Award

Bus Franchising Contract Management System

LIVERPOOL CITY REGION COMBINED AUTHORITY

This public procurement record has 4 releases in its history.

Award

17 Feb 2026 at 11:57

TenderUpdate

10 Dec 2025 at 07:58

Tender

08 Dec 2025 at 09:49

Planning

21 Aug 2025 at 07:16

Summary of the contracting process

The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) has completed the award phase of its procurement process for the "Bus Franchising Contract Management System" as of 17 February 2026. This public procurement focused on developing a robust, scalable, and data-driven contract management system, tailored to manage bus franchising operations across the Liverpool region effectively. The system aims to deliver end-to-end management of franchise contracts, ensuring performance monitoring, payment accuracy, and service quality. The procurement was conducted using an open procedure, in compliance with the legal framework provided by UKPGA 2023/54, and is located in the United Kingdom, specifically in the Liverpool area. The awarded contract, valued at £1,392,000, is set to commence on 10 March 2026, with a potential extension of up to 12 months leading to a total contract period until 2033.

This tender presents significant business growth opportunities particularly for IT service providers specialising in contract management and performance monitoring systems. SMEs like netBI Pty Ltd, the awarded supplier, who bring expertise in developing modern, cloud-based, and fully auditable systems, are ideally positioned to deliver the required solutions and services. The contract seeks innovation in IT services, including consulting, software development, and support, making it an excellent opportunity for businesses with capabilities in these areas to expand their market reach. It is advantageous for companies operating within the UK and EU due to data hosting requirements and PCI compliance demands, especially those with a focus on enhancing operational efficiencies in public transport management systems.

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Notice Title

Bus Franchising Contract Management System

Notice Description

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) is preparing to implement bus franchising across the region, with the first franchised services scheduled to commence on 6 September 2026. As part of this transformation, LCRCA requires a robust, scalable and data-driven approach to contract management, payments and performance monitoring, with the system required to provide consistent, high-quality data across all operators, routes and reporting periods. LCRCA requires a modern, cloud-based, fully auditable system that delivers end-to-end management of franchise contracts and ensures accurate, repeatable and reliable calculation of operator payments. The CMS and PPC (Payment Performance Calculator) must give LCRCA and franchise operators a clear, shared view of live performance, contractual obligations, lost mileage, variations, KPI outcomes and payment adjustments. The solution must reduce manual intervention, increase operational efficiency, and support the delivery of a consistent, region-wide performance framework that helps improve service quality, reliability and customer experience.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: The Authority may request the extension of this agreement in respect of the whole (or part) of the Services and on the same terms for two periods of up to 12 months' each.

Planning Information

LCRCA will be hosting an online 60-minute presentation session via Teams for interested suppliers between Tuesday 9 September and Wednesday 10 September. LCRCA will present a slideshow for approx. 15mins, outlining the requirement and the expected quality levels we are looking for from bidders, with the remaining session time available for interested suppliers to ask questions. Interested suppliers should confirm their attendance to the presentation session to Martin.McLoughlin@liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk and Karl.Bradbury@liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk by no later than midday on Friday 5 September 2025; following which they will be sent an invite to the presentation session. A Q&A sheet capturing the discussion, and the presentation slides will be shared as part of the tender documentation for suppliers unable to attend the session.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-058bbf
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/014240-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support


CPV Codes

72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£680,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
£680,000 £500K-£1M
Awards Value
£1,392,000 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
17 Feb 20265 days ago
Submission Deadline
12 Jan 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
3 Nov 2025Expired
Award Date
16 Feb 20261 weeks ago
Contract Period
10 Mar 2026 - 9 Mar 2031 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Pending
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
LIVERPOOL CITY REGION COMBINED AUTHORITY
Contact Name
Not specified
Contact Email
tender@liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
LIVERPOOL
Postcode
L3 1BP
Post Town
Liverpool
Country
England

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLD North West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLD7 Merseyside
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLD72 Liverpool
Delivery Location
TLD7 Merseyside

Local Authority
Liverpool
Electoral Ward
Waterfront South
Westminster Constituency
Liverpool Riverside

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

NETBI

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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