TWO bus companies were considering their next moves last night, after missing out on a flagship park-and-ride contract.

Go North East and Scarlet Band both failed to secure the contract to run the Durham City park-and-ride service yesterday, with Durham County Council agreeing to hand a five-year deal to Arriva.

However, while Arriva’s commercial manager Mark Ellis said he was “very pleased” at the decision, the two defeated companies said they would be looking at what options were open to them.

They could include legal action, with Martin Harris, commercial director at Go North East, saying the tendering process was flawed.

He said: “We’re obviously very unhappy with the view that’s been taken. The process hasn’t really been fair. The scoring weights were changed during the process. We would urge the council to reconsider its position to ensure it is re-run.”

Graeme Torrance, owner of Scarlet Band, which has run the park-and-ride since it opened in 2005, said: “We continue to be disappointed with the decision. It may have been legally correct, but we’re sure it’s operationally incorrect.

“Our record was not taken into account. The taxpayers will be paying more for a worse service.”

A council review of the tendering process concluded it had been correct and proper.

During yesterday’s meeting, Councillor Bob Young, cabinet member for strategic environment and leisure, said: “I do have a great deal of personal sympathy for Scarlet Band. It would be fair to say my mailbox is full of compliments for Scarlet Band – and the situation would not always be the same for Arriva.

“I can give categoric assurances that if the contract is awarded and they do not deliver, and they have issues with the park-and-ride that they have with other services, we will be looking every single day, and we will implement whatever we can to terminate or suspend the contract and move the contract to someone else.”

Councillors also agreed to put themselves at the heart of contract decisions in future. They will be involved in the early stages of awarding commercial contracts to help officials make decisions, rather than responding if something goes wrong.

Arriva is due to take over the park-and-ride service in October.