Metrolink contract valued at £647.5m
The contract to operate and maintain Greater Manchester’s Metrolink tram system could be worth up to £647.5m, it has been revealed.
The contract will run from July 2017 for a seven-year term, with a potential extension of a further three years. There will be a contract option for TfGM to extend for a year at the end of either the seventh or 10th year, to accommodate any delay in procuring a subsequent operator-maintainer. If the full 11 years are completed, the contract will be worth £647.5m.
Transport for Greater Manchester announced in January that a joint venture between Keolis and Amey had won the contract, winning from a shortlist of four also including National Express, Transdev and the incumbent, RATPDev, which is part of the French state-owned operator of the Paris Metro.
Keolis runs 90 urban transport systems globally, including 11 tram networks. Amey’s other contracts include work with Network Rail and Transport for London on management, design and delivery.
RATP Dev had taken over the running of Metrolink after buying the previous ten-year contract from Stagecoach in 2011, at a time when European state-owned transport operators, including Deutsche Bahn and Ned Railways were bidding heavily for UK franchises. RATP Dev bought the contract and Stagecoach Metrolink’s assets, valued at £16.2m, for an undisclosed sum.
