Department for Transport signs up to Google Cloud in move that lessens reliance on AWS
The Department for Transport (DfT) has awarded a major contract to Google, after previous criticism that Whitehall relies too much on Amazon Web Services (AWS).
The DfT has awarded the search giant a contract to become its data cloud provider from 2020.
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Google Cloud will set up and manage the department’s data management system to ensure it becomes a so-called cloud-first organisation by June next year.
It comes after recent criticism that government departments relied too heavily on Amazon to provide digital services.
This has been touted by some as a potential security risk.
The government introduced measures to allow smaller companies to have a better chance at winning government contracts last year, however several Whitehall contracts have been awarded to AWS since then.
The announcement to award the DfT contract to Google Cloud was two years in the making, according to the department’s chief investment officer Mark Lyons.
“The capabilities the platform offers are helping us to utilise data better to support decision-making, policy-making, reporting and governance, as well as provide new digital services to engage with citizens on transport related initiatives,” he said.
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“When you have finite resources, having a partner that understands the process of change and can direct your focus to the things that really matter is invaluable.”
The foundations of DfT’s new cloud system has allowed for improvement in journey time estimates and ticket information searches.
Mark Palmer, Google Cloud’s head of public sector for the UK, said: “Since the migration, DfT has been able to access a broad range of services designed to dramatically enhance its capabilities, as well as develop its own software products on top of Google Cloud.”