UK Public Sector Contracts & Tenders

Painting of the Meadowhall Link bridge between the transport interchange and the shopping centre

The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is the owner of the South Yorkshire Supertram System, a 35.5km light rail network operating primarily in the city of Sheffield, England. The operation of the network is undertaken by South Yorkshire Future Trams Limited, which is a subsidiary of SYMCA. There are four routes currently in operation, the Blue route between Halfway and Malin Bridge; Yellow route between Meadowhall and Middlewood; Purple route between Herdings Park and Cathedral; and Tram Train between Rotherham Parkgate and Cathedral. Current situation On occasions, tram services are unable to run, which may relate to planned or unplanned engineering works or events on the network. Planned events typically include engineering works. These are normally scheduled for around 6 to 9 weeks per year, affecting certain sections of the network. The trams run to temporary timetables with replacement buses running to fill in parts of the network not operating. Works are planned by the end of the calendar year for the following year, subject to change. Work is normally planned across weekends, Bank Holidays, and school holidays when the network is quieter. To date, SYMCA has procured short term contracts for each service. There are occasions where unplanned events mean that trams cannot run. These are infrastructure failures or incidents on/adjacent to the tramway (e.g. emergency service incidents or weather conditions). In these situations, operators of local bus services will usually agree to accept tram passengers with valid tickets. Whilst this may be acceptable for short periods of disruption (e.g. hours), for longer periods (e.g. multiple days), this is not always satisfactory in the eyes of passengers and stakeholders. Objective SYMCA is reviewing its approach to tram replacement bus services and would like to engage with the market to help develop its strategy. We believe that establishing a framework for services will provide a more efficient service than current. This will provide efficiencies and make it easier to manage. SYMCA are considering different options for structuring the framework. For example, two lots – one for planned works and another for unplanned events, recognising that it may be more challenging for some operators to resource at short notice. We would also like to improve the customer experience for tram passengers during times of disruption and provide a consistent service. Customer insight demonstrates that passengers value the reliability of tram services and in times of disruption, it is essential that they have confidence in alternative transport. Current issues include through ticketing, live tracking and other online travel tools, announcements, information across drivers, incident management and complimentary timetables between bus and tram services. SYMCA would like to explore some of the themes with the market to understand how these could be addressed through the specification and working with successful supplier(s) (dependent on the framework structure) to provide a service which meets the needs of tram passengers. SYMCA invites suppliers who may be interested in providing services to register their interest via ProContract. SYMCA may choose to contact suppliers to undertake market engagement activity prior to any formal tender being advertised. For clarity, the Supertram system currently provides accessible transport for those with impaired mobility and SYMCA intends the subsequent contracting opportunity to specify that vehicles must meet the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000.

This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to advise prospective suppliers of the upcoming market engagement for Enterprise Asset Management software to manage the Tramway assets owned by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) and to invite them to participate in a pre-tender market consultation exercise. The aim of the exercise is to provide early information and gain feedback to help inform the proposed procurement and contracting strategy.

This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to advise prospective suppliers of the upcoming market engagement for the refurbishment of 25 trams owned by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) and to invite them to participate in a pre-tender market consultation exercise. The aim of the exercise is to provide early information and gain feedback to help inform the proposed procurement and contracting strategy. The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is a formal partnership of councils that shapes policy and leads on decision-making. Formed in 2014, the constituent members of the Mayoral Combined Authority are Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley, and Doncaster councils. SYMCA own the South Yorkshire Supertram System, which commenced operation in 1994. YMCA is now embarking on wide ranging renewal programme of Supertram that will see significant investment and improvement across all aspects of the system over the coming years. a. South Yorkshire Combined Mayoral Authority owns a fleet of 25 Siemens trams which were manufactured in 1996. The trams are 37m in length and comprise 3 cars fastened together with 4 bogies. b. These vehicles have suffered varying degrees of corrosion to the underframe structure and require repair. The process is likely to involve removal of most of the vehicle interiors and underframe equipment, including removal of the wooden floors. c. A small number of electrical and mechanical improvements and repairs are intended to be included, taking advantage of the stripped-down nature of the vehicle.

