Swindon council sells loss-making Thamesdown Transport bus firm

One of the last council-owned bus companies in the UK has been sold after the authority said it had "incurred losses over the past five years".

Swindon Borough Council said the sale of Thamesdown Transport to operator Go South Coast "offered the best value".

Councillor David Renard said it was in the "best interests" of bus users and Thamesdown Transport employees.

Go South Coast, said it would be "business as usual as far as our customers are concerned".

Conservative council leader Mr Renard said they were "one of the few local authorities in the country to still own a local bus company".

But "despite continued financial support from the council", Thamesdown Transport had "incurred losses over the over the past five years due to difficult trading conditions".

He said: "We have had to change the way we provide services across the council while balancing the ever increasing demand on adults' and children's services."

Andrew Wickham, from Go South Coast, said it was an "excellent opportunity" to develop services in Swindon and north Wiltshire.

He said: "Any tickets or passes they have will still be valid, and our 85 buses will continue to serve existing routes with no change to timings."

Claire Walters, from Bus Users UK, said: "This is a municipal bus company but that means most people would see Thamesdown as belonging to them and the fact that they have not been consulted seems a little bit strange."

Labour councillor Jim Grant said: "It's a very sad day in the history of Swindon that Thamesdown Transport had to be sold off."

The council said it would arrange a joint meeting with Go South Coast and bus user groups to discuss any concerns.