Portsmouth scuppers Vectis
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• A deal to sell off Portsmouth City Transport (PCT) has collapsed following the city council's last-minute rejection of the £700,000 bid by Isle of Wight-based Southern Vectis (SVOC).
SVOC, which was about to sign the deal earlier this week, accused council leaders of blocking its bid by imposing unrealistic conditions on operational procedures, and managing director Gary Batchelor is reported to have said that PCT's financial position was "a mess".
Vectis says the council blocked the sale by the imposition of four conditions which could not be met: 0 That SVOC would not intro duce a plan to halve fares for pensioners; 0 That SVOC would not be allowed to use PCT's Eastney depot for six months rent-free as requested, after which the bus company would have moved out; 0 That no routes would be franchised by Vectis; 0 That no major long-term changes would occur in traffic management terms — SVOC wanted more bus lanes.
TGWU representative Alex Hodder has written to Transport minister David Mitchell urging him to call an inquiry into the collapsed deal. "I have been saying from the start that the deal would not go ahead," says Hodder.