Consultants chasing the Cayman Islands’ modern public transport design contract have been told they will have to build a demand model for Grand Cayman from scratch, with no existing model handed down and no budget figure on the table.
The instructions came in a batch of clarifications from the Ministry of Planning, Lands, Agriculture, Housing and Infrastructure, released ahead of the 14 May submission deadline.
A separate addendum on 9 April also trimmed the brief from a full business case to an outline business case after an internal review.
The ministry made clear no calibrated transport demand model will be supplied, leaving bidders to fold the full cost of building and calibrating one into their pricing.
A 2023 Deloitte report cited in the earlier strategic outline case is publicly available but sits outside the procurement, and its underlying data will not be shared.
Bidders looking for a steer on price will not find one.
Consultants have been told to price the full scope on its merits, with cost judged alongside methodology, team experience, technical understanding, delivery approach and a local industry impact statement.
Grand Cayman is the focus of the design, modelling and financial work. The Sister Islands feature only as high-level strategic context and fall outside the core brief.
Depot and energy infrastructure designs are wanted at concept level, enough to support planning and costing but short of construction-ready quality.
Site surveys are not required, no preferred depot locations have been flagged, and site evaluation will rest with the consultant.
Intellectual property was another area spelled out.
Models, datasets and analytical tools built specifically for the project will pass to the government and must be delivered in editable, non-proprietary formats.
Meanwhile, consultants keep their pre-existing tools and methodologies as long as the government can use the final outputs without being locked into a vendor.
Accessibility and inclusion must run through service design, infrastructure and operations.
The ministry pointed bidders to the Cayman Islands Disabilities Law 2010 and international best practice, noting no government framework has been set, and said the consultant will also define the customer experience and service standards for the new system.
Government datasets will be released once a contract is signed, though officials warned of gaps and told bidders to build validation and risk allowances into their work.
The appointed consultant will also lead engagement with private bus operators, utility providers and regulators.
There is no guarantee the winning bidder will be kept on for later phases, though some support during procurement and early rollout may fall within scope.
Contract signing is pencilled in for August, with a dialogue period from 21 May to 4 June and final bids due 19 June.
