---
title: "S30048 Drone Road User Distraction"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "NATIONAL HIGHWAYS LIMITED"
published: "2025-12-19"
---

# S30048 Drone Road User Distraction

Buyer: NATIONAL HIGHWAYS LIMITED  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306

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## Summary

National Highways Limited, located in Birmingham, England, is managing a public procurement process titled "S30048 Drone Road User Distraction" within the development consultancy services sector. The contract, awarded to Ove Arup, a large-scale supplier based in Newcastle, is valued at £176,470.49. This procurement is part of a selective tender method, involving a call-off from a framework agreement, and has now progressed to the award stage as of 18th December 2025. The contract period commences on 1st January 2026 and concludes on 31st January 2027, covering multiple locations including the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, and other international regions. The initiative aims to research safe operational distances for drones relative to road users.

This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses specialising in consultancy services, particularly those with expertise in drone operations and safety assessments as per the Civil Aviation Authority regulations. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can particularly benefit from such procurements due to the suitability requirement emphasis. Companies involved in research and development, as well as those experienced with safety risk assessments in the transport sector, are well-positioned to engage in this project and contribute to the evolving needs of drone usage and safety standards in highway settings.

## Notice

National Highways wish to appoint specialist technical consultants to undertake research to understand whether separation distances, between drones operated by/on behalf of National Highways and road users, can be safely reduced from the currently permitted 50 metres as defined in GG 954 - Drone Operations. Specifically, National Highways is seeking to establish whether flights at distances as low as 10 metres can be undertaken without distracting divers, enabling the potential for many more drone flights to meet growing business needs. Drone use for/on behalf of National Highways is governed by CAA regulations, CAP 722, as well as our own DMRB Drone Standard, GG 954 - Drones Operations. Projects wishing to use drones must submit a GG 104 Safety Risk Assessment to the relevant National Highways review body, evidencing the safety benefits of using a drone when compared to the 'baseline' way of working. In short, use of a drone must be safer than, or at least as safe as, the baseline way of working. A reduction in separation distances is permitted by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), subject to the Drone Operator being granted an Operation Safety Case by the CAA. Likewise, GG 954 - Drones Operations makes provision for reduced separation distances, subject to 'acceptance' from the Drone safety Control Review Group (SCRG) or National Safety Control Review Group (NSCRG). However, despite there being a route to potential acceptance of flights at distances less than 50 metres, those accepted so far have been in very specific circumstances and where flights could be visible to drivers, have required risk mitigation due to a lack of research/evidence available to understand the extent of what may/may not distract drivers at distances less than 50 metres.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/dd1acd9d-3f7d-495c-8e02-af18cbb92c63 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Framework |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Selective |
| Procurement method details | Call-off from a framework agreement |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 19 Dec 2025 |
| Submission deadline | 26 Nov 2025 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 18 Dec 2025 |
| Contract period | 1 Jan 2026 - 31 Jan 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £180,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £176,470 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | NATIONAL HIGHWAYS LIMITED |
| Locality | BIRMINGHAM |
| Post town | Birmingham |
| Postcode | B4 6GA |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLG West Midlands (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLG3 West Midlands |
| ITL 3 | TLG31 Birmingham |
| Local authority | Birmingham |
| Electoral ward | Ladywood |
| Westminster constituency | Birmingham Ladywood |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | OVE ARUP |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 73220000 - Development consultancy services

## Release History

- 19 Dec 2025 at 08:00 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/dd1acd9d-3f7d-495c-8e02-af18cbb92c63

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/dd1acd9d-3f7d-495c-8e02-af18cbb92c63
  19th December 2025 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-5b32f709-f497-4199-a6fc-8ede4dd16306.json.