The Central Administrative Tribunal for Contractual Resources has annulled the direct contract award to Avanza Movilidad Levante for the CE-704 Torrevieja to Alicante public road transport service. The route was called by the Regional Ministry of Environment, Infrastructure and Territory of the Generalitat. Estimating the appeal submitted by the Association for the Management of Passenger Transport (GTV), the resolution found that the alleged emergency was not sufficiently justified to resort to a direct award without a competitive process. The Generalitat and Avanza can appeal the ruling before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community. Neither party has commented on the notified resolution, and the annulment means Avanza would maintain the service under the conditions prior to this contract.
The administrative body has ordered the proceedings to be rolled back so the Generalitat can make a new lawful decision. However, the tribunal does not force the Generalitat to call an open procedure as requested by GTV, pointing out that its role is to review legality rather than replace the contracting body or dictate the procedure. The decision is final via administrative channels, with a two-month period to appeal to the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community.
The procurement began in September 2025 as an emergency measure to ensure service continuity. The General Directorate of Transport approved the simplified project on 30th September and requested bids on 8th October from three selected companies: La Unión de Benisa, Avanza Movilidad Levante, and Subus Grupo de Transporte. Only Avanza submitted an offer, getting proposed as the winning bidder in January and obtaining the award on 10th March 2026.
To authorise the contract, valued at an estimated 7.62 million euro, the Generalitat relied on European legislation permitting exceptional measures during service interruptions or imminent risks. However, the tribunal highlighted that this route is an exception requiring strict, concrete, and objective justification.
The central conclusion of the resolution is that the file failed to objectively prove an interruption or imminent risk. Reports contained generic claims about a potential suspension due to Avanza pressing that the service was loss-making, but lacked precision regarding affected services, the actual extent of a removal, or financial and operational data to measure the risk.
The tribunal also noted that the situation was not sudden, arising instead from expired concessions dating back to 2013 and 2016 alongside long processing times for a new model. GTV argued that the emergency direct award was used improperly for a predictable decline caused by years without tenders. The association highlighted that the operator reported the impossibility of continuing in March 2024, arguing the administration should not have waited until March 2026 if the risk was truly imminent.
In its defence, the Generalitat claimed requirements were met due to abandonment risks and expiring contracts, adding it had been working on a modernisation plan while facing delays from appeals. Avanza sought to dismiss the appeal, arguing GTV lacked standing and that operators cannot be forced to run loss-making services. The tribunal rejected these arguments, upholding GTV’s standing and ruling that chained exceptional measures cannot replace ordinary tenders.
Aside from the contract dispute, users report ongoing deficiencies on the Alicante to Torrevieja service. When buses fill up at Alicante station, no extra vehicles are added, forcing passengers to wait an hour for the next bus. Tickets must often be bought directly from the driver, creating queues despite high demand.
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