transport contracts

Durham County Council (DCC) are looking to explore a digital alternative to physical Home to School Transport bus passes to reduce costs, improve efficiency, strengthen fraud controls, and enhance user experience. The Council currently issues 7,000 physical passes involving manual processing, printing, and posting. This creates delays, requires high admin effort, and offers limited real-time visibility over eligibility, pass status, and usage. We are engaging the market to understand available digital solutions, technologies, and indicative costs to inform a future business case. Scope • Digital bus passes via mobile devices. • Verification (visual/scannable) including offline options. • Real‑time activation/deactivation. • Technical capability to interface with other digital systems eg. Flexiroute. • Fraud‑prevention features. • Hybrid digital/physical options for users who are digitally excluded. • Pass lifecycle management, including issuing, suspension, reinstatement, replacement, expiry, and renewal where applicable. • Support for policy‑driven business rules (e.g. eligibility changes or temporary entitlement). This notice forms part of our preliminary market engagement, offering you the opportunity to share feedback and comments before the opportunity is released for formal tender submissions. Interested providers can access the written response questions, free of charge, by registering on the Open Portal at www.open-uk.org The deadline for completed responses is Friday 29th May 2026 at 12 noon.

The tender is designed to promote and continue the public transport links in Sunderland, offering a service to the staff and students attending the University of Sunderland, as well as the general public.

Tees Valley Combined Authority (the 'Contracting Authority'), part of the Tees Valley Combined Authority Group are seeking to reprocure Supported Bus Services across the Tees Valley region. Within this tender, the services below are separated into lots. Providers can bid on as few or as many lots as they deem appropriate. Each lot has a separate financial threshold. A maximum budget of £15,049,000 is available to deliver these contracts including the utilisation of all options to extend. For more information about this opportunity, please visit the eSourcing portal at: https://teesvalley.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-Darlington:-Public-road-transport-services./3VQ37RDQ8J To respond to this opportunity, please click here: https://teesvalley.delta-esourcing.com/respond/3VQ37RDQ8J

Durham County County are seeking one provider to undertake daily cleaning and janitorial duties within the bus stations, located across Durham County. A cleaning schedule will be implemented to ensure all key tasks are completed on a daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly basis, as well as a yearly deep clean. There are 5 bus stations in scope of this procurement, all located within County Durham: Bishop Auckland Bus Station Consett Bus Station Durham Bus Station Peterlee Bus Station Stanley Bus Station Full tender documents can be accessed, free of charge, by registering on the Open Portal at www.open-uk.org The proposed contract period is 1st September 2026 - 31st August 2028, with an option to extend a further 1 x 24-months, at the Council's sole discretion.

Nexus will be tendering for the detailed design and associated works to refurbish three battery locomotives, bespoke to the Nexus Metro network, which have become unreliable and not fit for purpose. The locomotives were originally supplied by Hunslet-GMT in the early 1990's and are a key asset in the emergency recovery of Nexus rolling stock and movement of the rail head treatment train across the Metro railway. Currently network operates from a 1500V DC overhead line system, the battery locos are approved to operate on Network Rail assets, although is not necessarily required to maintain this approval. The refurbishment will encompass: Traction and Solid‑State Power Systems Modernisation of the traction equipment (motor alternator and motor generator set) using solid‑state power technology and power electronics. Mechanical Systems & Running Gear Overhaul of structural components, suspension, wheelsets, and key mechanical assemblies. Electrical & Control Systems Renewal of high voltage and auxiliary electrical systems upgraded control equipment, and readiness for future signalling integration. Braking Systems Refurbishment and commissioning of brake discs and brake system. Cab and Operator Environment Improvements to the cab environment (sealing, comfort, ergonomics) and general enhancements Potential suppliers will be given an opportunity to view the vehicles as part of the market engagement exercise, prior to a formal procurement. Design Requirements The design requirements for the battery locomotives are: - Maximum speed 55kph - Pantograph height above rail when lowered - 3555mm - Pantograph height when fully raised - 5666mm - Vehicle width - 2600mm - Wheel diameter - 838mm - Cab height above rail - 3160mm - Wheelbase - 2500mm - Length over buffers - 7500mm - Length over extended coupler - 9000mm - Tare / gross weight - 26.25t - Couplers are Bergische Stahl Industrie (BSI) with a standard screw coupling - Wheel arrangement is 0-4-0 - Continuous power rating of 180hp - High voltage circuit - supply from 1500V DC overhead line system - Indusi track brake equipment - Lead Acid traction battery - 540V, 116kWh at 5-hour discharge - Low voltage circuits, - 110V, 24V - Traction motor (one) - 180hp, 540V DC force ventilated. Estimated value: £1,000,000 - £2,000,000

Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive t/a Nexus are seeking to appoint a Principal Contractor to carry out and complete the Airport Route Upgrade works between Newcastle International Airport station and Longbenton (Tyne and Wear). The upgrade works consists of the replacement and renewal of permanent way assets and overhead line equipment. This will include renewal of specified areas of track, which have reached the end of their serviceable life, tamping to achieve a new through alignment, offloading ballast and stressing along with replacing an existing fixed tension overhead line system with a new automatically tensioned system. Certain civil engineering and signalling activities may also form part of the overall scope.

The Tees Valley Combined Authority seeks to engage the market through this Pre-Tender Market Engagement (PTME) exercise in preparation for the potential procurement of a bus shelter supply and fit framework covering various areas of the Tees Valley region. Collaboration with the supply chain is central to our approach to delivering an enhanced customer experience for those travelling by bus. While the Contracting Authority will maintain commercial confidentiality of information received during the PTME, its output will be communicated to potential suppliers as part of any subsequent procurement exercises. For more information about this opportunity, please visit the eSourcing portal at: https://teesvalley.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-Darlington:-Bus-shelters./6NNBN2M4SP To respond to this opportunity, please click here: https://teesvalley.delta-esourcing.com/respond/6NNBN2M4SP

Provision and Maintenance of Street Lighting and Highway Signs

The Contracting Authority intends to procure a Principal Contractor to deliver Switches and Crossings (S&C) renewal works at: • Chillingham Road S&C - 3014A/B points, and • Gateshead S&C - 7001A/B points (pending internal approval). This notice is issued for advance market awareness only and does not commence a call for competition. The works will comprise the full renewal of life expired S&C assets originally installed in the early 1980s using 113 lb/yd flat bottom rail on timber bearers. Recent inspections confirm the assets have reached end of serviceable life. Key elements are expected to include: • Removal of existing timber S&C layouts and associated components. • Installation of modern modular S&C comprising: - Concrete bearers with under bearer pads. - Shallow depth switches to suit existing formation constraints. - Cast manganese monoblock crossings. • Upgrade to 56 kg/m flat bottom rail (EN 13674 1 compliant). • Continuous welded rail (CWR) on closure and approach tracks. • Associated signalling and OHL disconnections, reconnections and testing necessary to deliver the works. The stated completion date is subject to change as line closure dates for Gateshead have not yet been confirmed. For the purpose of this notice, should Nexus proceed with the Gateshead works, it is assumed works will take place during a February 2027 closure with follow-up works in March 2027. Exact details will be confirmed within the tender documents when released. Chillingham Road works will be undertaken during a 54-hour line closure between 24 and 26 October 2026. The tender will be released via the OPEN eProcurement portal www.open-uk.org Interested suppliers should ensure they are registered on the portal and that their contact details and notification preferences are up to date to ensure they do not miss this opportunity upon release. Nexus are aiming to release this tender on 20 May 2026.

NHS North East North Cumbria Integrated Care Board is managing this market engagement exercise for the provision of a Mental Health Secure Patient Transport Service across the North East and North Cumbria Region. NENC ICB is issuing a Request for Information (RFI) to engage with the market and to gather information in order to gain a better understanding of both the capacity and appetite of the market in delivering Mental Health Secure Transport Services across the North East and North Cumbria.