Mobility Hubs, West of England Combined Authority

Since the Mobility Hubs market is relatively immature, there is currently no standard approach to delivering a package of common mobility hub components. The Combined Authority believes that the procurement process for mobility hubs provides a unique and exciting opportunity to stimulate the market to formulate integrated mobility hub solutions to local authority and potentially private sector mobility hub commissioners.

Through this procurement process, we are testing whether a range of mobility hub component suppliers and supporting specialist services can work together in partnerships or consortia to provide integrated mobility hub solutions. This could then be replicated and delivered elsewhere across the UK, thereby helping to shape the blueprint for the wider roll out of mobility hubs and stimulate the market as they become more established nationwide.

It is our intention to procure a lead partner of a consortium or partnership of organisations with whom we will collaboratively deliver a high-quality, recognisable, and replicable bespoke mobility hubs solution for the region.

Services to be procured

The West of England Combined Authority is seeking to procure a supplier, designer, contractor, or a consortium or partnership of those organisations who can:

• Develop a Mobility Hub design
• Project manage the overall supply of mobility hub components, and carry out their installation and maintenance
• Collect and share data around the use of mobility hub components where this can be collected digitally via the component itself (for example: mobile device charging; solar generation; use of any bookable features)

The West of England Combined Authority is considering its preferred procurement approach, and supplier responses to the Questions for Applicants, alongside the provider collaboration event will help us inform which approach is most suitable.

Our preferred options are currently Open Procedure, and Competitive dialogue, but we are not bound to either of these approaches.

To help us in the development of a full specification, please answer the following questions:

1. What type of organisation do you see leading a consortium?
2. Are you interested in leading a consortium?
3. What type of organisation do you see acting as a supplier as part of a consortium?
4. Are you interested in being a supplier as part of a consortium?
5. Do you anticipate any issues with lead times for components, considering the project’s timescales (delivery in the first quarter of 2023)?
6. Do you have the capacity to maintain the components over the course of the trial?
7. Do you believe that this procurement strategy to stimulate the market to provide integrated mobility hub solutions will be effective?
8. What do you think are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in adopting this procurement strategy?

a. Strengths:

b. Weaknesses:

c. Opportunities:

d. Threats:

9. What benefits do you see this procurement strategy presenting to mobility hub commissioners?
10. What benefits can the strategy offer to suppliers of mobility hub components?
11. What are the opportunities for income generation from the operation of the hub and its components?
12. Are there any components that you think you will have difficulty procuring?

Response to this PIN

Note that suppliers are not required to participate in this market engagement stage to be eligible to respond to subsequent procurement stages. The West of England Combined Authority encourages participation so that we can learn what the market is able to offer, which will help shape the subsequent procurement stage, and that you can be best informed about our intentions regarding Mobility Hubs.

Provider collaboration event

Given our ambition to stimulate the creation partnerships or consortia of providers who can supply a complete mobility hub, we plan to host an in-person provider collaboration event at the Bristol and Bath Science Park Bristol on Thursday 23 June 10am – 2pm. This event will provide a facilitated environment for potential bidders to learn about the capabilities of other organisations and identify how they might be able to work together to develop a partnership or consortium which could deliver the mobility hubs project.

Providers interested in receiving more details regarding the specification, and in participating in the in-person provider event, should register their interest here by emailing Amanda Edmondson, Mobility Hubs Project Manager on: [email protected]

Design principles

A comprehensive set of design principles has been developed for the mobility hubs and suppliers are suspected to consider these in developing their offer. Only those design principles relevant to the components, rather than the wider development of hub sites, have been provided below.

The appearance of the components is important, and they should complement each other so that hub design is integrated, distinctive and recognizable.

The hub has been designed to cater to the needs of all, including the most vulnerable

• The hub supports all users including those with visible and hidden disabilities.
• The hub has step-free, level access throughout.
• The hub is safe and secure by design

The hub is distinctive, attractive and recognisable whilst complementing local character

• The hub forms part of a unified network
• The hub exploits a modern, unified and recognisable network-wide identity that is adaptable to individual sites.
• The hub identity reflects the place it serves to create a sense of local ownership (local variation of design elements).
• The hub enhances placemaking, is a pleasant place to spend time, reflects local character, whilst retaining its network unity.

The hub is modular, compact, flexible and adaptable

• The hub comprises of a set of modular components, standardised where possible across the network, to provide consistency of provision and enhance hubs as recognisable places, with modules applied depending on local needs.…