The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority is the fourth of the combined authorities to take forward bus franchising. Following on from Greater Manchester, Liverpool and West Yorkshire it has been able to benefit from experience elsewhere.
And that experience is coming not just from connections with the other combined authorities but also from experience shared by operators expressing interest to be the first appointed operators within the South Yorkshire People’s Network.
South Yorkshire has become the first franchising authority to also secure ownership of the larger bus depots serving its region before its procurement exercise began and that is no mean feat. Commercial negotiations embarked upon require realism around valuation of the depots and agreement to practical terms and conditions for continuing occupation by the current tenants of the facilities.
Combined with a sound project plan for installation and commissioning of infrastructure and the delivery of the fleet of new vehicles, Matt Goggins and his team are well placed to take forward a successful procurement process.
At the same time, a delay in publishing the contract documentation that will underpin contract awards will not have been welcomed by bidders.
And a determination to work through the procurement process at pace leads to limited time for the operators’ legal advisors to advise in important areas such as the risk profile created by the contracts, and for operators to request clarifications and factor into their bids the responses received. Helpfully, the combined authority has agreed within the clarification process to review the procurement timetable.
Finally, we can see from the interview that the combined authority is cautious about implementing network change. That will come in due course, given that it is a key part of the rationale for franchising.
The opportunity to integrate services more efficiently with the tram network will be a key priority. At the same time, it is notable that the bus network for South Yorkshire includes a significant element of cross border working – into and from Derbyshire and other parts of Yorkshire.
The Authority will implement a permit system for those services. It will aim to have a positive relationship with these service operators to secure maximum flexibility as it seeks to reshape the network.
Frank Suttie, Director and lead for local transport, Freeths
