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GWR - Provision of Freight Operating Company (FOC) Drivers, Person in Charge (PIC) and… | UKGovscan
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OPENTender notice (UK4) · FIRST GREATER WESTERN LIMITEDRef ocds-h6vhtk-05a05c
GWR - Provision of Freight Operating Company (FOC) Drivers, Person in Charge (PIC) and Shunters to support GWR in delivering passenger mitigations during planned perturbation.
Save Track Track buyer
Contract Value
£16,000,000
excluding VAT · £16,000,000 including VAT · Above the relevant threshold
The submission deadline passed on 10 Jun 2026, 11:59pm.
Description
The tender will be split into separate lots, those submitting bids, can bid on individual lots, all lots and can also submit a bid against lot/s as a joint venture. Any joint submissions must clearly define which operator is doing what.
No sub-contracting is permitted once relevant contract has been awarded.
An overview is provided below of all the requirements and how the bids will be divided into sections.
The lots have been divided into 7 categories:
Lot 1 - Passenger Diversions (80x and Night Riviera (cl.57 and Mk3 coaches)) and associated Empty Coaching Stock (ECS) moves to/from LNP via WLL, via GWML & South West Sidings (SWS), and Reading Train Care Depot (RTCD).
Lot 2 - Electric/hybrid loco plus Driver (with 1000v Electric Train Supply (ETS))
Lot 3 - London North Pole 387s/Heathrow Express (HEx) units
Lot 4 - Fairwater Yard - Didcot Railway Centre
Lot 5 - South Marston and High Output Operations Base (HOOB) (if required)
Lot 6 - Didcot Railway Centre (DRC)
Lot 7 - Reading Upper Triangle
To have a pool of trained Drivers and PICs to deliver GWR passenger diversions and GWR Depot Strategy when required. There will be a requirement to maintain competency, for Drivers and PICs on all applicable routes, traction and locations. A variation will then be issued for each possession where there is a requirement for Depot Strategy (only applicable locations) and/or passenger diversions and for what duration.
This procurement was divided into 7 lots, each awarded separately.
Lots
7
Lot
Value
Status
Lot 1
Passenger Diversions
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Lot 2
Electric/hybrid loco plus Driver
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Lot 3
387s/Heathrow Express (HEx) units
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Lot 4
Fairwater Yard
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Lot 5
South Marston & HOOB
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Lot 6
Didcot Railway
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Lot 7
Reading Upper Triangle
Aug 2026 – Jul 2027
-
active
Award criteria
Weightings from the notice, applied to every lot.
Commercial(price)
Technical Capability
Quality and Compliance
Mobilisation
Key Dates
Published
23 September 2025
Tender Open
-
Tender Deadline
10 June 2026
Award Date
-
Contract Start
-
Contract End
-
Planned term
1 August 2026 – 31 July 2027 · may extend to 31 July 2031
Extension option
Each contract will include the option for four separate extension periods of 12 months each, exercisable at Great Western Railway's (GWR) discretion.
All stated volumes are indicative only and remain subject to the operational requirements of the railway industry. GWR reserves the right to adjust, reallocate, or redistribute values across any of the lots in line with business needs and demand throughout the contract term.