East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

Proposal prepared by Quandel Consultants, Inc. QUANDEL CONSULTANTS 525 Dunham Rd. Suite 3 St. Charles, IL 60174 312-285-8191 quandelconsultants.com

December 18, 2020

East Central Intergovernmental Association c/o Chandra Ravada, Director of Transportation 7600 Commerce Park Dubuque, IA 52002

Re: PROPOSAL for the PASSENGER RAIL FEASIBILITY STUDY

Dear Mr. Ravada:

Quandel Consultants is pleased to submit our proposal for completing the Passenger Rail Feasibility Study between Chicago/Rockford and Dubuque. Our passion and history with intercity passenger rail in this region give us unique understanding of the importance of re-establishing a once prominent service to better connect our Midwestern cities and states. Quandel is an experienced engineering consulting firm that specializes in intercity passenger railroad planning and design and is distinctively qualified to conduct this feasibility study. The attached proposal includes the qualifications of our team, a description of our successful projects, and a scope and schedule specifically tailored to meet your requirements.

The personnel on our team have been carefully selected to include a combination of elite qualifications suited specifically for the needs of this project. We recognize the need to have a deep bench of knowledgeable staff who have prior experience and strong relationships with CN, BNSF, and Amtrak, who understand the current challenges faced with establishing passenger rail service in a freight-centric railroad environment.

Your Project Manager for this very important study will be Daniel Schulte, PE. Dan is the Senior Director of Engineering at Quandel and has served as project manager on numerous intercity passenger and commuter rail projects throughout the Midwest. Dan is highly motivated by community-driven solutions for maximizing opportunities to access modern transportation systems. Dan will lead this project from Quandel’s St. Charles, IL office, conveniently located less than an hour drive from the East end of the study area.

Dan will be supported by both seasoned veterans and determined younger staff, all focused on supporting a better regional passenger rail system. Additional key Quandel staff include Dave Simon, PE – Railroad coordination lead; Bill Otter – Railroad Infrastructure Expert; Mark Walbrun, PE – Passenger Stations Expert; Melanie Johnson, PE – Grant Writing Expert; and Charles Hoppesch - Railroad Operations expert.

Quandel is thrilled to be working with our valued subconsultants - Images, Inc. and ESH Consult. Images provides the gold standard in stakeholder and public engagement expertise for passenger rail projects, and ESH is a highly sought after, nationally recognized passenger rail and transit ridership and economics analyst.

Thank you for the opportunity to submit this proposal for this interesting and exciting project! We look forward to collaborating with the ECIA Project Team to prepare this study and set the groundwork for grant opportunities. Included with the proposal, in a separate file, is our cost proposal, which is valid for 90 days. If you have any questions or comments concerning our submission, please contact us at your convenience.

Respectfully submitted, Quandel Consultants, Inc.

Charles H. Quandel, P.E., Daniel R. Schulte, P.E., Chief Executive Officer VP, Senior Director of Engineering

ENGINNERING SOLUTIONS FOR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS INTRODUCTION TO QUANDEL CONSULTANTS

Brief History of Firm Quandel Consultants (Quandel) is a Chicago-based professional engineering firm specializing in intercity passenger rail. For the past twelve years Quandel has worked hand in hand with federal, state, and local governments and host railroads to develop shared-use rail corridors and implement new and improved intercity passenger rail service. The founders of Quandel have been engaged in passenger rail planning since the 1990s when they were the lead planners of the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative (MWRRI). Since our founding in 2007, Quandel has grown to 28 professionals dedicated to rail planning, engineering, operations, and program management making us one of the largest “pure” rail engineering firms in Illinois.

Our staff has worked on all facets of rail projects including planning and environmental studies, design and engineering for capital projects, oversight of construction, operations and maintenance. A key component of many of our projects is an operational analysis of combined services in shared rail corridors. Quandel has worked on an array of projects evaluating shared passenger/freight corridors and shared passenger/trail corridors. We utilize Berkley Simulation Software’s Rail Traffic Controller software, a sophisticated rail simulation modeling tool, and our strong relationships with host railroads and the Federal Railroad Administration to collaboratively solve issues related to disparate services operating in a single right-of-way.

With two offices in Chicagoland supported by several satellite offices throughout the country, Quandel effectively serves our public and private clients including Wisconsin DOT, Michigan DOT, Illinois DOT, Indiana DOT, Ohio DOT, Minnesota DOT, Iowa DOT, Missouri DOT and Colorado DOT. We have worked with virtually all the Class 1 freight railroads, Metra, All Aboard Florida, Amtrak, Ann Arbor Area Transit Authority, and Northern Indiana Transportation District and enjoy excellent relationships with client personnel. Staff Location and Availability Our Project Manager, Daniel Schulte, will lead this project from our St. Charles, IL office with support from key staff residing in Chicago, Madison, WI and Grand Rapids, MI. Dan has been with Quandel for 11 years supporting Midwest intercity passenger rail projects in Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin – he has extensive experience in planning, design, construction and operations of mixed passenger/freight railroads. Dan and all key staff identified in the following pages are available for immediate work on this project. We have carefully developed a work plan to advance the work within the expected timeline listed in the Request for Proposal, and this work plan accommodates staff time on other projects.

Quandel is excited to be teaming with two strategic subconsultants – Images, Inc. and ESH Consult. Images staff will support the project from its Naperville, IL office, and ESH is based in Virginia.

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

3 QUALIFICATIONS & RELEVANT EXPERIENCE OF KEY STAFF

Daniel Schulte, P.E. Project Manager Dan Schulte offers over 16 years of experience on transportation planning and engineering projects, spending the last 11 years at Quandel focused on intercity passenger rail projects in the Midwest. Dan understands the process and unique challenges associated with reinstating passenger service on a freight railroad that has not supported passenger trains for a long time. As the PM for this Study, Dan will facilitate the progression of work in a transparent manner with ECIA Project Team, as well as develop a positive report with other stakeholders including the host railroads. The confidentiality of information provided by the railroads will be of utmost importance to sustaining a positive working relationship, and Dan will ensure that the study’s analysis and results are factual, accurate and representative of the needs of each affected agency.

