'ortsmouth buys out
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The sale of Portsmouth ,r Transport (PCT) to joint .ers, PCT employees and ithampton City Bus (SCB), Ked set to go ahead as tsmouth City councillers ed on the sale proposal on !sday this week.
)eputy leader of the city ndl Charles Moss said last ek: "The full value of the
is worth 2730,000 to the !payers — 2250,000 in cash [ the remainder consisting of liabilities that the council not now have to meet." 'CT currently costs the ncil £10,000 a week, and at current rate of escalation could be up to 21 million in ill twelve months. The bid the employees and Southpton represents a good deal bus users. It relieves rate 'ers of substantial potential dities and gives employees opportunity of involvement heir own future," said Moss. zollowing the withdrawal of Ahem Vectis, whose originad EU million was wide-egarded as an exaggerated imate of PCT's value, the mcil approached all the other !rators who had expressed interest. SCB and PCT's ployees were the only ones respond.
[he sale, as predicted by mmerciai Motor in last week's Je will mark the start of a xi chapter in PCT's cheq-ed history.
"mu May, branch secretary of Transport and General irkers' Union (TGWU) at T says: "Although nothing can be definite until the council and Paul Channon approve the sale, it must be made clear that if we are successful we will be inheriting a loss-making concern. To improve that situation we must move away from the past eight years' policy of contracting PCT. We must expand the company, and Southampton City Bus shares this opinion," he added.
May says that SBC has con firmed that it does not intend making any changes to current agreements, nor does it plan any redundancies.
SCB Board member and T&GWU representative Steve Early did not wish to make any comment until Portsmouth council had conducted its meeting on Tuesday.
It is widely believed that the sale will be approved by Transport Secretary Paul Channon.