Official UK procurement notice
Bus Contract Management System (Bus CMS)
Authority: Transport for Wales
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionTransport for Wales (TfW) is seeking a supplier to provide, implement and support a Contract Management System (CMS) to underpin the delivery of franchised bus services across Wales.
The Welsh bus network currently comprises around 700 routes, tendered individually by local authorities within a deregulated market. On behalf of Welsh Ministers, TfW will transition this network to a franchised model by 2030, adopting a four-phase regional rollout (South West Wales, North Wales, South East Wales, Mid Wales). It is anticipated that approximately 120 total contracts will be let across those phases.
Managing contracts of this number and complexity requires a single system that can scale with each phase, hold data and contractual obligations consistently across the whole network and support accurate performance and payment management. The central aim is to automate as much of the contract management process as possible, reducing manual intervention and minimising risk of error.
The system is required to support five core contract management processes:
Contract recording and general compliance
Contract change
Performance management (including an incentive and deduction regime)
Operator payments
Asset reporting/management for fleet and depots
These processes will be supported by four key features:
Contract register
Performance management module (PMM)
Payment performance calculator (PPC)
Operator access portal
The CMS must integrate with a range of TfW systems, in some cases through TfW middleware. A maximum of 7 integrations is anticipated for day one.
A minimum of 150 licenses will be required once the network is fully franchised, comprising at least 30 internal TfW users and at least 120 external operator users, with tiered role-based-access controls. The supplier will also provide implementation, training for TfW teams and c.100 bus operators, and ongoing support and maintenance.
The contract will be awarded under the Competitive Flexible Procedure of the Procurement Act 2023 (PA23), for an initial term of five years with the option to extend by up to three further period of twelve months, giving a maximum term of eight years. The solution must be fully operational by June 2027.
- How the procedure runs: The procurement is expected to comprise the following stages: Stage 1 - Participation Suppliers will be required to submit: Procurement Specific questionnaire responses; Information demonstrating relevant experience and capability; Response to set conditions of participation which include IT non-functional requirements. TfW will evaluate submissions against the published criteria and may reduce the number of suppliers progressing to the next stage. Stage 2 - Tender Phase Successful suppliers from stage 1 will be invited to participate in the main tender stage which will include: Detailed technical solution (Functional Requirements); Delivery and implementation plan; Commercial pricing proposal; Technical questions responses; and Social value commitments. TfW reserves the right to reduce the number of suppliers progressing following completion of this stage. Stage 3 - Demonstration/Presentations Phase Top three (3) scoring suppliers in stage 2, and any other supplier scoring within 2% of the last shortlisted supplier, will be invited to this stage which may include: Solution demonstrations; Clarification meetings; Presentations; and/or Written clarification exercises. The purpose of this stage is to allow TfW to better understand proposed solutions and to validate assumptions from the main tender stage. TfW reserves the right to: Amend the structure and sequencing of the procedure where appropriate; Conduct all or some of the stages described above; Reduce the number of suppliers at any stage; Seek clarification of any submission; and Award the contract on the basis of initial tenders without undertaking further dialogue if deemed appropriate. Further details regarding evaluation methodology, stage gates, scoring and timescales will be provided within the procurement documents.
CPV: Software package and information systems · Software programming and consultancy services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£2,150,000
- Economic & financial standing
As per Participation PSQ available through the the Atamis platform.
- Technical & professional ability
As per Participation PSQ available through the the Atamis platform.
- Condition of participationshortlisting
As per tender documentation.
What it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Published sub-criteria (3)
- Technical Questionnaire: 60%
- Commercial: 30%
- Social Value Questionnaire: 10%
Published award criteria (3)
- Technical Questionnaire: Technical criteria as per ITT documentation in Atamis
- Social Value Questionnaire: Social Value Questionnaire as per ITT documentation available to tender stage via Atamis
- Commercial: Pricing Schedule
- Economic & financial standing
As per Participation PSQ available through the the Atamis platform.
- Technical & professional ability
As per Participation PSQ available through the the Atamis platform.
- Condition of participationshortlisting
As per tender documentation.
- Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Goods
- Notice status
- Closed
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 30 May 2025, 16:38 BST
- Last source update
- 23 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 2 Nov 2026
- Authority reference
C001235.00/C0197- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-069715- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-052a18Find a Tender
- How it runs
The procurement is expected to comprise the following stages:
Stage 1 - Participation
Suppliers will be required to submit:
Procurement Specific questionnaire responses;
Information demonstrating relevant experience and capability;
Response to set conditions of participation which include IT non-functional requirements.
TfW will evaluate submissions against the published criteria and may reduce the number of suppliers progressing to the next stage.
Stage 2 - Tender Phase
Successful suppliers from stage 1 will be invited to participate in the main tender stage which will include:
Detailed technical solution (Functional Requirements);
Delivery and implementation plan;
Commercial pricing proposal;
Technical questions responses; and
Social value commitments.
TfW reserves the right to reduce the number of suppliers progressing following completion of this stage.