At Quandel, Dan has served as a project manager for several multi-faceted passenger rail projects, including supporting the Michigan DOT Office of Rail implementation of its $400 million accelerated rail improvement program between Dearborn and Kalamazoo. In this role, Dan is an integral team member supporting MDOT for the management of the railroad infrastructure, including program management, design, construction support, and development of capital and maintenance planning for the corridor. He has sustained relationships with stakeholders for this project including MDOT, Amtrak, freight operators and several local agencies. The project’ continued success is in large part due to Dan’s efforts to continually improve the relationship between MDOT and Amtrak, and to develop projects specifically competitive for FRA grant programs. Dan has led the effort to secure $62 million in grants over the past

In Illinois, Dan has served the past 4 years as the Program Engineer for Illinois DOT’s Chicago to Quad Cities Passenger Rail Corridor Enhancement Program. In this role, Dan has coordinated a multi- disciplined design team through the Preliminary Engineering and NEPA phase for the planned re- installation of Amtrak service to Moline, IL on the former Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, now owned by Iowa Interstate Railroad. David Simon, P.E. Railroad Coordination Lead Dave Simon joined Quandel consultants in 2020 after a 32-year career with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT). He served in many roles during that time, most recently as the Director of the Bureau of Transit, Local Roads, Railroads and Harbors. Dave managed numerous program activities that directed the development, implementation and financing of highway, transit, railroad, and waterway infrastructure projects. One of Dave’s key roles was addressing legislative and citizen concerns regarding department policies and transportation system condition. As Chief of Railroads & Harbors, Dave worked extensively with all the railroads that operate in Wisconsin and led many railroad related projects involving myriad stakeholders throughout the state. A key project during that time was leading the construction of the Passenger Concourse Project at the Milwaukee Intermodal Station. This project won six awards for its design, utility, and aesthetics. The successful outcome of this project further enhanced the value of the station, a transportation hub that joins passenger train travel to bus, taxi, automobile, streetcar, bicycle, and pedestrian modes. Dave coordinated and resolved railroad related issues associated with the highway improvement program with affected citizens, local units of government, the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study 4 QUALIFICATIONS & RELEVANT EXPERIENCE OF KEY STAFF

(OCR), other state agencies, and the railroads. Dave has an excellent rapport with Canadian National’s Government and Public Affairs Managers. Dave appreciates the importance of listening to the concerns of the citizens, businesses, legislators, and other affected stakeholders and strives to provide them with the information necessary for mutual understanding.

For this Study, Dave will lead the outreach activities with CN, BNSF, Amtrak and other rail stakeholders to understand the operating and maintenance environment. He will also be part of the Quandel Team coordinating with the Chicago-Rockford study where appropriate to ensure that the Rockford-Dubuque Study’s progress aligns with assumptions and findings of the IDOT Chicago-Rockford Phase I study. William Otter Railroad Infrastructure and Layover Facility Expert Bill Otter will lead the effort to analyze the capital improvement needs and define ongoing maintenance costs that will be needed to support the proposed service. Prior to joining Quandel, Bill managed the Chicago Suburban Division at the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad, which provided the railroad’s commuter service for Metra on three lines, carrying about 93,000 passengers per day on 186 revenue trains. In that role, Bill was responsible for oversight of train operations, scheduling, equipment and crew cycles, station administration, infrastructure construction and maintenance as well as passenger locomotive and car inspection, inspection, servicing, and maintenance. He oversaw the locomotive and car maintenance activities for approximately 60 locomotives, 300 commuter rail cars and 12 streamlined inspection train cars, including a major locomotive shop, major car shop, train storage yards and 7 outlying overnight train layover facilities. Under his watch, Metra and the C&NW also reconstructed the railroad’s Chicago Passenger Terminal while maintaining normal daily commuter operations. Bill also managed the C&NW’s Illinois Division which included the railroad’s line to Belvidere and Rockford, one of the routes being evaluated by the Chicago-Rockford Phase I Study, and the C&NW’s double track east-west mainline through Elmhurst-DeKalb-Rochelle to Clinton, Iowa, and points west to the Union Pacific Railroad connections in Nebraska and the mainline to the St. Louis area.

Bill has provided input on rail operations, infrastructure and equipment needs for several recent Quandel projects including Amtrak’s Chicago-Milwaukee Hiawatha Service expansion, Minnesota Department of Transportation’s Northern Lights Express Project between Minneapolis and Duluth, MnDOT’s feasibility study for the expansion of Northstar commuter rail service from Minneapolis to St. Cloud and IDOT’s Quad Cities Passenger Rail Project between Chicago and the Quad Cities. Bill also served two years on IDOT’s Chicago-St. Louis High Speed Rail Project performing construction inspection oversight in the Joliet, Illinois area segment of the route. Bill has experience working with representatives of the Class I railroads including BNSF, UP, CN, CP, as well as Amtrak and several short line carriers. He is familiar with the interface between operations, infrastructure, signal and locomotive and passenger car characteristics and how decisions in these areas can affect the overall performance of a proposed rail project.

For this Study, Bill will analyze the existing conditions of the rail infrastructure, and gather data from CN, BNSF, Amtrak and other rail stakeholders to understand the operating and maintenance environment required to start up and sustain efficient passenger rail service to Dubuque. He will coordinate with the rail operations modeling staff to identify the capital improvement needs and annual maintenance costs.

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study 5 QUALIFICATIONS & RELEVANT EXPERIENCE OF KEY STAFF

Mark Walbrun, P.E. Station Planning and Design Expert Mark Walbrun has spent his career planning, designing, and executing passenger rail projects. He has successfully completed dozens of expansion studies, concept designs, track/signal replacement, and station improvement projects throughout the US including historic station renovations, repurposing buildings for rail stations, new rail stations and multimodal centers. Design work includes small rural stations, medium size city stations such as Amsterdam NY and Omaha NE, and large stations such as Penn Station NY and Washington DC. He has been frequently involved in projects throughout northern Illinois, southern Wisconsin, and eastern Indiana. He works closely with both passenger railroads and freight railroads and is in a leadership role in many industry organizations.

As a consultant, Mark was the Project Director for an initial commuter rail feasibility study commissioned by Illinois DOT for the cities of Rockford and Belvidere, Illinois, and later received a contract for a full FTA Alternatives Analysis for the concept. The project evaluated an extension of the existing Metra service for ridership potential, infrastructure costs, potential operating revenue, expected operating costs, service headways, station locations, and environmental issues. He also served as the Project Director for Commuter, Intercity and High-Speed Rail planning for the redevelopment of Denver Union Station. Prior to joining the consulting ranks, Mark worked for Amtrak where he was a Project Manager for multiple Midwest improvement projects including the Chicago Union Station redevelopment. The project received a Brunel Award for rail transportation excellence.

For this Study, Mark will lead station development planning and design by thoroughly assessing possible station locations and defining improvements needed for service startup through analysis of existing conditions, ridership projections and rail operational characteristics.

Charles Hoppesch, P.E. Railroad Operations Lead Charles Hoppesch has over a decade of experience working with states, freight railroads and passenger rail operators to plan capacity upgrades needed for new or improved passenger service. Charles recently completed a study examining the feasibility of extending Northstar’s commuter rail service to St. Cloud, MN. Charles evaluated the proposed routes using RTC and developed infrastructure improvement scope. Charles works closely with the host railroad to model their train traffic patterns and uses the results to develop cost effective solutions to operate the proposed passenger service.