1. This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to advise prospective contractors to the upcoming market engagement for the Supertram trackwork improvement framework and to invite them to participate in a pre-tender market consultation exercise. The aim of the exercise is to provide early information and gain feedback to help inform the proposed procurement and contracting strategy. 2. The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is a formal partnership of councils that shapes policy and leads on decision-making. Formed in 2014, the constituent members of the Mayoral Combined Authority are Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster councils. SYMCA own the South Yorkshire Supertram System, which commenced operation in 1994. SYMCA is now embarking on wide ranging renewal programme of Supertram that will see significant investment and improvement across all aspects of the system over the coming years. The initial renewal activity is focussed on trackwork improvements including rail replacement, with works required to commence on site in early 2024. 3. Market Engagement Event This document and subsequent market engagement event is published in advance of any procurement competition with the aim of: • Informing the market of the current system status, the proposed works, scope and durations. • to gain insights into the wider market for rail replacement, specifically within the light rail sector and understand the appetite for the quantum of work proposed • to understand challenges and concerns within the industry that may allow SYMCA to shape work packages to suit the market. • to help develop an output-based specification that maximises competition in the marketplace • To gauge market appetite for the intended scope of services • to gain an understanding of how suppliers prefer to work within a framework environment. The event will consist of a supplier presentation and site visit, with the option of short duration individual Q&A sessions, as requested. The event will take place on the 11th and/or 12th July 2023 depending on the level interest received. Further details will be provided upon registering interest. Please register your interest for the event by sending a message via the ProContract messaging platform including the name and contact details for the proposed attendees (max 2 per organisation). 4. Important Information Interested parties will not be prejudiced by any response or failure to attend the market engagement event and response to this notice does not guarantee any invitation to participate in any future public procurement process that SYMCA may conduct At this stage, this is purely a market engagement exercise. Any subsequent procurement will be advertised separately and all organisations wishing to participate will need to respond to the contract notice advertising the procurement when this is published. The responses received during the market analysis exercise will not be considered as part of any future bid response The procurement remains subject to approval. This notice does not constitute a call for competition to procure any services for SYMCA and SYMCA is not bound to accept any proposals offered. SYMCA is not liable for any costs, fees or expenses incurred by any party participating in the market engagement event. Any procurement of any services by SYMCA in due course will be carried out strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. SYMCA does not intend to be bound by any information at this stage and makes no commitment to incorporate any recommendations or suggestions within the final procurement documents.

This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to advise prospective suppliers to the upcoming market engagement for the Supertram Automatic Vehicle Location and Customer Information System Upgrade and to invite them to participate in a pre-tender market consultation exercise. The aim of the exercise is to provide early information and gain feedback to help inform the proposed procurement and contracting strategy. The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is a formal partnership of councils that shapes policy and leads on decision-making. Formed in 2014, the constituent members of the Mayoral Combined Authority are Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster councils. SYMCA own the South Yorkshire Supertram System, which commenced operation in 1994. SYMCA is now embarking on wide ranging renewal programme of Supertram that will see significant investment and improvement across all aspects of the system over the coming years. An initial activity is focussed on upgrading/renewing the existing Automatic Vehicle Location System and Customer Information System to improve customer experience through improved reliability, functionality and management of operations on the Supertram network. Market Engagement Event This document and subsequent market engagement event is published in advance of any procurement competition with the aim of: • Informing the market of the current system status, the current requirements, scope and durations. • to gain insights into the wider market for automatic vehicle location (AVL) systems (software and hardware) including prediction engines and content management system (CMS), particularly for vehicles operating within the light rail (tramway) and heavy-rail sectors (under a ‘tram-train’ arrangement). • to understand how the market believes the desired outcomes should be achieved from gaining an awareness of the current systems and aspirations for the Supertram system. This includes technical and commercial/procurement considerations. • to understand challenges and concerns within the industry that may allow SYMCA to shape work packages to suit the market. • to help develop an output-based specification that maximises competition in the marketplace • to gauge market appetite for the intended scope of services • to gain an appreciation of expectations of commercial terms and conditions associated with this type of service. The event will consist of a supplier information presentation (online and in-person) including a Q&A session and a visit to the existing control room. The event will take place on the 11th or 12th of September 2023. Further details will be provided upon registering interest. Please register your interest for the event by sending a message via the ProContract messaging platform including the name and contact details for the proposed attendees (max 2 per organisation) and whether you wish to attend in person or online. SYMCA may also invite certain respondents to follow-up discussions where we consider it necessary to clarify or supplement a response. It is not considered feasible or necessary to hold meetings with all of those that make submissions or with all service providers.

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