[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 157 (Monday, August 15, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54181-54187]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-19391]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


FY 2016 Competitive Research Funding Opportunity: Safety Research 
and Demonstration (SRD) Program

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) And Solicitation Of 
Project Proposals.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the 
availability of $7,000,000 in Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 Public 
Transportation Innovation funds to demonstrate and evaluate innovative 
technologies and safer designs to improve public transportation safety.
    FTA is seeking to fund cooperative agreements to engage in 
demonstration projects focused in the following two thematic areas: 
collision avoidance and mitigation and transit worker safety 
protection.
    An eligible lead applicant under this notice must be an existing 
FTA grant recipient and eligible project partners and sub-recipients 
under this program may include, but are not limited to, providers of 
public transportation; State and local governmental entities; 
departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the Government, 
including Federal laboratories; private or non-profit organizations; 
institutions of higher education; and technical and community colleges. 
This notice solicits competitive proposals addressing priorities 
established by FTA for these research areas, provides instructions for 
submitting proposals, and describes criteria FTA will use to identify 
meritorious proposals for funding, and the process to apply for 
funding.
    This announcement is also available on the FTA Web site at: https://www.transit.dot.gov/grants.
    A synopsis of this funding opportunity will be posted in the FIND 
module of the government-wide electronic grants Web site at http://www.grants.gov. The funding Opportunity ID is FTA-2016-007-TRI-SRD and 
the Catalog of Federal Domestic Asssitance (CFDA) number for Section 
5312 funded program is 20.514.

DATES: Complete proposals are due by 11:59 p.m. EDT on October 14, 
2016. All proposals must be submitted electronically through the 
Grants.gov ``APPLY'' function. Prospective applicants should initiate 
the process by registering on the Grants.gov Web site promptly to 
ensure completion of the application process before the submission 
deadline. Instructions for applying can be found on FTA's Web site at 
https://www.transit.dot.gov/grants and in the ``FIND'' module of 
Grants.gov. Mail and fax submissions will not be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Please send any questions on this 
notice to [email protected] or contact Roy Chen, Safety Research 
Program

[[Page 54182]]

Manager, Office of Research, Demonstration, and Innovation (TRI), (202) 
366-0462. A TDD is available for individuals who are deaf or hard of 
hearing at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

A. Program Description
B. Federal Award Information
C. Eligibility Information
    1. Eligible Applicants
    2. Eligible Projects
    a. Collison Avoidance and Mitigation
    b. Transit Worker Safety Protection
    3. Funding Amount and Cost Matching
    4. Other Requirements
    a. Evaluation and Data Requirements
    b. Participation in Information Exchange
D. Application and Submission Information
    1. Address and Form of Application Submission
    2. Proposal Content
    3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management 
(SAM)
    4. Submission Dates and Times
    5. Funding Restrictions
E. Application Review
    1. Selection Criteria
    2. Review and Selection Process
F. Federal Award Administration
    1. Federal Award Notice
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements
    a. Pre-Award Authority
    b. Grant Requirements
    c. Planning
    d. Standard Assurances
    e. Reporting
G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts

A. Program Description

    Section 5312 (b) of Title 49, United States Code, as amended by the 
Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, Pub. L. 114-94, 
authorizes FTA to fund research, development, demonstrations, and 
deployment projects to improve public transportation. The Safety 
Research and Demonstration Program (SRD Program) is a competitive 
demonstration opportunity under FTA's research emphasis area of safety 
and in support of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Safety goals 
that provides technical and financial support for transit agencies to 
pursue innovative approaches to eliminate or mitigate known safety 
hazards in public transportation via demonstration of technologies and 
safer designs.
    The goals of FTA's safety research, in general, are to:

     Advance the development of materials, technologies and 
safer designs to reduce the number of collisions, fatalities and 
mitigate the severity of transit-related injuries.
     Increase the knowledge about the interface between 
machinery and people--both transit workers and passengers--and 
reduce the potential for safety-related incidents.
     Improve the safety culture at transit agencies, as well 
as support stakeholder coordination and outreach.
     Support the development of transit safety standards, 
protocols and best practices.

