---
title: "Interim Rural Public Transport Services"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-04791f"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04791f"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04791f.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04791f.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "BEDFORD BOROUGH COUNCIL"
published: "2024-07-30"
---

# Interim Rural Public Transport Services

Buyer: BEDFORD BOROUGH COUNCIL  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-04791f

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04791f.json)

## Summary

Bedford Borough Council has implemented an interim contract for rural public transport services starting from 1 August 2024 to 31 March 2025. This contract, worth £600,147, has been awarded to Cambus Ltd T/A Stagecoach East. The contract involves delivering 4 existing bus routes covering Bedford and nearby areas such as Peppercorn Park, Rushden, Ravensden, and Pertenhall. Due to extreme urgency and the deregistration of the incumbent bus operator, the contract was awarded without prior publication of a call for competition. The procurement is part of the services category and falls under CPV code 60112000, described as public road transport services. The procurement process adhered to Regulation 32 (2)(c) of Public Contract Regulation 2015, allowing an emergency award due to unforeseeable urgent circumstances.

This interim rural transport service contract presents a significant opportunity for businesses in the transport sector, particularly those capable of handling regional public transport. Companies with expertise in bus operations and rural area logistics would find this contract particularly beneficial. The predictable need for continued transport services and the fixed duration of this interim contract can prove to be a stable business growth opportunity for capable operators. This scenario may especially appeal to businesses familiar with the registration processes with Traffic Commissioners and those adept at rapidly fulfilling large-scale public service contracts.

## Notice

Bedford Borough Council is implementing an interim contract in respect of rural bus transport, from 1 August 2024 until 31 March 2025.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

The contracted bus operator will deliver 4 existing bus routes (Bedford - Peppercorn Park, Bedford - Rushden, Bedford - Ravensden, and Bedford - Pertenhall) for a period of 8 months.

### Procurement Information

This contract has been awarded for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the contracting authority, under Regulation 32 (2)(c) of Public Contract Regulation 2015. It had been anticipated that the current contract would be extended for a short eight month period commencing 1st August 2024, to allow for a new contract to commence April 2025. It has not been possible to procure a new contract, which is dependent on a network redesign, to commence in August 2024 due to the authority's obligations under the terms of its Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) grant funding which cease in the new financial year 2025/26. However, the current operator has now deregistered the services, meaning in order to continue to deliver our rural transport service for residents they must be performed by a different operator after 31 July 2024. The authority believes that the timescales of this, in combination with the timescales of registration of a new operator with the Traffic Commissioners, preclude a tender exercise and having satisfied itself that only one commercial operator other than the incumbent is capable of fulfilling the service, have awarded a contract to Cambus Ltd t/a Stagecoach East.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/023779-2024 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 30 Jul 2024 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 1 Jul 2024 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £600,147 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Cancelled |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | BEDFORD BOROUGH COUNCIL |
| Locality | BEDFORD |
| Post town | Milton Keynes |
| Postcode | MK42 9AP |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLH East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire |
| ITL 3 | TLH24 Bedford |
| Local authority | Bedford |
| Electoral ward | Cauldwell |
| Westminster constituency | Bedford |
| Delivery location | TLH24 Bedford |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 2 |
| Supplier names | CAMBUS LTD T/A; CAMBUS LTD T/A STAGECOACH EAST |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

### Codes

- 60112000 - Public road transport services

## Release History

- 30 Jul 2024 at 12:49 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/023779-2024
- 2 Jul 2024 at 13:06 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/020117-2024

## Notice URLs

- http://www.bedford.gov.uk

## 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-h6vhtk-04791f. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04791f.json.