Local Public Transport
Public transport is a vital form of public service in rural districts and towns. Municipal companies in particular, but also private companies, are involved in providing these services. The financing, legal framework, and strategic organisation of public transport are complex questions for those involved.
Just as in the private sector, the public sector also faces numerous challenges in its business activities. Regulation, restructuring, privatisation, and increasingly complex administrative processes are just some of the challenges that authorities must overcome in increasingly shorter timeframes.
Our approach
Our experts are long-standing partners of the public sector. We understand the specific challenges affecting the transport industry and have built our reputation through many years of experience and great expertise in the public sector. Our lawyers also work with our tax consultancy and audit specialists, pooling competencies and offering you, the client, the best possible solutions.
Our services
In the area of public transport law, we offer you the following advisory services:
Strategic consulting
- For us, strategic consulting means always bearing in mind our client’s ultimate purposes. We handle legal issues with professional accuracy and develop practical solutions that best serve the interests of our clients.
Organisational advice
- Organisational issues are not considered an aspect of daily operations. We provide comprehensive advice on the reorganisation of transport companies and transport organisational structures in the public sector (organisational reviews, formation of public authority groups, mergers, split-offs, etc.).
Grants – subsidies – state aid law (specialised industry expertise)
- As the public transport service provided to citizens is not designed to be self-financing, it requires subsidies from the public budget. We assist in obtaining the relevant financing by navigating the complex links between budgetary law, grant law, state aid law, and public procurement law. We relieve you of the effort involved in preparing and/or confirming the necessary individual billing.
Procurement law and in-house arrangements (specialised industry expertise)
- As public contracting authorities, municipal transport companies are confronted with many facets of public procurement law (procurement of services, vehicle infrastructure, construction measures as well as procurement of fuels, tyres/spare parts, etc.). Our advice encompasses everything from ways of dealing with individual procurement issues to comprehensive assistance in procurement processes.
Local transport planning
- We advise public transport authorities on the legal structuring of their local transport planning.
Direct award processes
- Preparing and implementing direct award processes in accordance with regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 and the Public Transport Act and § 108 of the German Act against Restraints of Competition (Competition Act, GWB) are key elements of our advisory services to municipal authorities. Forvis Mazars has extensive experience in preparing and implementing the relevant procedures and conducting reviews as specified in the Annex to Regulation 1370/2007.
Awarding of public service contracts
- Formulation of public service contracts, contract and financing forms, forms of shareholder instructions, formulation of public procurement law (§ 108 of the German Act against Restraints of Competition (Competition Act, GWB) / Art. 5 II Regulation 1370/2007), tax planning (incl. tax unity across entities), individual billing, incentive systems, etc.
Corporate law/contract law
- Our expertise in corporate law is closely tied to our knowledge of the special requirements of the local environments in which our clients operate. We can assist you with all types of contract formulation.
Labour law (specialised industry expertise)
- We have extensive employment law experience. Our advice focuses especially on transport company managers` employment contracts, pension schemes, assistance with collective bargaining agreements, provision of staff, transfers of personnel, and individual and collective labour law.
Representation in court
- We handle representation in court in civil and administrative proceedings as well as in applications for internal review and contract award review proceedings before the public procurement tribunal.