    The primary objectives of the SRD program are to assist transit 
agencies to:

     Explore advanced technologies to prevent transit 
vehicle collisions.
     Enhance safety of transit services by incorporating 
safer design elements.
     Evaluate cost-effectiveness and practicability of 
potential solutions.

    As a result of a safety data analysis, research literature review, 
engagements with stakeholders on topics of ``Transit Worker Assaults'' 
and ``Bus Operator Visibility'' and meeting the statutory requirements 
under Section 5329 of Title 49, United States Code, FTA is targeting 
the funding of this solicitation to two specific thematic areas: (a) 
Collision avoidance and mitigation and, (b) transit worker safety 
protection.
    To ensure any proposed demonstration project address the needs of 
transit agencies, FTA is requiring that project submittal teams partner 
with at least one transit agency. FTA will assess the strength of these 
partnerships in its evaluation of applications.
    As envisioned, the SRD program will provide financial and technical 
assistance for transit agencies to pursue cutting edge technologies and 
innovative approaches, and more importantly, the opportunity to assess 
the practicality and effectiveness of these solutions in improving 
safety and potentially influencing transit industry guidance and 
standards.

B. Federal Award Information

    Section 5312 of Title 49, United States Code, as amended by the 
FAST Act, authorizes FTA to fund ``Public Transportation Innovation''. 
Through this program, FTA may make grants, or enter into contracts, 
cooperative agreements and other agreements for research, development, 
demonstration and deployment projects, and evaluation of research and 
technology of national significance to public transportation that the 
Secretary of Transportation determines will improve public 
transportation. A total of $7,000,000 in FY 2016 funds is available for 
award under this announcement. FTA intends to fund as many meritorious 
projects as possible under this announcement. FTA recognizes that the 
funding made available under this announcement may be insufficient to 
fund all meritorious projects. FTA may, at its discretion, select an 
application for award of less than the originally-proposed amount if 
doing so is expected to result in a more advantageous portfolio of 
projects. Consequently, proposals should provide a detailed budget 
proposal for the fully-realized project as well as a reduced scope and 
budget if the project can be scaled down and still achieve useful 
results. Applicants should specify and justify the minimum award amount 
needed to achieve effective project results.
    FTA anticipates minimum grant awards of $750,000 and maximum grant 
awards of $2,000,000. Only proposals from eligible recipients (see C.1) 
for eligible activities will be considered for funding. Funds made 
available under this program may be used to fund operating expenses and 
preventive maintenance directly associated with the demonstration of 
the proposed project, but may not be used to fund such expenses for 
equipment not essential to the project.
    FTA may, at its discretion, provide additional funds for selections 
made under this announcement or for additional meritorious proposals, 
if additional funding is made available for Section 5312 of Title 49, 
United States Code. FTA will announce final selections on the Web site 
and may also announce selections in the Federal Register.
    FTA seeks projects that can be implemented/start within six months 
of project award, and contains a minimum of six months of data 
collection and evaluation effort. The maximum period of performance 
allowed for the work covered by the award should not exceed thirty-six 
(36) months from the date of award.

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants
    To be eligible for funding under this NOFO, applicants must 
demonstrate that the proposed project is supported by a lead applicant 
in partnership with one or more strategic partner(s) with a substantial 
interest and involvement in the project. Eligible lead applicants under 
this notice must be existing FTA grant recipients. An application must 
clearly identify the eligible lead applicant and all project partners 
on the team.
    Eligible project partners and sub-recipients under this program may 
include, but are not limited to:

    A. Public Transportation Systems;
    B. Private for profit and not for profit organizations, 
including technology system suppliers and bus manufacturers;
    C. Operators of transportation, such as employee shuttle 
services or airport connector services or university transportation 
systems;
    D. State or local government entities; and,

[[Page 54183]]

    E. Other organizations that may contribute to the success of the 
project team including consultants, research consortia or not-for-
profit industry organizations, and institutions of higher education.

