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The company planning to build a £5bn railway that will connect Oxford and Cambridge is looking for project and cost managers.

The East West Rail Company (EWRC), which will develop the project in two phases, has begun the search ahead of a suppliers event . A full contract notice will be published on 1 June.

The company intends to appoint firms to four lots, with suppliers allowed to win places on all lots on the £150m framework.

Lot 1 of the framework is to provide management systems integration. Firms working on this lot will be required to provide schedule, cost and risk management as well as provide BIM consultancy.

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Lots 2, 3 and 4 are for project management and controls, commercial and procurement and engineering management respectively.

The railway will be built in two stages, Oxford to Bedford, which is already underway, and Bedford to Cambridge.

The preferred route for the Bedford to Cambridge section was announced in January, with the railway set to connect existing stations at Bedford and Cambridge with Cambourne and an area around Sandy and St Neots in Cambridgeshire.

Phase 1 of the Oxford to Bedford route, which connected Oxford and Bicester Village, was completed in 2016 and was delivered by Network Rail, Chiltern Railways, Carillion and Buckingham Group.

The second phase, between Bicester Village and Bedford, is underway, with enabling works being delivered by the East West Rail Alliance, which was formed in 2015 by Network Rail, Laing O’Rourke, Atkins and Volker Rail.

The team will also be the main contractor on that part of the route.