Provision of a Bicycle Hire Scheme in Wrexham County Borough

Tender description

Wrexham County Borough Council (WCBC, ‘the Council’) is conducting market engagement for a competent organisation to operate and maintain a potential Wrexham City Borough wide bicycle hire network in Wrexham, ideally through establishment of a fully funded concession model, under The Concession Contracts Regulations 2016. Background Welsh Government declared a Climate Emergency in Wales, setting ambitious plans for the public sector to be carbon neutral by 2030. WCBC declared a Climate and Ecological Emergency in September 2019, committing to make WCBC a net zero council by 2030. In line with this declaration, the Council committed to developing and adopting a Decarbonisation Plan, which will target the decarbonisation of Council operations and promote the protection and to meet the requirements of the Council’s Decarbonisation Plan / Low Carbon Transport Strategy (draft) we must increase the provision of carbon neutral transport in Wrexham. To meet the priorities of Llwybr Newydd: the Wales transport strategy 2021 | GOV.WALES, we need to move away from individual vehicle ownership to shared solutions, including car-sharing, car clubs, bicycle sharing and mobility as a service. Requirements WCBC is looking for an organisation to work collaboratively with, to introduce a public bicycle hire scheme within Wrexham. WCBC is interested in hearing from organisations that would be willing to provide a fully-funded, concession-operating model where the supplier generates income revenue from the operation of the scheme. The operator would be responsible for bearing all costs including: operating costs, provision of the cycles and other assets, provision of the operating systems and the management and maintenance of the scheme. The provision of the service will need to conform to established best practice and demonstrate learning from previous schemes across the UK as identified through CoMoUK. The Council and organisation would agree locations for the coverage, both in the city centre, where the higher returns on investment would be expected with scope for ongoing discussions around the creation of small community bicycle share schemes in partnership with local communities. (We have identified 5 low-carbon communities to work with over the coming few years and would require these to take priority in this regard). WCBC requires organisations to consider and include the following points in their responses:- Locations • Public locations – installation in locations that are accessible to the public but not necessarily on-street e.g. community hubs, car parks, business hubs, education settings etc. • Demand management: details of proposals to map underlying potential demand for bicycle share and to ensure a mix of trip destinations including education, employment, retail and leisure. • Less populated areas – outline strategy for installation in more rural and semi-rural locations. • Level of WCBC influence on locations – requirement to work in conjunction with WCBC, to decide on suitable city centre locations for bicycles and requirement to scope out access for communities with lower population densities • Scope and scale: Details of proposals for defining the scheme area to ensure sufficient network density in city center locations as a proportion of people living in the service area within a 5-10 minute walking distance Installation and equipment • Bicycle specifications: Detail the make/model of bicycles and inclusive design to fit the widest range of users • Circular Economy: details of how the system will conform to a circular economy model of operation • Bicycle types: Provision of e-bicycles, pedal bicycles and Ecargo bicycles at key locations • Bicycle security: Details of proposals to ensure cycle security • Bicycle standards: Conform to ISO 4210:2014 standards for bicycles and BS EN15194:2017 for electric pedal-assist bicycles. Both e-bicycles and pedal bicycles also need to meet relevant UK safety standards,