---
title: "501 Local Bus Service - Dumfries to Castle Douglas to Kirkcudbright"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06e8c7"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06e8c7"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e8c7.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e8c7.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "Dumfries and Galloway Council"
published: "2026-08-20"
---

# 501 Local Bus Service - Dumfries to Castle Douglas to Kirkcudbright

Buyer: Dumfries and Galloway Council  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06e8c7

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## Summary

Dumfries and Galloway Council procured the 501 local bus service linking Dumfries, Castle Douglas and Kirkcudbright. The requirement is passenger transport with a driver, covering the routes set out in the service specification. The work is delivered along the Dumfries–Castle Douglas–Kirkcudbright corridor in Dumfries and Galloway. This is a public bus operation rather than a general vehicle-hire requirement: relevant businesses are passenger transport operators, bus and coach companies, and suppliers able to run scheduled local services. The procurement relates to a modification of the original contract under Regulation 72 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015. Dumfries and Galloway Council is the buying organisation and regional or local authority.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded. It used a limited procedure without prior publication of a call for competition, described as an award procedure outside the scope of the directive. The requirement was evaluated on quality at 40% and price at 60%. McCalls Coaches Ltd was awarded the contract, with the contract signed on 8 June 2026. The active contract value is £819,000 excluding any stated tax treatment, in GBP. The process records one bid, which came from an SME, and one electronic bid. The published lot is marked cancelled, while the award and associated contract are recorded as active. The procurement is identified as a modification to the original contract rather than a new competitive call.

This award indicates established demand from Dumfries and Galloway Council for a scheduled local bus service on the Dumfries–Castle Douglas–Kirkcudbright corridor. A credible competitor for a future requirement would need the operational capability to provide passenger transport with drivers across the specified routes, maintain reliable scheduled services, and manage delivery across several towns. The evaluation gives quality greater importance than price, so evidence of service reliability, operational planning, passenger experience and effective route delivery would matter alongside competitive pricing. The incumbent is an SME coach operator, showing that the requirement can be delivered by a specialist small or medium-sized passenger transport business rather than only a large national transport group. Experience running local bus or coach services would be directly relevant.

## Notice

Dumfries to Castle Douglas to Kirkcudbright 501 Local Bus Service

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Provision of passenger transport with the specification for 501 covering routes. This is a modification to the original contract under Reg72.

### Procurement Information

The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/079527-2026 |
| 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 | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 20 Aug 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 8 Jun 2026 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £819,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Dumfries and Galloway Council |
| Locality | DUMFRIES |
| Postcode area | Dumfries and Galloway |
| Postcode | DG1 2HP |
| Country | Scotland |
| ITL 1 | TLM Scotland |
| ITL 2 | TLM9 Southern Scotland |
| ITL 3 | TLM92 Dumfries and Galloway |
| Local authority | Dumfries and Galloway |
| Electoral ward | Nith |
| Westminster constituency | Dumfries and Galloway |
| Delivery location | TLM92 Dumfries and Galloway |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | McCalls Coaches Ltd |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

### Codes

- 60170000 - Hire of passenger transport vehicles with driver

## Release History

- 20 Aug 2026 at 14:54 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/079527-2026

## Notice URLs

- http://www.dumgal.gov.uk
- https://api.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/v1/Notice?id=ocds-r6ebe6-0000840740
- https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/Search_AuthProfile.aspx?ID=AA00219

## 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-06e8c7. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e8c7.json.