Official UK procurement notice
National Roads Telecommunications Service (NRTS) 3
Authority: National Highways Limited (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionNational Highways has its own dedicated telecommunications infrastructure known as the National Roads Telecommunications Service (NRTS). It is predominantly an optical fibre network running along the Strategic Road Network (SRN). NRTS is National Highways' "one-stop-shop" service for the provision of all roadside telecommunications and connectivity needs.
To keep road users safe and to make sure traffic flows smoothly, National Highways rely on some 38,000 roadside devices such as CCTV, Stopped Vehicle Detection (SVD), Variable Message Signs (VMS), Signals and Emergency Roadside Telephones (ERTs). NRTS is the network that helps all these devices talk to each other and to the systems which are used to manage the SRN from within regional and national operating centres.
This service underpins and ensures the safe, secure and sustainable management and operation of the SRN. It provides the enabling technology and functionality to deliver the National Highways Delivery Plan and our commitments to deliver the objectives of the Roads Investment Strategy (RIS). Consequently, the NRTS3 project will provide capability to deliver the strategic objectives of National Highways through to at least the end of the RIS4 period in 2035.
Without NRTS National Highways roadside operational technology would become inoperable. Without NRTS, operations staff would be without CCTV and critical performance data upon which strategic operational decisions are based and would not have the capability to set signs and signals to inform and influence road user's behaviours and choices.
National Highways roadside devices and technology (signs, signals etc.) and the technology and systems within Regional Operations Centres (ROCs) and National Traffic Operations Centre (NTOC) that control the roadside devices, are not part of NRTS.
The operation of almost all roadside devices on the Strategic Road Network and connectivity to and between operations centres is provided by NRTS.
This opportunity relates to the provision, operation and maintenance of telecommunications services between the roadside technology and various central locations operated by and on behalf of National Highways, the body responsible for England's SRN. Additionally, it may be necessary to further develop and enhance services and solutions to meet the changing requirements of National Highways operational roadside technology, and to undertake a programme of renewal to address active network components which will become obsolete during the course of the contract, and which may no longer be supportable.
These services are currently provided by Telent Technology Services Limited through an outsourced agreement (NRTS2) which expires in March 2028. The NRTS3 contract will need to be both procured and mobilised at least six months prior to this date to ensure a period of smooth transition between Telent Technology Services Ltd and the NRTS3 Service Provider.
The scope of the NRTS3 services will be a continuation of the existing NRTS2 services including the operation and maintenance of the network, and delivery of connectivity services to schemes.
The NRTS3 Service Provider will be required to develop a sustainable, affordable and cost-effective NRTS equipment renewal strategy with a focus on critical obsolescence management to ensure the current suite of services are adequately supported. Renewal of some legacy equipment will be required early in the NRTS3 contract. National Highways will continue to utilise legacy roadside operational technology throughout the period of theNRTS3 contract. NRTS3 is therefore required to continue to support the existing connectivity to these roadside devices. (including RS485 and "plain old telephone service" (POTS) dependent upon legacy copper-based technologies). The NRTS3 Service Provider shall also be responsible for the development of a replacement hardware device referred to as an Internet Protocol Translator (IPT) which provides translation to/from the IP/RS485-based protocol currently used by a substantial proportion of roadside technology.
The existing National Highways analogue CCTV estate is expected to be upgraded to digital by 2030. The NRTS3 Service Provider may be required to support National Highways with the upgrade of a proportion of the analogue CCTV cameras (roadside end devices) as a part of this programme of works. This would be an additional task to the delivery of the NRTS programme. The role which the NRTS3 Service Provider may undertake shall be limited to the installation and commissioning of free-issue equipment to be procured by National Highways.
Additionally, Tenderers will be required to provide a price for the optional Corporate Network Services to deliver and maintain the connectivity to and within National Highways offices and other central locations. This service shall require no systems level integration with the roads telecommunications services. A decision on its inclusion shall be taken by National Highways during the pre-contract period.
- Not divided into lots: National Highways considered the use for lots on the NRTS3 procurement during the strategy stage. For this contract it was not considered beneficial to divide the contract into Lots, due to the increase in technical delivery risks and contract management complexity. Pre-market engagement and a Delivery Model Assessment has informed this decision, ensuring the approach best supports efficient delivery and value for money.