Stage 3 - Demonstration/Presentations Phase
Top three (3) scoring suppliers in stage 2, and any other supplier scoring within 2% of the last shortlisted supplier, will be invited to this stage which may include:
Solution demonstrations;
Clarification meetings;
Presentations; and/or
Written clarification exercises.
The purpose of this stage is to allow TfW to better understand proposed solutions and to validate assumptions from the main tender stage.
TfW reserves the right to:
Amend the structure and sequencing of the procedure where appropriate;
Conduct all or some of the stages described above;
Reduce the number of suppliers at any stage;
Seek clarification of any submission; and
Award the contract on the basis of initial tenders without undertaking further dialogue if deemed appropriate.
Further details regarding evaluation methodology, stage gates, scoring and timescales will be provided within the procurement documents.
- Risks
Due to the diverse nature of Wales’ operator market and inevitable lessons learned from franchising, it’s anticipated that franchise agreements will evolve over the course of the CMS contract. Because of this, suppliers must be able to provide a dynamic contract register that can change with the contracts.
In a similar vein, performance regimes might vary contract to contract and will also evolve. Suppliers must be able to support potential changes within the performance management module and payment performance calculator.
As technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace, there’s a chance that within the term of the contract new tools will be developed that can further streamline contract management processes. Whilst adoption can only be assessed on a case-by-case basis, suppliers are expected to evaluate new technologies and innovations on a quarterly basis, updating roadmaps where applicable. If additional functions could create efficiencies in TfW’s franchise contract management regime, they should be proposed via the contract change route and will be agreed in line with the rate card completed at point of tender.
Licensing requirements are directly proportional to number and size of local bus operators in the Welsh bus network. Subsequently, any changes to successful franchise tenderers and/or the network could increase or decrease the number of licenses required.
Whilst proposed system architecture is understood, it’s not rigid and systems/data sources could change during the contract management system contract. Integrations with these systems might be necessary for TfW’s contract management regime which suppliers are expected to facilitate.
KPIs/performance metrics of the system contract might change; such as tightening of technical support SLAs or reporting regimes
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 17 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline
- 17 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 7 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en, cy
Via the TfW Atamis Procurement Portal tfw.my.site.com/s/Welcome ↗ using code: C0197.Once you have registered, you will find the home screen with various access links. To view and register onto any Transport for Wales tender opportunities, click on the ‘Find Opportunities’ section on the home page. Once you have registered for the tenders you are interested in, return to the home page where you’ll find the ‘My Proposals and Quotes’ button.
Timeline
30 May 2025 → 23 Nov 2026 · 8 dates- Planning notice published30 May 2025, 16:38 BST
- Market engagement30 Jun 2025, 23:59 BST
Transport for Wales (TfW) are currently seeking to procure a comprehensive contract management system to support transport services in Wales.
TfW wish to engage with suppliers who already have established or have the ability to develop a contract management system for a national transport network.
The system should provide a quick and intuitive workflow through a user interface that provides a quality user experience. It must also offer advanced search and filtering capabilities to locate contracts and performance data based on specific fields.
Separate levels of access are necessary for the TfW users (super users, contract managers) and transport operators, ensuring permissions are in place for viewing and managing key performance indicators relevant to the user.
The system requires core Contract Management System Capabilities to enable efficient administration of contractual agreements. This includes functionalities for creating, modifying and tracking contracts throughout their lifecycle.
Operators will need to be able to access the system to view performance measures via a portal. Being linked directly to their respective contracts, the system will need to categorise performance metrics into sections, such as punctuality, reliability, vehicle requirements plus any other performance measures specified within each contract, displaying these KPI’s within a dashboard is essential.
The system will need to be able to support the integration of the contracts with operational data sources. It will need to support data imports and reporting to enhance operational insight and decision making, potentially using AI to expediate the process.
An initial supplier briefing session will be held on 12th of June, after which specific supplier sessions will be held with interested parties to ascertain market capability and interest in the opportunity.
The engagement will be held via Microsoft Teams. Please contact [email protected] if you wish to be invited to the market event quoting the UK2 reference and description. Please provide the email addresses of the proposed attendees in your request.
- Next notice expected370 days ago15 Oct 2025, 23:59 BST
- Tender notice published90 days ago23 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Clarification questions by75 days ago7 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline65 days ago17 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Today21 Oct 2026
- Award decision expected byin 13 days2 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 33 days23 Nov 2026
Notice history
6 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 30 May 2025- Pipeline notice published30 May 2025, 16:38 BSTUK1
- Preliminary market engagement notice published30 May 2025, 16:48 BSTUK2
- Tender notice published23 Jul 2026, 13:06 BSTUK4
- Published value published: £2,150,00023 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Status changed to active23 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Procurement method changed23 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (6)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Bidding documents and specifications Tender documentation available via the Atamis platform.
- Bidding documents and specifications Supplier guide for the TfW Atamis Platform
- Technical specifications Via the TfW Atamis Procurement Portal https://tfw.my.site.com/s/Welcome using code: C0197.Once you have registered, you will find the home screen with various access links. To view and register onto any Transport for Wales tender opportunities, click on the ‘Find Opportunities’ s…
Notices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Pipeline notice Pipeline notice on Find a Tender