---
title: "Lewis and Harris School and Public Bus Service 2026-31"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "Comhairle nan Eilean Siar"
published: "2026-09-11"
---

# Lewis and Harris School and Public Bus Service 2026-31

Buyer: Comhairle nan Eilean Siar  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d.json)

## Summary

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar procured school and public bus services across Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. The requirement covers routes throughout both islands and is a public road transport service. It is arranged as one requirement covering delivery of school transport and public bus services throughout Lewis and Harris, serving school users and the wider public. The buying organisation is Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, the local authority based in Stornoway. The relevant service category is public road transport services (CPV 60112000). The requirement concerns the operation of bus routes rather than the supply of vehicles or a standalone transport consultancy service, so it is most relevant to passenger transport operators with the ability to provide scheduled and school services across the islands.

This procurement has been awarded and the tender is complete. Comhairle nan Eilean Siar used a limited negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice, after an earlier open procurement was abandoned because the tenders received could not meet its needs. The award was made to Lochs Motor Transport Ltd, and the contract is active. The contract was signed on 10 September 2026 and has a value of £20,000,000. The requirement is for a five-year period. There was one lot covering school and public bus services throughout Lewis and Harris. The stated rationale relied on the absence of suitable tenders or participation requests in the earlier open procedure. The procurement was covered by the Government Procurement Agreement.

This award shows sustained local-authority demand for an integrated school and public bus operation across Lewis and Harris at substantial scale. A future competitor would need to operate passenger transport services across the islands, cover routes throughout the area and meet both school-transport and public-service requirements. Credibility would depend on demonstrable operational capacity: the ability to run a sizeable network reliably, coordinate services for different passenger groups and maintain continuity across a geographically dispersed island area. The selected supplier is recorded as an SME, showing that the requirement can be delivered by a suitably capable smaller operator rather than only by a national transport group. Businesses assessing a future opportunity should therefore focus on proven local route operations, dependable fleet and driver capacity, and experience delivering contracted school and public bus services for a local authority.

## Notice

This requirement is for school and public bus services in Lewis and Harris, na h-Eileanan an Iar (the Outer Hebrides), Scotland, United Kingdom for a five year period.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Delivery of school and Public Bus Services throughout Lewis and Harris

### Procurement Information

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar intends to award this contract using the negotiated procedure without prior publication under the conditions of regulation 33(1)(a) of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 (the "Regulations"). The Comhairle previously conducted a procurement under the open procedure for the provision of services to which this contract relates, which was advertised in terms of contract notice AUG561826 dated 6 August 2026 (the "Procurement"). The Comhairle decided to abandon the Procurement on the basis that none of the tenders received was capable of meeting the Comhairle's needs and requirements as specified in the procurement documents relative to the Procurement

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/086429-2026 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Negotiated without publication of a contract notice |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 11 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £20,000,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Comhairle nan Eilean Siar |
| Locality | STORNOWAY |
| Postcode area | Outer Hebrides |
| Postcode | HS1 2BW |
| Country | Scotland |
| ITL 1 | TLM Scotland |
| ITL 2 | TLM2 Highlands and Islands |
| ITL 3 | TLM20 Highlands and Islands |
| Local authority | Na h-Eileanan Siar |
| Electoral ward | Steòrnabhagh a Deas |
| Westminster constituency | Na h-Eileanan an Iar |
| Delivery location | TLM64 Na h-Eileanan Siar |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | LOCHS MOTOR TRANSPORT LTD |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

### Codes

- 60112000 - Public road transport services

## Release History

- 11 Sep 2026 at 13:54 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/086429-2026

## Notice URLs

- http://www.cne-siar.gov.uk
- https://api.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/v1/Notice?id=ocds-r6ebe6-0000842694
- https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=842694
- https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/Search_AuthProfile.aspx?ID=AA00262

## 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-06f81d. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f81d.json.