Charles is a key member of the team supporting Wisconsin DOT’s project for increased frequency of Amtrak’s Hiawatha service between Chicago and Milwaukee. Charles prepared concept engineering plans and environmental documentation for the proposed track improvements as part of this Tier 1 Environmental Assessment in the Chicago- Milwaukee corridor. The study evaluated the environmental impacts of increasing train frequencies from the existing seven round trips to ten round trips per day on Amtrak’s Hiawatha service. In addition to track design, Charles is also leading the corridor modeling effort with the use of Rail Traffic Controller software. Charles is coordinating with Canadian Pacific Railroad, Amtrak, and Metra to identify the

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study 6 QUALIFICATIONS & RELEVANT EXPERIENCE OF KEY STAFF infrastructure improvements that are needed to increase corridor capacity for the additional Amtrak trains.

For this study, Charles will model the existing and proposed railroad infrastructure and train operations using Rail Simulation Analysis Suite software, utilizing data provided by the host freight railroads and assumed passenger railroad, Amtrak. Melanie Johnson, P.E. Federal Grant Application Expert Melanie Johnson works tirelessly to ensure every grant project achieves the best possible application for award of federal grant funds. Melanie leads Quandel’s grant writing team that has a proven recipe for success, securing over $100 million in FRA grant funds for Midwest intercity passenger rail projects in the past 3 years. Melanie led the grant writing and benefit-cost analysis process for several Wisconsin DOT-led projects to support increased Amtrak Hiawatha service between Chicago and Milwaukee. This work resulted in grant funds for new Hiawatha Service rolling stock, construction of a new platform and overhead pedestrian bridge at the Milwaukee Airport Rail Station, Muskego Yard final design and construction, and operation of a second daily Empire Builder round trip between Chicago, Milwaukee, and the Twin Cities. She also led several successful grant applications for Michigan DOT’s development of the rail corridor supporting Amtrak’s Wolverine and Blue Water Service. In all, four grants have been awarded to MDOT for projects ranging from track and signal replacements to trespass prevention and pedestrian safety improvements between Dearborn and Kalamazoo, MI.

For this study, Melanie will advise the Project Team on the best way to present this project to the USDOT/FRA and Illinois/Iowa state-funded grant opportunities to maximize the project’s competitiveness. Melanie will then prepare the project for FRA grant applications by completing a benefit-cost analysis. Janet Henderson (Images) Stakeholder Engagement Lead Janet Henderson brings 30 years of experience developing innovative strategies for passenger rail projects. From Illinois to California and Texas, Janet has taken on national projects where she was involved in regional transportation planning, implementing financial controls, developing environmental documentation and more. Her experience includes working for Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, Southern California Association of Governments and an international engineering firm.

Her success derives from her passion for strategic communication and public involvement. At Images, Inc., Janet works with clients such as DuPage County, City of Joliet, Illinois Capital Development Board, and Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). For the Illinois High-Speed Rail Project, she engages with railroads, the ICC, and hundreds of communities between Chicago and St. Louis – directing awareness campaigns, conducting public and one-on-one meetings, social media engagement and media outreach. Janet enjoys being out in the communities getting to know the people and understanding their concerns. Janet has led strategy development, stakeholder outreach, meeting facilitation, survey implementation and evaluation, website development, and media management.

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study 7 QUALIFICATIONS & RELEVANT EXPERIENCE OF KEY STAFF

For this Study, Janet will lend her stakeholder engagement and public involvement expertise for leading and facilitating stakeholder focus group discussions.

Bruce Horowitz (ESH) Rail Ridership and Economics Expert Bruce Horowitz brings forty-four years of passenger rail/urban transit economic analysis and business planning experience, and now serves as the Owner of ESH Consult. Bruce is a trusted advisor to passenger rail and transit agencies around the nation as he provided significant contributions to projects with a wide variety of operational characteristics, including High Speed Rail, conventional intercity, commuter, rail and bus transit, and airport-access systems. Bruce is deeply knowledgeable in quantified benefit/cost analysis, operational analysis, shared-use operations, safety analysis, route performance forecasting and strategic planning.

Recently, as a sub-contractor to CH2M Hill for TX DOT/FRA-funded Texas-Oklahoma Passenger Rail Study (TOPRS) Service-Level EIS, Bruce acted as Team Leader and was author of record for the successful multi- disciplinary Service Development Plan. The study evaluated feasibility and environmental impacts of multiple alternative routes/services for potential intercity passenger rail services on the Oklahoma City- Dallas/Fort Worth-San Antonio-So. Texas corridor. The approved SDP included: detailed sketch level business /financial plan with emphasis on potential PPPs/creative funding alternatives; sketch level/detailed demand analysis; analysis of frequency/speed combinations on each viable corridor segment and analysis of direct/indirect economic impacts. FRA FEIS/ROD was received in Nov 2017 and published in Federal Reg.

For this Study, Bruce will produce passenger rail ridership forecasts using cost-effective, feasibility-level analysis tools. Bruce will also perform scoping-level economic and safety analyses to effectively develop quantitative values for use in the Benefit-Cost Analysis.

The Quandel Team is honored to be considered for this project. To support the qualifications presented for our key staff we offer three recent project examples which exemplify our dedication to integrity and quality. Please turn to the appendix of this proposal to find project summaries, client reference contact information, and key staff roles on these projects:

• Illinois DOT: Chicago to Quad Cities Passenger Rail Corridor • Minnesota DOT: Northstar Commuter Rail Extension Project • Michigan DOT: Kalamazoo to Dearborn Accelerated Rail Corridor

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study 8 SCOPE OF SERVICES – APPROACH AND WORK PLAN

Task 1 - Project Management and Coordination Upon Notice to Proceed, the Quandel Team will establish a detailed project baseline from which progress will be measured through the life of the project. We will host a kickoff meeting with the ECIA (the Project Team) to review the goals, tasks, and deliverables of the project; as well as establish points of contact and preferred communication protocols. We will also collaborate with the Project Team to optimize the project schedule, as well as determine the best dates for the Project Team Progress Meetings and Stakeholder Meetings. Progress Meetings The Project Team will play a key role in the Study’s completion. Quandel will meet with the Project Team six times throughout the Study. These meetings will enable the Project Team to evaluate the work completed, ask questions, and determine the direction of the next phase. The Quandel Team will ensure that the team stays on track and will keep notes on discussion topics and assignments. We have the experience to host all meetings in a virtual format should health guidelines keep us from meeting in person. Stakeholder Meetings Quandel’s subconsultant, Images, Inc. will lead the outreach and communication efforts. Their previous work on rail projects includes the corridors from Chicago to the Quad Cities, St. Louis, Rockford, Milwaukee and the 2009 study of this corridor. Their experience working on all project phases has given them insight on rail issues and public perception. Additionally, Quandel and Images have worked together on several rail projects in the Midwest. Quandel and Images will schedule multiple meetings with stakeholders to provide updates as well as gather their input. It is essential these meetings are held regularly to keep the project on track. We will coordinate with the project team to identify community stakeholders that will become champions of the project. Stakeholders will include community leaders, citizens, elected and appointed officials, the business community/chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, tourism bureaus, federal, state, and local agencies, host railroads and Amtrak. Stakeholders have diverse ideas and opinions about a project and can provide insight that might otherwise be overlooked. To ensure this knowledge and opinions are gathered and considered, we will plan and facilitate up to six focus group meetings at the onset of the project. The information gathered will be complied into a report and provided to the study group. This information will be used to guide the development of the project and to create the outline for the conversations at the close of the project. At the end of the study, we will again host up to six focus group meetings. We will review the original comments, provide information on the study findings, and gather feedback from the groups. The information gathered will be summarized in the final report. Progress Reports and Schedule The Project Manager will prepare semi-monthly progress reports detailing work completed during the previous period, work anticipated the next period, and track progress towards completion of task deliverables. As requested in the RFP, the progress reports will be less than a single page in length and will be submitted electronically to the Project Team.

