Agenda item

Cllr Philip Robinson, on behalf of himself and Cllr David Gray, sought Cabinet approval to procure and award the following:

1. A seven-year contract for a high frequency bus service to serve the new Arle Court Transport Hub. The proposed contract shall operate for an initial period of seven years and include an option to extend its term for a further period of not more than three years.

2. A ten-year concession contract, with up to a five-year extension to operate a café concession at the new Arle Court Transport Hub.

Having considered all the information, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to:

Delegate authority to the Executive Director: Economy, Environment and Infrastructure in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Education, Skills and Bus Transport to:

1. Conduct a competitive procurement process, via the current transport dynamic purchasing system in respect of a contract for the supply of a high frequency park and ride bus service between Arle Court Transport Hub and Cheltenham Town Centre. The proposed contract shall continue for an initial period of seven years and include an option to extend its term for a further period of not more than three years;

2. Award such contract to the preferred tenderer;

3. To undertake a review of passenger demand before the end of the initial two-year contract period to decide the most efficient frequency and identify the necessary funding during years three to ten; and,

4. Determine whether to exercise the option to extend the contract for a further period of not more three years on the expiry of the initial seven-year term.

And

Delegate authority to the Executive Director: Economy, Environment and Infrastructure in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning to:

5. Conduct a competitive procurement process in respect of a concession contract to fit out and operate a café at the Arle Court Transport Hub. The proposed contract shall continue for an initial period of ten years and include an option to extend its term for a further period of not more than five years;

6. Award such contract to the preferred tenderer; and

7. Determine whether to exercise the option to extend the contract for a further period of not more five years on the expiry of the initial ten-year term.

9.1     Cllr Philip Robinson, on behalf of himself and Cllr David Gray,sought Cabinet approval to procure and award the following:

1. A seven-year contract for a high frequency bus service to serve the new Arle Court Transport Hub. The proposed contract shall operate for an initial period of seven years and include an option to extend its term for a further period of not more than three years.

2. A ten-year concession contract, with up to a five-year extension to operate a café concession at the new Arle Court Transport Hub.

9.2     Cllr Robinson outlined that in May 2023, construction of the new £33m transport hub at the existing Arle Court Park and Ride site commenced, completion of the multi-storey and park and ride bus interchange was due in July 2024. An ambitious upgrade to the existing Arle Court Park and Ride site was included as part of the overall Homes England funded package for junction 10 improvements.

9.3     The full completion date for the overall Arle Court Transport Hub was November 2024.This included the redevelopment of the West Car Park (Phase 3), for drop off, campervan, long-stay, coach parking and full catering facilities completion.

9.4     The new hub opened-up journey opportunities from west of Cheltenham, providing a key link into coach operator networks as well as servicing the important Cheltenham to Gloucester corridor. A 20-minute frequency park and ride bus service was currently contracted with Stagecoach but this expired in November 2024, and therefore a replacement contract was required.

9.5     To encourage modal shift and for the Council to control fares, it was proposed the contract is let on a Revenue Guarantee basis and at an increased frequency of every 15 minutes. Revenue Guarantee meant that the operator’s revenue was guaranteed by the Council through the contract price, but GCC kept the fare.

9.6     To ensure that high standards are maintained for users it was proposed to use the authority’s existing Dynamic Purchasing System (which only used approved registered bus operators) and implement an Advanced Quality Partnership Scheme (AQPS) which would permit the Council to specify minimum standards such as vehicle age, minimum frequency and maximum fares covering both supported and commercial bus services.

9.7     It was estimated that the cost of the contract would be around £4.55m over a 7-year period and if GCC chose to exercise its 3-year extension option, this would total £6.5m over 10 years. Noting this was a considerable amount of public money, before the end of year two, there would be a review of passenger demand and service frequency to assess what the Council were receiving in income against that demand, and therefore determine the most affordable and efficient approach.

9.8     Many new facilities were included in the passenger hub of the new Arle Court multi-storey car park, including a waiting area, coach driver rest room facilities, public and fully accessible toilets, washing amenities and the accommodation for a café facility. The investment by a catering contractor was estimated to be over £100K capital. It was noted that attracting a suitable supplier and subsequent income stream might be challenging and extensive market testing and engagement with local and national providers was crucial in securing a supplier.

9.9     The contract term proposed was up to fifteen years (i.e.,10 years plus a 5-year option to extend) subject to the appointed concessionaire meeting key performance indicators. Timescales meant that the concessionaire contract and fit out would enable the facility to be operational by November 2024. 

Having considered all the information, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to:

Delegate authority to the Executive Director: Economy, Environment and Infrastructure in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Education, Skills and Bus Transport to:

1. Conduct a competitive procurement process, via the current transport dynamic purchasing system in respect of a contract for the supply of a high frequency park and ride bus service between Arle Court Transport Hub and Cheltenham Town Centre. The proposed contract shall continue for an initial period of seven years and include an option to extend its term for a further period of not more than three years;

2. Award such contract to the preferred tenderer;

3. To undertake a review of passenger demand before the end of the initial two-year contract period to decide the most efficient frequency and identify the necessary funding during years three to ten; and,

4. Determine whether to exercise the option to extend the contract for a further period of not more three years on the expiry of the initial seven-year term.

And

Delegate authority to the Executive Director: Economy, Environment and Infrastructure in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning to:

5. Conduct a competitive procurement process in respect of a concession contract to fit out and operate a café at the Arle Court Transport Hub. The proposed contract shall continue for an initial period of ten years and include an option to extend its term for a further period of not more than five years;

6. Award such contract to the preferred tenderer; and

7. Determine whether to exercise the option to extend the contract for a further period of not more five years on the expiry of the initial ten-year term.