Section one: Contracting authority/entity
one.1) Name and addresses
Nottinghamshire County Council
County Hall, Loughborough Road Westbridgford
Nottinghamshire
NG2 7QP
Contact
Holly Fisher
Telephone
+44 1158788113
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UKF14 - Nottingham
Internet address(es)
Main address
http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk
Buyer's address
http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Regional or local authority
one.5) Main activity
General public services
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
Bus Shelter Advertising Extension
Reference number
DN774343
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 79341000 - Advertising services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
Nottinghamshire County Council has extended its existing concession agreement for bus shelter advertising by three years to support the transition of transport functions to EMCCA is completed.
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.1.7) Total value of the procurement (excluding VAT)
Lowest offer: £3,000,000 / Highest offer: £4,000,000 taken into consideration
two.2) Description
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKF14 - Nottingham
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
Nottinghamshire County Council (the Council) maintains in excess of 4,500 bus stops with 1,483 bus shelters and almost 1,200 real time displays.
Since 2000, the Incumbent Provider has supplied and maintained 470 of the 1,483 bus shelters in Nottinghamshire at no cost to the Council in exchange for selling advertising space on approximately 45% of their shelters and retaining ownership of each bus shelter it supplies under the contract. This represents excellent value to the Council as it would cost over £6.5 million to install like for like shelters and £50k per annum to clean and maintain them.
Since 2019, the Incumbent Provider started replacing its paper advertising with digital advertising and the Council negotiated a contract variation to receive an income for every digital panel added to the Incumbent Provider’s estate. The Incumbent Provider currently have 30 such panels, with the income used to offset the Council’s bus stop infrastructure maintenance costs.
The Incumbent Provider supplies and has maintained its shelter estate to a high standard, and it remains in good condition.
The current contract for delivery of the bus shelter advertising will expire on 1 May 2025, and it has been in place for 25 years.
The Council’s Local Transport Authority functions will transfer to the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) on or before 31st March 2026. At present it is unclear whether bus shelters owned by the Council will transfer or contracts such as that held between the Council and the Incumbent Provider will be novated by this date or at all. There is also expected to be a considerable period of adjustment within EMCCA as the Transport team beds in and the functions to support delivery mature.
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: No
two.2.13) Information about European Union Funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: No
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.1) Type of procedure
Award procedure without prior publication of a concession notice in the cases listed below
- The works or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator for the following reason:
- absence of competition for technical reasons
Explanation:
To ensure an effective transition of transport functions to EMCCA, the Council intends to extend its existing contract with the Incumbent Provider for three years to allow for clarity on where responsibility for bus shelters will sit in the future, build sufficient capacity and undertake a harmonisation of standards across the region.
The existing contract does not provide for such an extension so a variation would first need to be negotiated with the Incumbent Provider. The Incumbent Provider has indicated they would be willing to commence this negotiation and extend the current contract by three years.
The Council has obtained legal advice that confirms that there is a legitimate route to extend the current contract with the Incumbent Provider by relying on one or more provisions set out in Regulation 43 of the Concession Contract Regulations 2016.
The contract extension to allow for clarity over the longer-term responsibility for bus shelters also has the additional benefits as it provides an opportunity to design a tender process that focuses on delivering a best-value, high-quality collaborative service in conjunction with other services for bus shelter advertising and aligning with EMCCA’s values and strategies as the Local Transport Authority.
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No
Section five. Award of contract/concession
A contract/lot is awarded: Yes
five.2) Award of contract/concession
five.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract
1 May 2025
five.2.2) Information about tenders
The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators: No
five.2.3) Name and address of the contractor/concessionaire
BAUER MEDIA OUTDOOR UK LIMITED
33 Golden Square
London
W1F 9JT
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
- UKI - London
The contractor/concessionaire is an SME
No
five.2.4) Information on value of contract/lot/concession (excluding VAT)
Lowest offer: £3,000,000 / Highest offer: £4,000,000 taken into consideration
Section six. Complementary information
six.4) Procedures for review
six.4.1) Review body
The High Court of Justice
London
WC2A 2LL
Country
United Kingdom