    The lead applicant must have the ability to carry out the proposed 
agreement and procurements with team members in compliance with its 
respective State and local laws. FTA may determine that any named team 
member in the proposal is a key party and make any award conditional 
upon the participation of that key party. A key party is essential to 
the project as approved by FTA and is therefore eligible for a 
noncompetitive award by the lead entity to provide the goods or 
services described in the application. A key party's participation on a 
selected project may not later be substituted without FTA's approval. 
For-profit companies may participate on teams; however, recipients and 
subrecipients of funding under this program may not charge a fee or 
profit from the FTA research program funding.
    In instances where a provider(s) of public transportation is a 
partner and not the lead proposer, a detailed statement regarding the 
role of the provider(s) in the conduct of the project is required. Also 
required is a signed letter from the public transportation service 
provider's General Manager of his/her commitment to the project and the 
understanding of the agency's roles/responsibilities in the project.
2. Eligible Projects
    Proposers may submit one proposal for each project but not one 
proposal containing multiple projects. Proposers are allowed to submit 
multiple proposals, but each eligible project proposals should focus on 
one of the following two thematic areas: (a) Collision avoidance and 
mitigation and, (b) transit worker safety protection.
    Project proposals must include a research and/or synthesis phase, 
development phase and a demonstration phase. All phases are critical to 
project selection. Revenue-service, full-scale demonstrations are 
preferred where practicable. However, in cases where a full-scale 
demonstration would be impractical, detailed plans for non-revenue 
service or limited demonstration of the innovative technology or 
designs will be considered. Basic research or studies that do not 
result in any demonstration of the potential for commercialization or 
broad deployment within the scope of the project will not be considered 
for funding.
    For the purpose of this solicitation, a ``bus'' is defined as a 
rubber-tired, low-floor transit passenger vehicle, 35 feet or longer in 
length, operating on fixed routes and schedules over roadway and is 
self-powered.
a. Collision Avoidance and Mitigation
    The advent of advanced electronics, computing power, and 
communication technologies has allowed the introduction of new safety 
remedies that can assist drivers in avoiding collisions. Some of the 
active collision avoidance and mitigation technologies are still in the 
developmental stage but many of them are becoming mainstream in the 
personal vehicle market. In this solicitation, FTA would like to 
evaluate the safety performance of such systems for the transit bus 
application, which has a different operating environment and challenges 
than personal vehicles. FTA wants to work with the industry to 
demonstrate the most promising technologies and facilitate their 
introduction and deployment in the transit industry. Candidate active 
collision avoidance and mitigation technologies for demonstration may 
include, but not be limited to, advanced braking system; blind spot 
warning; pedestrian collision warning; 360 surround view; driver alert 
warning; and lane departure warning.
    In addition to active collision avoidance and mitigation 
technologies, FTA is soliciting proposals to mitigate transit bus 
operator blind spots through vehicle design changes, in order to 
