(The following story by Jennifer Buske appeared on the Washington Post website on November 4, 2009.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Virginia Railway Express officials have denied a challenge Amtrak brought last week against VRE’s plan to have an international company operate the commuter rail service’s trains.
On Oct. 30, Amtrak sent a letter to VRE officials contesting their plans to award a five-year, $85 million contract to Keolis Rail Services America, a U.S subsidiary of a French company. Amtrak said that there might have been some “improper scoring” when VRE reviewed the four applicants who applied for the operation and maintenance contract VRE opened to bids in May.
VRE Chief Executive Dale Zehner reviewed the procurement process and found Amtrak’s challenge to have no merit, VRE spokesman Mark Roeber said.
Amtrak also failed to challenge the VRE operations board’s Oct. 16 decision within the 10 days allotted in the request for proposal, according to a letter Zehner’s sent to Amtrak on Nov. 2.
The contract with Keolis, which must be approved by the Northern Virginia and Potomac and Rappahannock transportation commissions Thursday, would give the company its first foothold in the U.S. transportation industry. The company stood out not only because it produced the most cost-effective proposal, VRE officials said, but also because of its customer service policies and its management and operations plans.
In addition to challenging VRE’s scoring process, Amtrak filed a Freedom of Information Act request last month, asking VRE to turn over copies of Keolis’s proposal as well as evaluators’ notes and score sheets. Zehner said in his letter that that request would be met once the two commissions vote on the contract Thursday.