AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Buckinghamshire Council has published a contract award notice for supported local bus services across the county. The award covers four lots and names RED LINE BUSES LTD and RED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITED as suppliers. The published £1,682,528 gross award value is shared across both suppliers and all four lots; no individual allocation is supplied.
Published outcomeAward decision published; a future signature date of 20 October 2026 is scheduled. The contract is not evidenced as signed in the supplied data.
Market significanceA multi-lot, two-supplier award for public road passenger transport services, with a two-year stated term and optional 1+1-year extension.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
2 supplier records analysed
RED LINE BUSES LTD
98% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1, 2, 3, 4 · Shared award value: £1,682,528 gross; supplier allocation not published GBP · Verified supplier named on active award
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Verified by company number 08758110. Award 1 names RED LINE BUSES LTD alongside RED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITED and relates to lots 1–4.
RED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITED
98% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1, 2, 3, 4 · Shared award value: £1,682,528 gross; supplier allocation not published GBP · Verified supplier named on active award
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Verified by company number 02945744. Award 1 names source supplier "Red Rose" alongside RED LINE BUSES LTD and relates to lots 1–4.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Procurement status
98% confidenceComplete / awarded
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The tender and all four lots are marked "complete"; the process display status is "awarded" and the source is a contract award notice.
Award status
95% confidenceActive award record
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Award 1 has status "active" and is dated 8 October 2026.
Signature status
98% confidenceNot evidenced as signed
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The award milestone is a scheduled future signature date of 20 October 2026; no signed-contract evidence is supplied.
Planned contract period
97% confidence30 November 2026 to 29 November 2028
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Award contractPeriod gives startDate 2026-11-30 and endDate 2028-11-29.
VALUES
Published values explained
Published award value
98% confidence£1,682,528 gross
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Award 1 value.amountGross is 1682528 GBP.
Value allocation
99% confidenceNot published by supplier or lot
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One award value is reported for two suppliers and four related lots, without allocation fields.
Tender value maximum
90% confidence£800,000
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Process-level value_max is 800000 GBP; no basis is supplied to reconcile this with the award value.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Tender notice published
98% confidence22 July 2026
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Release history records tender notice 069132-2026 published at 2026-07-22T12:34:14+01:00.
Submission deadline
98% confidence21 August 2026, 12:00 BST
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Process submission_deadline is 2026-08-21T12:00:00+01:00.
Award date
98% confidence8 October 2026
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Award 1 date is 2026-10-08.
Award notice published
98% confidence8 October 2026
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Award notice 095056-2026 was published at 2026-10-08T10:30:01+01:00.
Scheduled signature date
98% confidence20 October 2026
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Award milestone type futureSignatureDate is scheduled for 2026-10-20T23:59:59+01:00.
Planned service start
97% confidence30 November 2026
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Award contractPeriod startDate is 2026-11-30.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
96% confidenceSupported scheduled local bus services across Buckinghamshire
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The description states that the Council seeks a provider to deliver supported local bus services across the county.
Delivery requirements
96% confidenceVehicles, trained personnel, customer service, ticketing and supporting technology
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These requirements are listed in the published procurement description.
Lots
99% confidenceFour lots (lots 1–4)
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The tender lists four complete lots and award 1 relates to lots 1, 2, 3 and 4.
Service classifications
97% confidencePublic road transport, road transport, and special-purpose road passenger transport
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Award items cite CPV 60112000, 60100000 and 60130000.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procedure
99% confidenceBelow-threshold open competition
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procurementMethod is "open" and procurementMethodDetails is "Below threshold - open competition".
Award basis
94% confidenceMost Advantageous Tender
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The description states the contract would be awarded to the bidder submitting the Most Advantageous Tender based on published criteria.
Bidder count and evaluation results
99% confidenceUnknown
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Information not supplied in the published notice data.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Base term
97% confidenceTwo years
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The stated period runs from 30 November 2026 to 29 November 2028.
Extension option
98% confidenceOptional 1+1 years
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Award renewal description states "Optional 1+1 extension option".
Maximum extent date
98% confidence29 November 2030
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Award contractPeriod maxExtentDate is 2030-11-29.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Award structure
98% confidenceA single published award jointly names two suppliers across all four lots
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Award 1 includes both suppliers and relatedLots 1–4; the notice does not identify which supplier serves each lot.
Service continuity
92% confidencePlanned services are intended to support the Council's wider public transport network
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The procurement description describes the services as part of the wider public transport network for residents and visitors.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Shared value and lot allocation
99% confidenceThe £1,682,528 gross value is shared across two suppliers and four lots; individual supplier and lot values are not supplied.
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Award 1 contains one gross value, two suppliers and four related lots without allocations.
Supplier naming difference
99% confidenceThe source party name "Red Rose" differs from the verified legal name RED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITED; the legal name is used in this analysis.
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Supplier verification matches source name "Red Rose" to company number 02945744 and verified company name RED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITED.
Value inconsistency
99% confidenceThe process-level maximum value (£800,000) is lower than the published gross award value (£1,682,528); the notice data does not explain the differing value bases.
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Process value_max is 800000 GBP, while award 1 amountGross is 1682528 GBP.
Contract conclusion
98% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice confirms signature or execution; only a future signature milestone is present.
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The award includes a scheduled futureSignatureDate of 20 October 2026.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The published data does not allocate lots 1–4 between the two awarded suppliers.
- The published data does not allocate the shared £1,682,528 gross award value by supplier or lot.
- Lot titles, lot descriptions and individual lot values are not supplied.
- Bid counts, tenderer identities beyond awardees, evaluation scores and pricing details are not supplied.
- The source provides a scheduled future signature date but no evidence that the contract has been signed.
- The process-level £800,000 maximum value and the £1,682,528 gross award value are not reconciled in the supplied notice data.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Buckinghamshire Councillocal bus servicessupported bus servicesRED LINE BUSES LTDRED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITEDpublic road transport servicesFind a Tender
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won Buckinghamshire Council's local bus services award?
The published award names RED LINE BUSES LTD and RED ROSE TRAVEL LIMITED.
What is the value of the award?
The notice reports a £1,682,528 gross value for the single award. It does not allocate that value between suppliers or lots.
Has the contract been signed?
The supplied data does not evidence signature. It records a signature date scheduled for 20 October 2026.
ProcuraAxis award analysis supplements, but does not replace, the official award notice, contract data or procurement documents. “Awarded” does not by itself prove that a contract has been signed.