improve operator visibility and potentially reduce collisions. FTA 
believes that there are technical merits in pursuing different 
approaches that do not add technological complexity to the vehicle, or 
increase the human-machine interface and driver's workload. Potential 
design modifications for demonstration may include, but not limited to, 
seating distance between the driver and the A-pillars, thickness and 
orientation of the A-pillars, manufacturing process and material 
selection, angle of the windshield, and mirror location, type and size.
    The ``passive approach'' proposals need to quantify the blind spots 
of an existing bus model to be modified, establish a quantitative blind 
spot reduction goal, and outline the proposed design modifications to 
achieve the goal. The proposed designs should strive to meet existing 
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), FTA, Society of 
Automotive Engineers (SAE) and American Public Transportation 
Association (APTA) transit vehicle standards and guidelines, and 
document any deviations from existing standards and guidelines. The 
proposal should quantify the blind spots using SAE J1050 or other 
applicable measurement standards of the driver's field of view 
(examples: SAE J264, SAE J941, SAE J985 or others that are 
appropriate). The proposed design should target a height and weight 
range from a 5th percentile female to a 95th percentile male operator.
    The prototype buses are not required to be tested or certified at 
FTA's Altoona Bus Testing Program, if procured using this research 
funding (Section 5312). However, FTA is providing the option to have 
the prototype buses tested at FTA's Bus Testing Program, if desired by 
the project teams, before demonstrating the prototypes at the transit 
agencies. The purpose of the demonstration phase is to go beyond 
laboratory settings (quantification of the % blind spots improvement, 
computer aided modeling, final element analysis or others) and focus on 
how the design changes perform in an operating environment. The 
demonstration phase should capture bus operators' feedback for 
maintainability, reliability, driver satisfaction, human factors/driver 
ergonomics issues and also document any deviations from any relevant 
Federal standards or industry guidelines.
b. Transit Worker Safety Protection
    The FTA's Transit Advisory Committee for Safety (TRACS) issued a 
report on ``Preventing and Mitigating Transit Worker Assaults in the 
Bus and Rail Transit Industry'' in July, 2015. The report states that 
in 2013, 28 transit workers died due to violence on the job, and the 
vast majority of assaults against transit workers are non-fatal. FTA 
believes that any form of violence against transit workers poses a 
serious threat on the physical safety and emotional well-being of 
transit workers and also endangers the safety of passengers and the 
public. FTA has also launched a ``National Online Dialogue on Transit 
Worker Assault'' to engage the industry. The purpose of the dialogue is 
to establish a forum and collect inputs from the stakeholders on this 
important issue. FTA expects the selection of research demonstration 
projects under this thematic area to be responsive to transit 
stakeholder's input on the subject.
    Acknowledging the variety of control strategies that could be used 
by transit agencies and that no single solution fits every agency, for 
the purpose of this solicitation, FTA is seeking proposals that 
identify, develop, and demonstrate an on-board vehicle protective 
system that prevent and mitigate the risk of transit bus operator 
assaults. Candidate technologies and designs elements of