The PM will maintain an updated project schedule for the duration of the study and will submit it electronically to the Project Team monthly. See Page 19 of this proposal for proposed schedule.

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

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Work Breakdown Structure and Total Project Cost Budget The Project Manager will maintain an updated Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)/task outline for the duration of the study. The WBS will contain line items for all major deliverable components of the project and any significant subcomponents along with the budgeted amount of fee associated with each task listed. The PM will track on the WBS the amount of work accomplished on each task that is listed. The PM will maintain an updated Total Project Cost (TPC) estimate for the duration of the project. We propose that the TPC be maintained in the Standard Cost Categories established by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). This will ensure consistency between this Study, future grant applications and future projects. The TPC budget shall be completed using the best available information at the time of each periodic submittal to provide an estimated total cost for all components of the project. The budget shall include costs for conducting study plus all other direct costs and reimbursable expenses for the Consultant and Sub-consultants. The Project Manager will submit the WBS and TPC budget electronically to the Project Team during the first week of each month.

Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) Quandel has a proven QA/QC program specifically developed for federally funded projects. It will be integrated into all aspects of this project to ensure delivery of high-quality work products throughout the project life. Quandel will provide any necessary verifications upon request.

Task 2 - Analyze Alternative Routes

The Canadian National Route The Illinois Central Railroad’s route from Central Station on Chicago’s Lakefront to Rockford, Freeport, Galena, Dubuque, Waterloo and points west along the Missouri River saw named streamliner passenger trains including the Land o’ Corn, Hawkeye and the Iowan beginning in 1941 and continuing until 1967. In later years, these trains were dieselized and carried coaches, a café car, and the U. S. Mail. Amtrak later operated the Black Hawk between Dubuque and Chicago for the Illinois Department of Transportation. In 1998, Canadian National (CN) acquired the Illinois Central and continues to operate and maintain the east-west route, connecting to the rest of the CN freight network in the Chicago area.

The CN route is the only railroad between Rockford and Dubuque. It serves Winnebago, Stephenson and Jo Daviess counties in Illinois and Dubuque County in Iowa. It is the only rail route that serves Freeport and Galena and connects with the current Phase I study being conducted to restore passenger rail service between Chicago and Rockford. Amtrak completed a study of the alternative rail routes between Chicago, Rockford, and Dubuque in 2009. It identified CN’s route as the only rail alternative between Rockford and Dubuque.

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CN Route

CN’s 96.8-mile route between Rockford and Dubuque is a single-track railroad equipped with Centralized Traffic Control (CTC), but not Positive Train Control (PTC). There are five sidings of varying lengths available to meet or pass trains: Seward (7,700 feet), Freeport (8,260 feet), Lena (7,216 feet), Scales Mound (7,249 feet), and Grant (5,463 feet). The route encounters more hills and curves as it proceeds west of Freeport, but the maximum grade of track does not exceed 1%. Previous intermediate passenger train station stops were located at Freeport and Galena, where the depots have been preserved and are currently owned and used by others. As the CN enters the Mississippi River Valley, it operates over a 12.5-mile segment of the BNSF between Portage and East Dubuque which is double track with several long sidings ending at East Cabin. CN trains can encounter delays between Portage and East Dubuque when their route conflicts with BNSF traffic. At East Dubuque, the CN leaves the BNSF and operates via CN’s 851-foot tunnel under East Dubuque, crosses the BNSF double main tracks at an automatic interlocking and uses the CN’s 1,535-foot long, 6- span, 47-foot-high bridge over the Mississippi River into Dubuque. The bridge consists of 5 pin truss spans and one 356- foot movable pin truss span. CN serves major industries along the river and elsewhere in Dubuque.

CN’s track between Rockford and Dubuque appears to be well-maintained, with 115-pound Continuous Welded Rail (CWR), good tie condition, alignment, and surface. The current Maximum Authorized Speed is believed to be 50 miles per hour for freight trains with speed restrictions as low as 10 mph at several locations along the route for physical characteristics. Some freight trains, particularly those containing ethanol may operate at lower speeds. The Quandel Team will coordinate with CN to ensure that accurate and up- to-date information concerning the physical characteristics of the route and other operating information is identified and carefully considered in the analysis.

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Other Routes Historically, two other rail routes have provided rail passenger service to Dubuque. The Chicago Great Western Railroad (CGW) formerly operated between Chicago, Dubuque, and points west. However, the CGW was acquired by the Chicago & NorthWestern Railroad (C&NW) in 1968 and large portions of the line were later abandoned. The former right-of-way is no longer intact. The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad (CB&Q) operated passenger trains between Chicago and the Twin Cities, serving Dubuque with a passenger station on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River at East Dubuque. This busy railroad is now owned by Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF). BNSF carries a high volume of freight trains including time-sensitive intermodal trains and double stack container trains to and from the Twin Cities and the Pacific Northwest each day. The 79-mph route is triple track from Chicago to Aurora, single track with sidings from Aurora to Savannah via Rochelle, and double track through east Dubuque. Passenger trains that are proposed to use this route to reach Dubuque would encounter a longer route, very heavy freight traffic, BNSF’s Metra commuter service (normally 94 weekday trains) between Chicago and Aurora, 4 Amtrak long distance and 4 (soon to be 8) Amtrak state-supported passenger trains each day.

Task 3 - Passenger Rail Station Development, Planning and Design Passenger rail stations have historically been located at Rockford, Freeport, Galena and Dubuque and were served by trains of the Illinois Central and later Amtrak. The railroads built and maintained their own passenger stations. Currently, it is expected that passenger stations and associated improvements will be provided by others in accordance with the standards and requirements of Amtrak, CN, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other affected stakeholders.

At Rockford, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) Phase I study between Chicago and Rockford will determine the preferred location for the proposed Rockford station. However, continuing the service through to Dubuque will affect the proposed location, station track requirements, layover facilities and the design of the station itself. The availability of local transportation, station parking and rail service directly at Chicago Union Station will provide an easier connection to Amtrak trains as well as Metra commuter service for all stations on the proposed route. The Quandel Team will initiate early coordination between this study and the Chicago-Rockford study team to ensure that all requirements for both services are communicated and coordinated to ensure a seamless continuity of service to and from Dubuque, Galena and Freeport.

At Freeport, the former passenger depot is owned by others and occupied. A new station building, passenger platform, parking facilities, access roadways and other station features may be required. The Quandel Team will coordinate with the City of Freeport and other affected stakeholders to identify station requirements and access to the community.

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Freeport Station

At Galena, the former passenger depot is owned by others and occupied. Galena is a popular tourist destination, especially in the Summer and Fall. The Quandel Team will coordinate with the City of Galena, the Galena Chamber of Commerce, and other affected stakeholders to identify station requirements. Because Galena is a tourist destination, it is likely that many rail passengers arriving at Galena will need transportation, lodging and other accommodations as a part of their journey. These needs provide the opportunity for Transit Oriented Development (TOD) at Galena and will be included in the station planning.

Galena Station

At Dubuque, the aggressive downtown property and riverfront development is increasing Dubuque’s attraction as a tourist destination. The Quandel Team will work with the City of Dubuque, Dubuque Chamber of Commerce and other development groups and stakeholders to identify the optimum location and features of a new Dubuque station as well as opportunities for further development including TOD. Consideration will include the depot building itself, passenger amenities, parking, walking access to other walkable areas, and other features. A train layover and servicing facility will also

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

13 SCOPE OF SERVICES – APPROACH AND WORK PLAN be required. The station and layover track configurations will consider the possibility of a future extension to Manchester, Waterloo, and other points in Iowa. The Quandel Team will also coordinate with CN to avoid potential conflicts with local switching, interchange and through train movements at Dubuque.

The Quandel Team will prepare conceptual site plans and cost estimates for both minimal and full- service stations at each location based on the information developed for each of the station sites and site visits at each location. The team will also conduct environmental and climate impact assessments associated with updating and/or constructing passenger stations.

Task 4 - Passenger Rail Layover Facilities While the specific types of rail rolling stock to be used for the Rockford-Dubuque service have not yet been determined, it is likely that at least some of the trains proposed to operate between Chicago and Rockford will continue to Dubuque using the same equipment. If available, the new Siemens Charger locomotives and new passenger cars now being used in the state-supported services based in Chicago may be used for the proposed Chicago-Rockford-Dubuque service. The Quandel Team will coordinate with the Chicago-Rockford study team to understand the equipment proposed to be used and be certain that the equipment selected will also be compatible and satisfactory for the continuation of through service to Dubuque, including the number of cars on each train.

Based on the locomotive and passenger car consists expected to be proposed, and their specific characteristics, the Quandel Team will conduct site visits to identify the location, configuration and major components of the train layover and servicing facilities needed to support the service. These services at outlying locations normally assume that most inspection, fueling, servicing, washing and repairs will be provided at Amtrak’s Chicago Maintenance Facility south of Union Station. The outlying layover facilities normally perform inspections, locomotive fueling, interior cleaning and stocking between trips. The facilities normally include parking track(s) with access on both ends, a crew layover building, 480-volt standby electrical power for the train, a small maintenance shed including access to hot and cold water, cleaning equipment and supplies as well as equipment and supplies needed to deal with winter weather conditions. Layover facilities must have all-weather road access and parking for employees who operate and maintain the trains and must meet Amtrak and CN standards.

One factor that will affect the construction of layover facilities is the crew agreement that determines where train and engine crews go on and off duty. Under the FRA’s Hours of Service Regulations, and depending on proposed train speeds, station stops and final train schedules, one train crew could complete a one-way trip from Chicago through Rockford to Dubuque, or a round trip Chicago-Rockford- Chicago, or a round trip Dubuque-Rockford-Dubuque, but might not have enough time to complete a round trip from Dubuque to Chicago and return to Dubuque. Where and when crews change, and the number of crews in the service, will affect the layover facility requirements.

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The Quandel Team will also determine from the type and quantity of equipment being used, whether any other special requirements exist, such as a wye track to turn a train around for its return trip. Conceptual site plans and cost estimates will be prepared based on the requirements identified. The team will then conduct environmental and climate impact assessments associated with updating and/or constructing passenger train layover facilities.

Task 5 - Develop and Update Passenger Rail (Ridership) Forecasts Because this is a feasibility study, our team is proposing to perform a customized, “scoping-level” passenger rail ridership forecast. Since it will not be possible to perform the time-and budget-consuming exercise of full Intercity Passenger Rail Demand Model, we will rather use an elegant “parametric comparison” analysis, reviewing, averaging, and adjusting the actual ridership performance of several comparable US services in other corridors to provide a suitable estimate for the proposed Rockford- Dubuque extension. This streamlined approach will still provide meaningful “order-of-magnitude” projected ridership and revenue results to help determine if these forecasts justify the capital investment O&M Costs of the service.

Just as would be done in a full-blown demand model, we will begin with current and forecast future population as well as distances between communities served, since population size and distance between locations tend to be among the most significant single contributors to level of travel demand. We will also use published information supplemented by ECIA input to carefully identify the location and size of each major existing traffic generator. In our abbreviated, yet still substantive approach, our team will then carefully seek out a sample of hopefully 3 or 4 relatively closely comparable existing passenger rail corridors from which to gain meaningful examples of current (NOTE: pre-COVID) ridership and revenue performance.

To the greatest degree possible we will use defensible adjustment factors to compensate for differences between these selected sample corridors (e.g., specific community populations, unique activity generators and precise inter-community distances) to interpolate a quality estimate for the Rockford- Dubuque extension. Once developed, we will be able to produce a resultant “quasi” trip table to allow further secondary calculations. Using simple, but effective “rule of thumb” measures, such as: most switch trips will be transferred from auto, and that newly induced trips may be roughly 15 or 20%, largely dependent on the attractiveness (frequency/speed) of the proposed service compared to driving, we will be able to estimate a modal split determination after project implementation.

The final element of this simplified passenger demand forecast exercise will be a very “summary-level” analysis of key socio-economic factors along the corridor and importantly, the degree to which the addition of this new service to the transportation mix will provide positive impacts to the served communities. We understand that the ECIA may then use these Rockford-Dubuque targeted results for projections on other potential routings.

Task 6 - Identify and Update Basic Capital Investment Needs The Quandel Team has previous experience with identifying, updating, and quantifying capital investment needs for new passenger rail services. The Quandel team uses the Federal Railroad Administration’s formats and cost categories to group expenses so they can be easily analyzed and compared.

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

15 SCOPE OF SERVICES – APPROACH AND WORK PLAN

Quandel will define potential service options’ schedules and identify the infrastructure projects necessary to support the proposed service options. At the heart of Quandel’s operations analysis methodology are transparency and cooperation . We believe that railroads are the experts of their infrastructure and operations; however, it is in the public’s best interest to select a firm who can provide an unbiased analysis of railroad operations and infrastructure. Quandel is the only firm that does no railroad simulation work directly for freight railroads. Quandel will first prepare signal blocking diagrams using proprietary software developed by Quandel, called Rail Signal blocking diagrams are a great Simulation Analysis Suite, to rapidly determine the available planning tool because they allow capacity on the joint freight-passenger rail corridor for each stakeholders to easily understand the proposed service option. The benefit of this software is that it can be used to identify areas along the corridor where impact that additional passenger there is not enough capacity to support the proposed trains have on a rail network. passenger schedules and freight service. Quandel will utilize time-space (time-distance) diagrams to identify conflict points between passenger and freight trains. This will require an iterative cycle of generating Train Performance Calculator (TPC) runs, adjusting the passenger schedule to avoid conflicts, and testing the available capacity using signal blocking diagrams. The above-described process is substantially less time intensive and less detailed than traditional rail simulation modeling. The results will be used to facilitate initial infrastructure investment discussions with CN, BNSF, and Amtrak, and will provide a head start for operations simulations using Berkeley Simulation’s Rail Traffic Controller (RTC) software. For the proposed Rockford-Dubuque service, the types of capital costs that can be anticipated may include: • Track upgrading (ties, ballast, and surfacing) to achieve the level of FRA Track Standards for the desired maximum operating speed and consistent schedule performance for the proposed passenger trains. • Bridge and drainage structure repairs and/or upgrading. • Grade crossing upgrades as well as the installation of grade crossing warning systems where required by the appropriate state agency with authority over grade crossing safety. • Additional siding tracks to meet or pass trains (if required). • Signal modifications, upgrades, or additions. • Installation of Positive Train Control (PTC). To our knowledge, CN does not currently have PTC installed on the Rockford-Dubuque route, nor are they required to install it on account of commodity mix or train volume. To ensure operability across other carriers, we envision Wabtec’s I-ETMS system to be the most likely system for this service. • Train layover facilities including turnouts, tracks, 480-volt standby electrical power and connections, compressed air building, equipment and connections, utilities, drainage, paved walkways, train and engine crew and maintenance building(s), lighting, fencing, etc. meeting Amtrak and CN requirements. • Passenger revenue and information systems, crew information systems and the communications and computer equipment and commercial service connections for each at passenger stations and the train layover facilities. • Number and type of train sets, including whether new or reconditioned equipment will be used, to be coordinated with the Chicago-Rockford service if and as appropriate. Train frequency, train scheduling, coordination with the Chicago-Rockford service, and availability of locomotive and East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

16 SCOPE OF SERVICES – APPROACH AND WORK PLAN

passenger car equipment types will affect the capital estimate for rolling stock, as well as fees that may be due to Amtrak for use of Amtrak capital equipment.

The Quandel Team will conduct a calculation of energy, fuel efficiency and air emissions savings as part of its Capital Investment Needs Assessment. Task 7 - Analyze Ongoing Maintenance Cost The Quandel Team will analyze the types and levels of ongoing maintenance costs that would be incurred by the proposed Rockford-Dubuque service. The level of expenses for the total Chicago-Rockford-Dubuque corridor, and for the Rockford-Dubuque segment will be directly affected by whether the proposed train service is operated as a through service Chicago-Rockford-Dubuque or whether the Rockford- Dubuque service is operated independently. The Quandel Team believes that it is probably in the best interests of all involved parties to plan and operate a through service Chicago-Rockford-Dubuque, as envisioned by the RFP, with each party paying its share of capital and maintenance expenses. The Quandel Team has experience with nationally recognized maintenance cost allocation methods between rail line users that can be obtained for the study if such services become necessary.

Some expenses (such as track and signal, communications, PTC maintenance, as well as most passenger station maintenance) could be expected to be about the same under either alternative. However, savings from through train service may be achieved in the categories of Class I railroad access fees, train equipment maintenance and operating expense, train and crew layover facilities expense, liability insurance and Capital Equipment Maintenance Charges from Amtrak (if applicable) or the equipment owner. Ongoing heavy maintenance expenses for both locomotives and passenger cars would still apply to periodic equipment heavy rebuilds whether the equipment is owned by Amtrak, one of the states, one or more rail authorities, or a railway equipment leasing firm. Depending on the alternative(s) selected, the Quandel Team will identify various potential funding mechanisms for long term maintenance.

Task 8 - Economic Development and Safety Analysis We are proposing to perform an advanced “scoping-level” economic and safety analysis of the potential extension of a planned Chicago-Rockford, IL passenger rail service to Dubuque, IA. Our proposed streamlined approach will provide meaningful “order-of-magnitude” quantitative results to help justify the economic impact and safety benefits that are anticipated to accrue to IA counties as a result of this new passenger service. These quantitative results may be used in a more detailed future Benefit-Cost (B/C) study which would be a required component of any future FRA or NEPA studies on the Dubuque corridor.

In this abbreviated, yet still substantive study, our team will collect, analyze and report relevant local employment data and indicate recent (NOTE: normal, pre-COVID) growth and forecasted growth. We will then perform a detailed (web-resource-based) analysis of existing employment/other activity East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

17 SCOPE OF SERVICES – APPROACH AND WORK PLAN centers to provide a base on which we will add a reasonable forecast of potential new activity likely to be stimulated or enabled by the proposed new rail service.

With a keen comparative review of several successful TOD locations along passenger rail services in other regions, we will then provide a targeted “generic” estimate of potential locations, size and form that would be possible on the subject Rockford-Dubuque service extension. Because many successful TODs have been developed by the private sector, or as a PPP with some public financial or institutional incentives, we will outline potential key locations along this line that are most likely to inspire private investment. Using well established “scoping-level” tools, we will estimate a broad-brush quantitative analysis of the likely positive economic impacts of these potentials purely private or publicly incentivized developments.

Lastly, noting this is above and beyond the specifically requested sub-tasks, we believe it will be very beneficial for the ECIA to have some quantitative potential estimate of the significant safety benefits passenger rail service could bring to the region. Recognizing that on a “per-passenger-mile” basis, passenger rail is up to 10 times safer than individual auto travel, and that most potential new Dubuque Extension riders will be former auto users, we will be able to estimate in broad terms the average number of fatality and non-fatality/serious injury accidents to be avoided using the new passenger rail service. Similar, generalized estimates of air pollution reduction and other safety benefits may be possible to be developed.

Task 9 - Prepare for Grant Applications To prepare for discretionary competitive federal grants, and most public competitive grants, a Benefit- Cost Analysis (BCA) must be completed to show quantitatively how the project compares to other projects. Quandel is proficient at BCAs and understands how to maximize the public benefits of rail projects to put the best foot forward in your grant application. In addition to our grant writing skills, Quandel has excellent relationships with FRA Project Development staff. We recommend the Project Team engage with the FRA early during this project to “sell” the benefits of this project prior to submitting a grant application. The Quandel team will compile the BCA and the findings from the feasibility study efforts into a comprehensive report, including executive summary, table of contents, main body, and appendices. Completing this study will set the stage for next phases of this project, which will include service planning, preliminary engineering, and environmental work. Within the study report we will include all pertinent information to support applications for USDOT grant opportunities. Planning for a USDOT funded project requires adhering to the federal project phasing protocols and approvals. There are currently two federal grant programs that are the best fit for this type of project, BUILD and CRISI. BUILD grants can be administered by any surface transportation agency (FHWA, FTA and FRA), but CRISI is specific to FRA. This project is likely to be more competitive with CRISI because there is a much smaller applicant pool, and larger amount of funding available for planning projects. Within the CRISI framework, the next step after the feasibility study will be to apply for a Track 1 “Planning” project with FRA. Track 1 projects consist of technical analyses and associated environmental analyses that support the development of corridor service development plans, including: market analyses, travel demand forecasting, revenue forecasting, system design, railroad operations analysis, equipment planning, conceptual engineering, and economic analyses.

East Central Intergovernmental Association Passenger Rail Feasibility Study

18 ea te Project Schedule

TEnter the name of the Project Lead in cell B3. Enter the Project Start date in cell E3. Pooject Start: label is in cell C3. h Feb-2021 Mar-2021 Apr-2021 May-2021 Jun-2021 Jul-2021 Aug-2021 Sep-2021 Oct-2021 Nov-2021 Dec-2021 Jan-2022 Feb-2022 Mar-2022 e Display Week: Date 1 8 15 22 1 8 15 22 29 5 12 19 26 3 10 17 24 31 7 14 21 28 5 12 19 26 2 9 16 23 30 6 13 20 27 4 11 18 25 1 8 15 22 29 6 13 20 27 3 10 17 24 31 7 14 21 28 7 14 21 28 hi TASK START END Week #: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 s

Project Management 2/1/21 3/28/22

Project Team Meetings

Focus Group Meetings (Stakeholders)

Analyze Alternative Routes 2/1/21 3/1/21 Do not delete this row. This row is hidden to preserve a formula that is used to highlight the curren day within the project schedule. Passenger Rail Station Development Planning 3/1/21 5/11/21 and Design Activities

Passenger Rail Layover Facilities 3/1/21 6/30/21

Develop and update passenger rail forecasts 3/1/21 6/30/21

ell B Identify and Update Basic Capital Investment 8 5/1/21 11/15/21 co Needs for Various Passenger Rail Corridors ell B 9 Analyze Ongoing Maintenance Cost 11/1/21 1/5/22 co o w s Economic Development and Safety Analysis 8/14/21 1/10/22 10

Prepare for Grant Applications 12/1/21 3/1/22

T h e

Sample phase title block

Sample phase title block

East Central Intergovernmental Association - Passenger Rail Feasibility Study 19 Form 020096wd 05-02

CERTIFICATION OF RESTRICTIONS ON LOBBYING (for contracts or subcontracts with $100,000 or more value)

The undersigned (contractor) certifies, to the best of his/her knowledge and belief, that:

(1) No Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid, by or on behalf of the undersigned, to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with the awarding of any Federal contract, the making of any Federal loan, the entering into of any cooperative agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment, or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.

(2) If any funds other than Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for making lobbying contacts to an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with this Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement, the undersigned shall complete and submit Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure Form to Report Lobbying”, in accordance with it’s instruction as amended by government-wide guidance for new restrictions on lobbying 61 Fed. Reg. 1413(1/19/96).

(3) The undersigned shall require that the language of this certification be included in the award documents for all sub awards at all tiers (including subcontracts, sub grants, and contracts under grants, loans, and cooperative agreements) and that all sub recipients shall certify and disclose accordingly.

This certification is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when this transaction was made or entered into. Submission of this certificate is a prerequisite for making or entering into this transaction imposed by 31 USC 1352. Any person who fails to file the required certification shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000 and not more than $100,000 for each such failure.

The Contractor, Quandel Consultants, Inc certifies or affirms the truthfulness and accuracy of each statement of its certification and disclosure, if any. In addition, the Contractor understands and agrees that the provisions of 31 USC 3801, et. seq., apply to this certification and disclosure, if any.

Signature of Contractor’s Authorized Official

Charles H Quandel, President

December 18, 2020

20 GOVERNMENT-WIDE DEBARMENT AND SUSPENSION (NONPROCUREMENT) 49 CFR Part 29, Executive Orders 12549, 12689, and 31 U.S.C.6101 (Contracts over $25,000)

Background and Applicability In conjunction with the Office of Management and Budget and other affected Federal agencies, DOT published an update to 49 CFR Part 29 on November 26, 2003. This government-wide regulation implements Executive Order 12549, Debarment and Suspension, Executive Order 12689, Debarment and Suspension, and 31 U.S.C. 6101 note (Section 2455, Public Law 103-355, 108 Stat. 3327). The provisions of Part 29 apply to all grantee contracts and subcontracts at any level expected to equal or exceed $25,000 as well as any contract or subcontract (at any level) for Federally required auditing services. 49 CFR 29.220(b). This represents a change from prior practice in that the dollar threshold for application of these rules has been lowered from $100,000 to $25,000. These are contracts and subcontracts referred to in the regulation as “covered transactions.” Grantees, contractors, and subcontractors (at any level) that enter into covered transactions are required to verify that the entity (as well as its principals and affiliates) they propose to contract or subcontract with is not excluded or disqualified. They do this by (a) Checking the Excluded Parties List System, (b) Collecting a certification from that person, or (c) Adding a clause or condition to the contract or subcontract. This represents a change from prior practice in that certification is still acceptable but is no longer required. 49 CFR 29.300. Grantees, contractors, and subcontractors who enter into covered transactions also must require the entities they contract with to comply with 49 CFR 29, subpart C and include this requirement in their own subsequent covered transactions (i.e., the requirement flows down to subcontracts at all levels). Instructions for Certification: By signing and submitting this bid or proposal, the prospective lower tier participant is providing the signed certification set out below

Suspension and Debarment: This contract is a covered transaction for purposes of 49 CFR Part 29. As such, the contractor is required to verify that none of the contractor, its principals, as defined at 49 CFR 29.995, or affiliates, as defined at 49 CFR 29.905, are excluded or disqualified as defined at 49 CFR 29.940 and 29.945. The contractor is required to comply with 49 CFR 29, Subpart C and must include the requirement to comply with 49 CFR 29, Subpart C in any lower tier covered transaction it enters into. By signing and submitting its bid or proposal, the bidder or proposer certifies as follows: The certification in this clause is a material representation of fact relied upon by the recipient. If it is later determined that the bidder or proposer knowingly rendered an erroneous certification, in addition to remedies available to the recipient, the Federal Government may pursue available remedies, including but not limited to suspension and/or debarment. The bidder or proposer agrees to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR 29, Subpart C while this offer is valid and throughout the period of any contract that may arise from this offer. The bidder or proposer further agrees to include a provision requiring such compliance in its lower tier covered transactions.

Contractor _Quandel Consultants, Inc

Signature of Authorized Official______Date 12_/18_/_2020__

Name and Title of Contractor's Authorized Official_ Charles H Quandel, President

21 AGREEMENT TO 3RD PARTY CLAUSES

I have read the FTA 3rd Party Clauses to the RFP for Passenger Rail Feasibility Study, included in Appendix E, and agree to meet the requirements of these clauses.

______Signature

_President______Title

Quandel Consultants, Inc Firm

__December 18, 2020 Date

22 CHICAGO -QUAD CITIES CORRIDOR EXPANSION PROGRAM

Project Description Services Provided Quandel Consultants was selected by the Illinois Department of Transportation as • Track Design the Program Management Consultant (PMC) for the Chicago - Quad Cities Expansion • Corridor Modeling Program to support IDOT in managing and executing the program and fulfilling its • Operations Planning grant agreement obligations to the Federal Railroad Administration. The program • Bridge Inspection involved reinstating passenger rail service between Chicago and Moline after a 30 • Bridge Design year absence on rail rights of way owned by BNSF and the Iowa Interstate Railroad • Environmental Assessment (IAIS). Services provided by Quandel include: Project Duration: 2017-2020 Program Management: Serving as an extension of IDOT staff, Quandel was responsible for grant management and oversight of agency coordination, budget management, Client: Illinois Department finance, risk analysis, communications and outreach, quality assurance, document of Transportation control, project schedules and asset management. Quandel was also responsible for coordination activities with public agencies, railroads, consultants, private landowners, Reference: Elliot Ramos, IDOT and the public to complete the program work. [email protected] 847-732-1306

Engineering: Quandel performed field inspections of existing track, civil and structural infrastructure and provided concept and preliminary engineering services for track, civil and structural improvements on BNSF and IAIS necessary to support passenger rail service in the corridor. Quandel also provided engineering services for the station and layover facility and for communication and signal improvements, including CTC and PTC.

Environmental: Quandel provided environmental services for the corridor including environmental assessments and categorical exclusions in accordance with NEPA, prepared environmental assessments or Findings of No Significant Impact documents that will incorporate public agency reviews and public comments and managed the Section 404 permitting process.

Public Involvement: Quandel managed the preparation of public involvement and communication strategies, the development of the project websites, and media relations and the preparation of press releases.

Key Staff Involvement: Dan Schulte - Program Engineer Melanie Johnson - Lead NEPA Engineer Charles Hoppesch - Railroad Operations Modeling Mark Walbrun - Project Scheduling Bill Otter - Constructability and Staging Janet Henderson - Public Involvement

Quandel Consultants • 161 N. Clark Street • Suite 2060 • Chicago, IL 60601 • 312.634.6200 • QuandelConsultants.com 23 NORTHSTAR COMMUTER RAIL EXTENSION STUDY Project Description Quandel Consultants was selected by the Minnesota Department Services Provided of Transportation (MnDOT) and Metro Transit to evaluate the • Alternatives Analysis feasibility of expanding the Northstar commuter rail service to • Operations Modeling • Host Railroad Coordination St. Cloud, MN. The current Northstar service operates 6 daily • Service Planning round trips between Minneapolis, MN and Big Lake, MN on track • Rail Traffic Controller Modeling owned by BNSF Railway. Contracted: 2019 Major tasks included: Project Cost: $525,000 Client: • Identification of alternatives Minnesota Department of • Conducting a feasibility analysis of potential alternatives Transportation • Conceptual design of the infrastructure Francis Loetterle • Development of operating plans for different scenarios [email protected] • Coordinating with the host railroad 651-285-0332 • Service and start-up planning • Capital, operating, and maintenance cost estimates.

A key Quandel specialty is the definition of service alternatives which includes developing schedules and operating plans, identifying infrastructure improvements and associated capital costs, and creating engineering drawing that depict proposed track configurations. Quandel’s experience with Rail Traffic Controller (RTC) modeling, in partnership with BNSF, allows us to simulate various service alternatives on BNSF’s network to find the alternative which best meets the client’s needs. Key Staff Involvement: Melanie Johnson - Project Mgr Charles Hoppesch - Railroad Operations Modeling Bill Otter - Rail Operations and Capital Improvements

Quandel Consultants • 161 N. Clark Street • Suite 2060 • Chicago, IL 60601 • 312.634.6200 • QuandelConsultants.com 24 AS-NEEDED ENGINEERING SERVICES MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Project Description Services Provided • Railroad and Local Agency Over the past decade the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has Coordination partnered with FRA on several federal grant programs (ARRA, HSIPR, TIGER, CRISI) to • Engineering - Design and procure the Norfolk Southern track right-of-way from Kalamazoo to Dearborn and to Construction Support implement improvements necessary to enable increased train speeds and frequencies. • Program and Project Management Quandel Consultants was selected to provide program and project level engineering • Project Controls and management services to support MDOT’s implementation of improved passenger and freight rail services between Pontiac/Detroit and Chicago. Quandel Consultants Project Duration: 2011-Present provides a variety of engineering and management services to MDOT. Key services in this project include: Client: Michigan Department of Transportation Engineering Design and Construction Support: Quandel provided preliminary and final design and construction support services for the civil, track and signal improvement Reference: Robert Lippert, Jr., MDOT projects included in the MDOT program. Quandel completed a final design project [email protected] 517-230-4839 for 9 miles of new second mainline track, 18 at-grade crossings, two universal #20 crossovers, a #15 crossover, and a new #10 turnout to a freight yard. Quandel also prepared final designs for approximately 90 miles of curved track realignment and approximately 50 at-grade crossings impacted by the curve work. Quandel is involved with collecting survey and geotechnical data, utility coordination, permit acquisition and local agency coordination as part of the design process. Along with design work, Quandel is preparing cost estimates, bid documents, and assisting MDOT in the construction of these projects.

Program and Project Management: Quandel is assisting MDOT in managing over $400 million in grant funds for intercity rail improvements, as well as the unique responsibility of owning the railroad asset. Quandel is involved on a daily basis with program decisions, attends all FRA meetings and prepares materials required for reporting project status to FRA. Quandel is leading the development and monitoring of all of management plans required by the FRA grant including the Project Management Plan, Detailed Work Plan, Risk Management Plan, and Financial Plan. Quandel has written grant applications that have been successful in obtaining additional federal grant dollars. Quandel works closely with all project stakeholders including FRA, Amtrak and Norfolk Southern.

Project Controls: The MDOT program includes several projects being constructed through different contracts and procurement methods. In its project controls role, Quandel is monitoring the financial status of the program and implementing cost control and cost forecasting methods for each contractor. Quandel manages a program level schedule that updated to parallel individual project schedules. Quandel assists MDOT in developing contracts and agreements with construction, maintenance and operating contractors working in the corridor. Quandel is also reviewing the equipment, inventory, and labor use practices of its maintenance contractor, Amtrak.

Key Staff Involvement:

Dan Schulte - Project Manager Charles Hoppesch - Railroad Operations Modeling Bill Otter - Maintenance Cost Planning Melanie Johnson - Grant Writing

Quandel Consultants • 161 N. Clark Street • Suite 2060 • Chicago, IL 60601 • 312.634.6200 • QuandelConsultants.com 25