement in prohibited activities related to Iran or inverted domestic corporations, while also complying with whistleblower protections, anti-kickback procedures, and tax