[[Page 54184]]

the on-board protective infrastructure for demonstration may include, 
but not limited to, protective barriers, video surveillance systems, 
emergency communication systems, automatic vehicle location systems. 
The protective barrier should be designed for height and weight range 
from a 5th percentile female to a 95th percentile male operator, open/
close at the discretion of the operator, address possible visual 
hazards from reflections and reduced visibility of the mirrors and 
heating and ventilation comfort.
    The purpose of the demonstration is to determine the most effective 
technologies and designs to prevent and mitigate driver assaults. This 
includes documenting the maintenance and operational cost, 
effectiveness of the system, driver satisfaction and human factor 
issues associated with the technologies, proposed design elements and 
performance specifications, as well.
    Another group of transit employees exposed to higher safety risks 
are rail transit wayside workers. FTA is seeking proposals to adopt 
technological solutions, as a secondary safety system, which will 
automatically alert wayside workers of approaching trains and 
automatically alert train operators when approaching areas with workers 
on or near the tracks. The proposal must clearly define the uniqueness 
of the system and how it differs, and improves upon, existing 
commercial systems.
    The proposed system shall be designed with, but not limited to, 
features that would enhance safety by warning work crews of on-coming 
trains, notifying train operators when approaching a work zone or 
workers on the tracks, informing wayside workers when conditions change 
in the field (e.g., trains running in a reverse direction, cancellation 
or changes in track rights) and monitoring the right-of-way location of 
the work crew (e.g., track inspectors, maintainers and other roving 
crews) in real-time from an Operations Control Center. Also, the 
proposed system should be designed to work with both revenue and non-
revenue equipment, with ease of service, ease of maintenance, high 
reliability and minimal adverse impacts to rail system performance.
3. Cost Sharing or Matching
    The federal share of project costs under this program is limited to 
eighty percent (80%). Proposers may seek a lower Federal contribution. 
The applicant must provide the local share of the net project cost in 
cash, or in-kind, and must document in its application the source of 
the local match. Regardless of minimum share requirements, cost sharing 
is an evaluation criterion and proposals with higher cost share than 
the minimum twenty percent (20%) share requirement will be considered 
more favorably. Cash and other high-quality match will be considered 
more favorably than in-kind cost matching, though all are acceptable. 
Eligible sources of local match are detailed in FTA Research Circular 
6100.1E. (available at https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/fta-circulars/final-circulars).
4. Other Requirements
a. Evaluation and Data Requirements
    In order to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the impacts 
and implications of each proposed SRD demonstration, FTA, or its 
designated independent evaluator, requires access to project data. 
Projects should include a data capture component that allows for the 
reliable and consistent collection of information relevant to gauging 
the impact and outcomes of the demonstration.
    At any time during the period of performance, the project team may 
be requested to coordinate data collection activities in order to 
provide interim information under the requirements of this award. A 
project team may be asked to provide the data directly to FTA or to a 
designated independent evaluator. This information, if requested, will 
be used to conduct program evaluations during the execution of the 
project and after it has been completed. FTA is required by 49 U.S.C. 
Section 5312 to evaluate every demonstration project within two years 
after award.
    All information submitted as part of or in support of the SRD 
project shall use publicly available data or data that can be made 
public and methodologies that are accepted by industry practice and 
standards, to the extent possible. If the submission includes 
information the applicant considers to be trade secret or confidential 
commercial or financial information, the applicant should do the 
following: (1) Note on the front cover that the submission ``Contains 
Confidential Business Information (CBI)''; (2) mark each affected page 
``CBI''; and (3) highlight or otherwise denote the CBI portions. FTA 
protects such information from disclosure to the extent allowed under 
applicable law. In the event that FTA receives a Freedom of Information 
Act (FOIA) request for the information, FTA will follow the procedures 
described in the U.S. DOT FOIA regulations at 49 CFR 7.17. Only 
information that is ultimately determined to be confidential under that 
procedure will be exempt from disclosure under FOIA. Should FTA receive 
an order from a court of competent jurisdiction ordering the release of 
the information, FTA will provide applicant timely notice of such order 
to allow the applicant the opportunity to challenge such an order. FTA 
will not challenge a court order on behalf of applicant.
b. Participation in Information Exchange
    SRD demonstration Project teams may be asked to participate in 
safety related information exchange meetings, conferences, webinars, or 
outreach events where SRD demonstration teams share information with 
the transit industry and stakeholders on the progress and results of 
their project activities.

D. Application and Submission Information

1. Address and Form of Application Submission
    Project proposals must be submitted electronically through 
Grants.gov (www.grants.gov) by October 14, 2016. Mail and fax 
submissions will not be accepted. A complete proposal submission will 
consist of at least two files: (1) The SF 424 Mandatory form 
(downloaded from Grants.gov) and (2) the Applicant and Proposal Profile 
supplemental form for the ``Safety Research and Demonstration Program'' 
(supplemental form) found on the FTA Web site at https://www.transit.dot.gov/research-innovation/safety-research-and-demonstration-program. The supplemental profile provides guidance and a 
consistent format for proposers to respond to the criteria outlined in 
this NOFO. Once completed, the supplemental profile must be placed in 
the attachments section of the SF 424 Mandatory form. Proposers must 
use the supplemental profile designated for the ``Safety Research and 
Demonstration'' and attach it to their submission in Grants.gov to 
successfully complete the application process. A proposal submission 
may contain additional supporting documentation as attachments. 
Supporting documentation could include but is not limited to support 
letters, pictures, digitized drawings, and spreadsheets.
    Within 24 to 48 hours after submitting an electronic application, 
the applicant should receive 3 email messages from Grants.gov: (1) 
Confirmation of successful transmission to Grants.gov, (2) confirmation 
of successful validation by Grants.gov, and (3) confirmation of 
successful validation by FTA. If confirmations of successful validation 
are not received and a notice of failed

