N.J. Admin. Code § 19:9-2.13

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 9, May 6, 2024

Section 19:9-2.13 - Procurement of routine towing services and emergency services on the Roadway

(a) All contracts between the Authority and qualified service providers for towing services on the Turnpike (that is, routine towing services and storage services) and for towing and emergency services on the Parkway (that is, routine towing services, storage services and road services) entered into after September 18, 2017, shall be procured pursuant to the procedures and regulations promulgated under this section.

(b) The objective of this section is to establish procedures for the award of contracts for rotational towing services on the Turnpike and towing and emergency services on the Parkway utilizing a competitive bid process open to prequalified bidders. Contracts shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidders as determined pursuant to applicable law, including, but not limited to, this subchapter, and the specific requirements contained in all Requests for Bids (RFB) issued by the Authority, from time to time. In issuing an RFB, the Director of Procurement and Materials Management is empowered to procure up to three rotational towers per service provider location (Zone) on the Turnpike and up to two rotational towers per Zone on the Parkway, or such other number as may be required in any RFB. It is the Authority's intent to solicit bids, as, and when, needed, for specific Zones along the Turnpike and the Parkway. In the case of the Turnpike, the Zones shall be established between specific interchanges, and in the case of the Parkway, the Zones shall be established between specific mileposts, all as more specifically set forth in the RFB.

(c) Only bids submitted by towing services and/or towing and emergency services providers who have first been qualified by the Authority pursuant to a prequalification process shall be considered. At the discretion of the Director of Procurement and Materials Management, the prequalification process may be accomplished through a combined Request for Qualifications/Request for Bids process or by a separate process preceding the issuance of an RFB. Upon award of a contract to the successful bidder(s), the standards governing prequalification shall be of continuing force and effect for the duration of such contract. The failure to maintain the standards of prequalification during the term of any contract awarded to a successful bidder shall be deemed a material breach of the contract.

(d) The criteria to be used by the Authority in determining prequalification shall include the following, the specific requirements of which shall be set forth in the RFB: reliability, experience, response time, acceptance of credit cards, and prepaid towing contracts; equipment; location and condition of storage facilities, including, but not limited to, security safeguards for patrons and for towed and stored vehicles; liability and other insurance coverage; safeguards to protect the personal safety of customers, including, but not limited to, considerations related to the criminal background of employees; and such other factors as the Authority may deem relevant and which shall be specified in the RFB. In recognition of the differences between the physical characteristics (for example, number of access and exit ramps) and operational aspects (for example, classes of permitted vehicles) on the Turnpike and the Parkway, the Director of Procurement and Materials Management may establish different specific criteria for prequalification of service providers on the Turnpike and for prequalification of service providers on the Parkway.

(e) A towing services and/or towing and emergency services provider deemed qualified by the Authority shall thereafter be entitled to submit a bid in response to the RFB for which such provider has prequalified. Each RFB issued by the Authority shall prescribe specific requirements for the towing services and/or towing and emergency services being procured, which may include, at the discretion of the Authority, fixed fees for certain services, and which shall include a provision mandating that towing services and/or towing and emergency services providers shall not charge patrons any fees for towing services and/or towing and emergency services other than those applicable fees that are expressly set forth in 19:9-3.1 and 3.2.

(f) The provisions of N.J.A.C. 19:9-2.1, 2.2, 2.4, and 2.12 shall be applicable to procurements for towing services on the Turnpike and towing and emergency services on the Parkway, unless such provisions are inconsistent with the provisions of this section, in which event the provisions of this subchapter shall govern.

N.J. Admin. Code § 19:9-2.13

Amended by 49 N.J.R. 3236(b), effective 9/18/2017