• Local councils in South Wales are not prepared to
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continue providing cash to keep buses running on five important routes. This week three councils—Pontardawe, Llandilo and Cwmammam—decided to scrap their joint subsidy following the end of a trial period and to recommend support for any bus operator applying for a licence to run any service withdrawn by South Wales Transport Co Ltd who at present run these services.
Regular passengers on these routes are hoping other small operators will come to their rescue. In fact, the PantyffynnonTairgwaith and the Ammanford—Brynamman (Pullman) services are already the subject of applications to the Traffic Commissioners by a private operator who wishes to remain anonymous for the time being.
The South Wales Transport Company has in fact now informed the local organizer of the Transport and General Workers Union that it is to surrender the licences for these services on August 14 and that appropriate notices have been served on the local authorities, factories and other interested bodies.
During the subsidy period the local authorities carried out a survey to ascertain which services were necessary to be maintained to avoid undue hardship. From their investigations it seemed there was no reason why some of the services should not be economic to run and there was evidence that some private operators were interested in taking up the licences proposed to be surrendered by the SW Bus Company. Ammanford council was not represented at the first meeting and was not a party to the subsidy but they were asked to reconsider their own position.
One of the services to be withdrawn is the Hopkinstown-Ammanford route which conveys children and commuters from the Betws district to Ammanford. The fitter residents of Hopkinstown may have only to walk a short way out to the bus stop on the main road at Pontamman but the elderly people may well find themselves virtually isolated from the town.
Also isolated,' and indeed in a worse situation, will be the residents of Garnswilt who will be faced with a three-mile walk into Ammanford unless another company takes over the licence to operate the service.