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validation or incomplete materials is received, the applicant must 
address the reason for the failed validation, as described in the email 
notice, and resubmit before the submission deadline. If making a 
resubmission for any reason, include all original attachments 
regardless of which attachments were updated and check the box on the 
supplemental form indicating this is a resubmission.
    Complete instructions on the application process can be found at 
https://www.transit.dot.gov/grants. FTA strongly encourages proposers 
to submit their applications at least 72 hours prior to the due date to 
allow time to receive the validation messages and to correct any 
problems that may have caused a rejection notification. FTA will not 
accept submissions after the stated submission deadline for any reason. 
Grants.gov scheduled maintenance and outage times are announced on 
Grants.gov. Deadlines will not be extended due to scheduled maintenance 
or outages.
    Proposers are encouraged to begin the process of registration on 
the Grants.gov Web site well in advance of the submission deadline. 
Instructions on the Grants.gov registration process are listed in 
Appendix A. Registration is a multi-step process, which may take 3 to 5 
days, but could take as much as several weeks to complete before an 
application can be submitted if the applicant needs to obtain certain 
identifying numbers external to Grants.gov (for example, applying for 
an Employer Identification Number). Registered proposers may still be 
required to take steps to keep their registration up to date before 
submissions can be made successfully: (1) Registration in the System 
for Award Management (SAM) is renewed annually and (2) persons making 
submissions on behalf of the Authorized Organization Representative 
(AOR) must be authorized in Grants.gov by the AOR to make submissions.
    Proposers may submit one proposal for each project but not one 
proposal containing multiple projects. Information such as proposer 
name, Federal amount requested, local match amount, description of 
areas served, etc. may be requested in varying degrees of detail on 
both the SF 424 Form and Supplemental Form. Proposers must fill in all 
fields unless stated otherwise on the forms. Proposers should use both 
the ``CHECK PACKAGE FOR ERRORS'' and the ``VALIDATE FORM'' validation 
buttons on both forms to check all required fields on the forms, and 
ensure that the federal and local amounts specified are consistent. The 
information described in Sections ``E'' through ``H'' below MUST be 
included and/or addressed on the SF 424 Form and other supplemental 
forms for all requests for the ``Safety Research and Demonstration 
Program'' funding.
2. Proposal Content
    At a minimum, every proposal must include an SF-424 form, with the 
Applicant and a Proposal Profile supplemental form attached. The 
Applicant and Proposal Profile supplemental form for SRD Program can be 
found on the FTA Web site at https://www.transit.dot.gov/research-innovation/safety-research-and-demonstration-program.
    All applicants are required to provide detailed information on the 
Applicant and Proposal Profile supplemental form, including:
    (a) State the project title, the overall goals of the project, and 
describe the project scope, including anticipated deliverables.
    (b) Discuss the current state of practice, challenges and how the 
proposed project will address those needs.
    (c) Details on whether the proposed demonstration is a new effort 
or a continuation of a prior research and degree of improvement over 
current technologies and practices.
    (d) Address each evaluation criterion separately, demonstrating how 
the project responds to each criterion as described in Section E.
    (e) Provide a line-item budget for the total project with enough 
detail to indicate the various key components of the project. As FTA 
may elect to fund only part of some project proposals, the budget 
should provide for the minimum amount necessary to fund specific 
project components of independent utility. If the project can be 
scaled, provide a scaling plan describing the minimum funding necessary 
for a feasible project and the impacts of a reduced funding level.
    (f) Provide the Federal amount requested and document the matching 
funds, including amount and source of the match (may include local or 
private sector financial participation in the project). Provide support 
documentation, including financial statements, bond-ratings, and 
documents supporting the commitment of non-federal funding to the 
project, or a timeframe upon which those commitments would be made.
    (g) A project time-line outlining steps from project implementation 
through completion, including significant milestones and the roles of 
the responsible team members.
    (h) The proposed location(s) of the research and demonstration, the 
type of public transportation service where the technology or design 
modifications will be demonstrated.
    (i) The technology(ies) and design modification to be used in this 
demonstration and explanation of the principle of operation for the 
public transportation service, type of transit vehicle (example: Bus, 
articulated bus, over-the-road bus, heavy rail, light rail, etc.), 
vehicle manufacturer and model. Including, the number of transit 
vehicles involved in the demonstration.
    (j) A description of any exceptions or waivers to FTA requirements 
or policies necessary to successfully implement the proposed project. 
FTA is not inclined to grant deviations from its requirements, but may 
consider deviations if the applicant can show a compelling benefit. 
Example: Buy America requirement, Deferred Local Share, Letter of No 
prejudice, etc.
    (k) Potential issues (technical or other) that may impact the 
success of the project.
    (l) Address whether other Federal funds have been sought for the 
project.
    (m) Provide Congressional district information for the project's 
place of performance.
3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) 
Registration in Brief
    Registration can take as little as 3-5 business days, but since 
there could be unexpected steps or delays (for example, if you need to 
obtain an EIN), FTA recommends allowing ample time for completion of 
all steps.
    STEP 1: Obtain DUNS Number: Same day. If requested by phone (1-866-
705-5711) DUNS is provided immediately. If your organization does not 
have one, you will need to go to the Dun & Bradstreet Web site at 
http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform to obtain the number.
    STEP 2: Register with SAM: Three to five business days or up to two 
weeks. If you already have a TIN, your SAM registration will take 3-5 
business days to process. If you are applying for an EIN please allow 
up to 2 weeks. Ensure that your organization is registered with the 
System for Award Management (SAM) at System for Award Management (SAM). 
If your organization is not, an authorizing official of your 
organization must register.
    STEP 3: Username & Password: Same day. Complete your AOR 
(Authorized Organization Representative) profile on Grants.gov and 
create your username and password. You will need to use