- How the procedure runs: A PIN has been issued for this Tender under the OCID ocds-h6vhtk-04ca08. Link to this notice is below: https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/041155-2024? The procurement will follow the Competitive Flexible Procedure (CFP) in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023 and associated Procurement Regulations 2024. The CFP procedure has been selected as it presents National Highways with the opportunity to achieve a more effective, flexible, and value-driven procurement process, ultimately leading to better project outcomes and a stronger Service Provider relationship. The procurement process sets out to: • Shortlist up to three (3) Tenderers that pass all the Conditions of Participation (CoP) requirements and achieve the highest scores in accordance with the CoP Process, enabling them to move into the second tender stage. • Undertake a process with the selected Tenderer that enables a structured consultation around proposed solutions, areas of innovation, clear understanding of the key risks and constraints and the ability of the Tenderers to meet the Requirements. • Submission of the Final Tender by each Tenderer and evaluation by National Highways; and, • Award the NRTS3 Agreement to the Most Advantageous Tender as set out in the ITT. The procedure will contain the following Key Milestones: - Release of Tender Notice, CoP (including a Procurement Specific Questionnaire), draft Contract Documents, draft Tender Documents & access to a Data Room - CoP Return - CoP Assessment / Governance - CoP Outcomes & Standstill - Shortlist to three (3) Tenderers for the second stage of the procurement - 1st Tender Period Commences - 1st Consultation - 1st Tender Submission - Review of Initial Tenders and Governance - 2nd Consultation - 2nd Tender Period Commences - 2nd Tender Submission - Assessment - Internal and External Governance - Outcomes & Standstill (including the issue of the Assessment Reports) - Award of Contract Further detail can be found in the ITT document available on the Sourcing Portal NRTS3 Contract and Procurement Videos As well as the Conditions of Participation Guidance documents for suppliers, National Highways has recorded a number of informative narrated presentations, to guide you through the procurement process. These presentations can be found on National Highways Sourcing Portal. Note: registration on the Central Digital Platform will be a mandatory requirement to participate in this procurement process. We hereby confirm, National Highways has conducted a Conflict of Interest (CoI) assessment, prior to the issue of this Notice. Such CoI assessments shall continue at appropriate stages throughout this procurement process.
CPV: Construction work · IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support · Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment · Software package and information systems · Telecommunications services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1No awardRenewalPublished value£643,624,252
- Economic & financial standing
As per the Conditions of Participation Guidance document available on the Sourcing Portal
- Technical & professional ability
As per the Conditions of Participation Guidance document available on the Sourcing Portal
- Condition of participationshortlisting
As per the Conditions of Participation Guidance document available on the Sourcing Portal
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).
- Quality Questions: Health, Safety and Wellbeing (HS&W) - Pass/Fail Social Value Small & Medium Enterprises Transition Service Delivery - Service Management and Governance Service Delivery - Maintenance of NRTS Assets Service Delivery - Security Renewals - Legacy Services Renewals - CCTV Solution Renewals - Generic Services and underpinning solutions Renewals - SMS Deployment Scenarios
- Economic & financial standing
As per the Conditions of Participation Guidance document available on the Sourcing Portal
- Technical & professional ability
As per the Conditions of Participation Guidance document available on the Sourcing Portal
- Condition of participationshortlisting
As per the Conditions of Participation Guidance document available on the Sourcing Portal
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Cancelled
- 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
- 23 Apr 2025, 11:54 BST
- Last source update
- 14 Nov 2025, 15:05 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 4 Mar 2027
- Authority reference
PAMS011- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-016468- Latest notice
- Transparency notice (UK5)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-050635Find a Tender- Contract terms summary
As per the draft contract documents
- How it runs
A PIN has been issued for this Tender under the OCID ocds-h6vhtk-04ca08. Link to this notice is below:
www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/041155-2024 ↗
The procurement will follow the Competitive Flexible Procedure (CFP) in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023 and associated Procurement Regulations 2024.
The CFP procedure has been selected as it presents National Highways with the opportunity to achieve a more effective, flexible, and value-driven procurement process, ultimately leading to better project outcomes and a stronger Service Provider relationship.
The procurement process sets out to:
- Shortlist up to three (3) Tenderers that pass all the Conditions of Participation (CoP) requirements and achieve the highest scores in accordance with the CoP Process, enabling them to move into the second tender stage.
- Undertake a process with the selected Tenderer that enables a structured consultation around proposed solutions, areas of innovation, clear understanding of the key risks and constraints and the ability of the Tenderers to meet the Requirements.
- Submission of the Final Tender by each Tenderer and evaluation by
National Highways; and,
- Award the NRTS3 Agreement to the Most Advantageous Tender as set out in the ITT.
