Action
Notice of Proposed Buy America waiver and request for comment.
Summary
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) received a request from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) for a Buy America non-availability waiver for the procurement of a proposed innovative electronic platform track intrusion system (PTIDS). LACMTA seeks to procure the PTIDS for research and testing purposes to determine whether such a system will help to increase rail safety by identifying obstacles in the right-of-way. PTIDS uses radar transponder technology, such as sensors, to detect intrusions on rail tracks. If an object is detected, the sensors immediately send notification to personnel who may then stop the train and take appropriate action. LACMTA seeks a waiver for the PTIDS because it contains twelve components, six of which only are available from a single source and currently are not manufactured in the United States. FTA is providing notice of the non-availability waiver request and seeks public comment before deciding whether to grant the request. If granted, the waiver only would apply to this one procurement of the specific PTIDS components identified in this waiver request, and not to any future procurement by LACMTA or others. FTA also is providing notice that it will conduct a supplier scouting search for domestic alternatives to the foreign components via the process described in this Notice.