Cardiff Bus Sale Decision Delayed
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ANY decision on selling its motorbuses to a private company has been delayed by Cardiff City Council, following a meeting held last week to discuss the £282,000 deficit of the transport undertaking. An expert en municipal finance is to be consulted.
Ald. Sir William Williams, chairman of the finance committee, said that thete was a choice between increasing rates by 2s. 9d. in the pound or securing a lump sum of £282,000. One of the largest bus companies in the country had approached him, saying that if the corporation wished, it would buy, at an agreed valuation, the buses and the buildings required to work the services, with an option to the corporation to resume ownership after a specified period.
Court. A. J. Williams contended that Sir William was trying to create a " stampede " in favour of a private company. The city's buses alone were worth £500,000, but Sir William was willing to take "a paltry £300,000" for them to wipe out the debt. "Our services have been built up at tremendous sacrifice. You would have our oil buses under a private company competing against our trolleybuses." he added, Ald. G. E. B. Frewer stated that if the motorbuses were sold, the-corporation would start with a debt on the trolleybus loan account of about £350,000 and would have only the trolleybuses to enable the debt to be cleared.