[[Page 54186]]

your organization's DUNS Number to complete this step. https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/OrcRegister.
    STEP 4: AOR Authorization: Same day (depending on responsiveness of 
your E-Biz POC). The E-Business Point of Contact (E-Biz POC) at your 
organization must login to Grants.gov to confirm you as an Authorized 
Organization Representative (AOR). Please note that there can be more 
than one AOR for your organization. In some cases the E-Biz POC is also 
the AOR for an organization.
    STEP 5: TRACK AOR STATUS: At any time, you can track your AOR 
status by logging in with your username and password. Login as an 
Applicant (enter your username & password you obtained in Step 3) under 
applicant profile.
4. Submission Dates and Times
    Project proposals must be submitted electronically through http://
www.GRANTS.GOV by 11:59 p.m. EDT on October 14, 2016.
5. Funding Restrictions
    Funds under this NOFO cannot be used to reimburse projects for 
otherwise eligible expenses incurred prior to FTA award of a Grant 
Agreement or Cooperative Agreement unless FTA has issued a ``Letter of 
No Prejudice'' for the project before the expenses are incurred.
    The SRD Program is a research and development effort and as such 
FTA Circular 6100.1E rules will apply in administering the program 
(available at https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/fta-circulars/final-circulars).

E. Application Review

1. Evaluation Criteria
    Projects will be evaluated by FTA according to the following six 
evaluation criteria described in this section. Each proposer is 
encouraged to demonstrate the responsiveness of a project to all the 
criteria shown below with the most relevant information that the 
proposer can provide.
    The FTA will assess the extent to which a proposal addresses the 
following criteria:
(a) Project Innovation and Impact
    (i) Effectiveness of the project in achieving and demonstrating the 
specific objectives of the SRD Program.
    (ii) Demonstration of benefits in addressing the needs of the 
transit agency and industry.
    (iii) Degree of technological improvement over current and existing 
technologies or vehicle design.
(b) Project Approach
    (i) Quality of the project approach, including interface design, 
existing partnerships and collaboration strategies in meeting the 
objectives of SRD program.
    (ii) Level of cost share by project partners to support the 
proposed project (in-kind or cash).
    (iii) Details on whether the proposed demonstration is a new effort 
or a continuation of a related research or demonstration project.
(c) National Applicability
    (i) Degree to which the project could be replicated by other 
transit agencies regionally or nationally.
    (ii) Ability to evaluate technologies and designs in a wide variety 
of conditions and locales.
(d) Team Capacity and Commitment
    (i) Timeliness of the proposed project schedule, and reasonableness 
of the proposed milestones.
    (ii) Availability of existing resources (physical facilities, human 
resources, partnerships) to carry out the project.
    (iii) Demonstrated capacity and experience of the partners to carry 
out the demonstration project of similar size and/or scope.
(e) Commercialization or Dissemination Plan
    (i) Demonstrates an effective, timely, and realistic plan for 
moving the results of the project into the transit marketplace.
    (ii) Description of how the project team plans to disseminate the 
result of the project to the transit industry.
(f) Return on Investment
    (i) Cost-effectiveness of the proposed project.
    (ii) Anticipated measurable safety benefits and/or potential impact 
on industry guidance and standards.
    (iii) The anticipated intangible benefits, such as making public 
transportation service more appealing to potential passengers, 
providing educational opportunities, or reducing negative externalities 
such as traffic congestion or others.
2. Review and Selection Process
