Interweaving planning procedures for environmental impact assessment for high level infrastructure with public procurement procedures

In the traditional setting of a tender procedure on infrastructure in the Netherlands, the procedure starts after the public decision-making procedure has been completed. In recent years, however, the Department of Transport and Water Management has considered advancing the start of the tender procedure in relation to the start of the planning procedure by interweaving both procedures. The possibilities and added values of this market approach have been researched in this paper. Added value has been found in the area of utilisation of knowledge, innovation and creativity of the market, thus gaining time and obtaining a more business-like character of the planning procedure. Solutions are proposed for impediments concerning disclosure versus confidentiality, adapting tender conditions and award criteria, (re)using market party ideas and procedure period.