Once ABA gauged the situation on how difficult life would be for the industry because of COVID-19, we immediately requested an extension to provide relief for overburdened operators and maintain continuing business opportunities for the industry moving forward.
Today, we received the following announcement from the Department of Defense regarding the Military Bus Agreement as a result of ABA's request:
"We understand the significant impact that Coronavirus (COVID-19) is having on the travel industry. It is for this reason that the Defense Travel Management Office is extending the Military Bus Agreement #4 termination date until April 30, 2020.
"DoD-approved carriers that do not apply for the DoD Bus Agreement #5 will not be able to bid on future DoD moves after this date. The termination of Military Bus Agreement #4 does not affect the rights or obligations that have vested or accrued prior to the effective date of such termination.
"All carriers, including DoD-approved carriers, interested in participating in the DoD Bus Program under DoD Bus Agreement #5 must submit a new DoD Bus Program Carrier application here.
"Please be patient as we work to quickly approve applications and answer your questions. The processing time to review bus applications is taking longer than expected due to the increased workload related to COVID-19. We will continue to monitor the situation and will adjust the termination date, if needed.
"If you have any questions, email: dodhra.mc-alex.dtmo.mbx.military-bus-program@mail.mil.
For reference, the DoD Bus Agreement #5 is available here."
If you would like a refresher on the DOD program changes, on March 11 ABA held a webinar that discussed the requirements and showed a demo of the GOPAX system. You can watch the webinar, here.