    A technical evaluation panel comprised of FTA staffs and possibly 
other DOT staffs will review project proposals against the evaluation 
criteria listed above. Members of the technical evaluation panel 
reserve the right to evaluate proposals they receive and seek 
clarification from any proposer about any ambiguous statement in the 
proposal. FTA may also request additional documentation or information 
to be considered during the evaluation process. After a thorough 
evaluation of all valid proposals, the technical evaluation panel will 
provide project recommendations to the FTA Administrator. The FTA 
Administrator will determine the final list of project selections, and 
the amount of funding for each project. Geographic diversity, diversity 
of project type, and the applicant's receipt of other Federal funding 
may be considered in FTA's award decisions.

F. Federal Award Administration

    The FTA intends to fund multiple meritorious projects to support 
executing eligible project activities. To enhance the value of the 
portfolio of research and demonstration projects to be implemented, FTA 
reserves the right to request an adjustment of the project scope and 
budget of any proposal selected for funding. Such adjustments shall not 
constitute a material alteration of any aspect of the proposal that 
influenced the proposal evaluation or decision to fund the project.
1. Federal Award Notice
    Subsequent to announcement by the Federal Transit Administration of 
the final project selections posted on the FTA Web site, FTA may 
publish a list of the selected projects, including Federal dollar 
amounts and recipients.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements
(a) Pre-Award Authority
    The FTA will issue specific guidance to recipients regarding pre-
award authority at the time of selection. The FTA does not provide pre-
award authority for competitive funds until projects are selected and 
even then there are Federal requirements that must be met before costs 
are incurred. Preparation of proposals is not an eligible pre-award 
expense.
b. Grant Requirements
    Successful proposals will be awarded through FTA's Transit Award 
Management System (TrAMS) as Cooperative Agreements.
c. Planning
    The FTA encourages proposers to engage the appropriate State 
Departments of Transportation, Regional Transportation Planning 
Organizations, or Metropolitan Planning Organizations in areas likely 
to be served by the project funds made available under this programs.

[[Page 54187]]

d. Standard Assurances
    The applicant assures that it will comply with all applicable 
Federal statutes, regulations, executive orders, FTA circulars, and 
other Federal administrative requirements in carrying out any project 
supported by the FTA grant. The applicant acknowledges that it is under 
a continuing obligation to comply with the terms and conditions of the 
grant agreement issued for its project with FTA. The applicant 
understands that Federal laws, regulations, policies, and 
administrative practices might be modified from time to time and may 
affect the implementation of the project. The applicant agrees that the 
most recent Federal requirements will apply to the project, unless FTA 
issues a written determination otherwise. The applicant must submit the 
Certifications and Assurances before receiving a grant if it does not 
have current certifications on file.
e. Reporting
    Post-award reporting requirements include submission of Federal 
Financial Reports and Milestone Reports in FTA's electronic grants 
management system on a quarterly basis for all projects.

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts

    For further information concerning this notice please contact the 
FTA SRD Program manager Roy Chen at [email protected] or 202-366-
0462. A TDD is available for individuals who are deaf or hard of 
hearing at 1-800-877-8339.

Carolyn Flowers,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2016-19391 Filed 8-12-16; 8:45 am]
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