The procedure will contain the following Key Milestones:
- Release of Tender Notice, CoP (including a Procurement Specific
Questionnaire), draft Contract Documents, draft Tender Documents & access to a Data Room
- CoP Return
- CoP Assessment / Governance
- CoP Outcomes & Standstill
- Shortlist to three (3) Tenderers for the second stage of the procurement
- 1st Tender Period Commences
- 1st Consultation
- 1st Tender Submission
- Review of Initial Tenders and Governance
- 2nd Consultation
- 2nd Tender Period Commences
- 2nd Tender Submission
- Assessment
- Internal and External Governance
- Outcomes & Standstill (including the issue of the Assessment Reports)
- Award of Contract
Further detail can be found in the ITT document available on the Sourcing Portal
NRTS3 Contract and Procurement Videos
As well as the Conditions of Participation Guidance documents for suppliers, National Highways has recorded a number of informative narrated presentations, to guide you through the procurement process. These presentations can be found on National Highways Sourcing Portal.
Note: registration on the Central Digital Platform will be a mandatory requirement to participate in this procurement process.
We hereby confirm, National Highways has conducted a Conflict of Interest (CoI) assessment, prior to the issue of this Notice. Such CoI assessments shall continue at appropriate stages throughout this procurement process.
- Risks
As per the draft contract documents
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 21 May 2025, 17:00 BST
- Submission deadline
- 21 May 2025, 17:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 8 May 2025, 17:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
National Highways will use a Sourcing Portal called Jaggaer in this procurement exercise. Information on how to take part in this Tender is detailed below:
- Register your company on the Sourcing portal (this is only required once)
Visit - nationalhighways.ukp.app.jaggaer.com ↗
and click the link to register
Accept the terms and conditions and click 'continue' - Enter your business and user details - Note the username you chose and click 'Save' when complete - You will shortly receive an email with your unique password.
- Express an Interest in the tender - Login to the portal - Click the 'PQQs Open to All Suppliers' link. (These are Pre-Qualification Questionnaires open to any registered supplier).
Click on the relevant PQQ to access the content (PQQ_82 - National Roads Telecommunications Services (NRTS) 3).
Click the 'Express Interest' button at the top of this page. This will move the PQQ into your 'My PQQs page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only). You can access any attachments by clicking the 'Buyer Attachments' in the 'PQQ Details' box.
- Responding to the tender - Click 'My Response' under 'PQQ Details', you can 'Create Response' or 'Decline to Respond' (please give a reason if declining).
You can use the 'Messages' function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification. Note the deadline for completion, then follow the onscreen instructions to complete the PQQ.
There may be a mixture of online and offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available). Submit your reply using the 'Submit Response' button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance, please consult online help or contact the eTendering help desk.
You should also be aware that if your bid is successful the resulting contract will be published. In some circumstances, limited redactions will be made to tender documentation and/or contracts before they are published in order to comply with existing law, to protect commercial interests and for the protection of national security.
Further information will be set out in the Tender Documents. Contract dates stated are indicative and may be subject to change.
National Highways reserves the right not to accept the highest scoring, or any, tender. Bidders should note that tenders are submitted at the supplier's own cost and risk. National Highways may cancel the competition or part of it for any reason, and bidders' costs will not be reimbursed. National Highways expressly reserves the right (i) not to award any contract as a result of this tendering exercise commenced by publication of this notice; and (ii) to make whatever changes it may see fit to the content and structure of the tendering competition; and in no circumstances will National Highways be liable for any costs incurred by candidates.
Further information is provided in the procurement documents.
Timeline
23 Apr 2025 → 16 Sept 2027 · 6 dates- Tender notice published23 Apr 2025, 11:54 BST
- Clarification questions by8 May 2025, 17:00 BST
- Submission deadline21 May 2025, 17:00 BST
- Latest notice published346 days ago14 Nov 2025, 15:05 GMT
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Award decision expected byin 129 days4 Mar 2027, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 324 days16 Sept 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
2 events · 1 release on Find a Tender · since 23 Apr 2025- Tender notice published23 Apr 2025, 11:54 BSTUK4
- Transparency notice published14 Nov 2025, 15:05 GMTUK5
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Bidding documents and specificationsAccess: Following the Conditions of Participation stage, Tender documents will be released to the shortlisted participants via the Sourcing Portal.
Notices published for this procedure
- Transparency notice Transparency notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender