D.C. streetcar order in flux as suppliers spar
Written by Douglas John BowenWashington, D.C.’s District Department of Transportation has canceled its two-car streetcar order from Clackamas, Ore.-based United Streetcar, LLC, following a court challenge from Ostrava, Czech Republic-based Inekon Group a.s.
The move will further delay the district’s planned opening of its first new streetcar line on H Street/Benning Road in the dictrict’s Northeast quadrant. The district’s Contract Appeals Board, acting on Jan. 9, calls the move a “corrective action,” which it says validates Inekon’s objections over its competitor’s qualifications.
United Streetcar was awarded the order on Dec. 15, 2011.
“As a result of Inekon’s assertions,” DDOT has canceled the United Streetcar contract and invalidated the cost/price trade-off analysis used to justify the deal; United Streetcar’s $8.7 million bid was lower than Inekon’s $9.5 million submittal.
The appeals board noted, “If DDOT decides to proceed with the RFP, the District will amend the RFP, request another round of best and final offers (BAFOs) from USC and Inekon, and will evaluate the BAFOs in accordance with the revised RFP.”
In a statement, United Streetcar President Chandra Brown said her company had “received no formal notice of the cancellation of our contract.”
