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| Subject: One document, a letter from NRMAmakes reference to it replacing Motorola | |
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Author: anonymous |
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Date Posted: 10:20:51 11/19/02 Tue http://www.old.smh.com.au/news/0203/07/biztech/biztech18.html ----------------------------------------------------------- No liability for ticket tender By Anne Lampe ----------------------------------------------------------- The way the State Government drew up the tender process for the multi public transport smartcard deliberately exempted it from liability to any proponent, counsel for the NSW State Government, Tom Bathurst, QC, told the NSW Supreme Court yesterday. ----------------------------------------------------------- The claim came 2 weeks into a hearing which was set to take a week following the filing of a challenge to the awarding of the smart card contract by the unsuccessful tenderer, Cubic Transportation Systems, last December. The contract for a uniform computer chip ticketing system and hardware for bus, rail, ferry and light rail users in NSW is worth an estimated $500 million. ----------------------------------------------------------- Before Mr Bathurst opened the case for the Government, Tim Moore, junior counsel for Cubic, ran through a list of documents and letters that were obtained under the mutual document discovery process. ----------------------------------------------------------- One document, a letter from NRMA, makes reference to it replacing Motorola as the partner of smartcard operator ERG Ltd in the winning Integrated Transit Solutions consortium. ----------------------------------------------------------- Mr Bathurst told the court that provisions of the tender documents asked for groups to put forward proposals to provide "a highly sophisticated, integrated, transport system" and ticketing. ----------------------------------------------------------- In selecting a tenderer, the State Government had only the public interest at heart. ----------------------------------------------------------- "In issuing those tenders it was not giving the proponents a favour", he said. "The proponents were entitled to respond to the call. They chose to tender. If they did so they did so at their own risk. They did not have to respond to the call." ----------------------------------------------------------- Cubic is seeking a judicial review of the tender process, claiming there were flaws and irregularities in how the tenders were evaluated. It is not seeking damages in this hearing. Mr Bathurst said the Government made it clear that it was not giving any warranties that the information on which the tenders were based would be accurate and reserved the right to vary the contract terms, to supersede them or not to proceed at all. In all those circumstances it was made clear no compensation claims would be entertained. ----------------------------------------------------------- Mr Bathurst also said the Government had "absolute discretion" in the evaluation process. Cubic has made an issue of the head of ERG, Peter Fogarty, being allowed by ticketing system project director John Armstrong to make a computer presentation, when Mr Armstrong had previously said that no such presentations were to be made. ----------------------------------------------------------- Mr Bathurst said that "may be a breach of an undertaking, but not a breach of contract". ----------------------------------------------------------- Justice Michael Adams said receipt of that presentation might be regarded as deceitful behaviour. "At the bottom line there is a statement that we would not look at this material ... but you did get the material and did not tell the other proponents." ----------------------------------------------------------- Mr Armstrong is expected to give evidence today. ----------------------------------------------------------- [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |