Workshop 2 report: Practical considerations in implementing different institutional regimes

Abstract

This workshop focussed on practical aspects of change across institutional regimes in the public transport sector, covering the experience from 11 countries in the rail, bus and coach sectors. Two key themes guided the workshop discussion: the introduction of competition (processes of implementation and shifting competition regimes) and the functioning of mature competitive tendering regimes (contract design, bid evaluation and results). The workshop outcomes are presented along the line of three main issues. The first one is regime shifts, looking at triggers that make regimes evolve, discussing whether change necessarily takes place for the better and whether a regulatory cycle can be observed. The second one is getting a closer look at what exactly is being subjected to competition, discussing contractual scope, unbundling options, the function of the authority, system management and risk allocation. The third one investigates the actual functioning of competitive tendering regimes, discussing the issue of contract standardisation, bidding procedures and the design of evaluation and awarding mechanisms. The main recommendation of the workshop is to increase the strength of the PTA and to choose for gross-cost contracts.