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Commuters converge beneath Osaka station's glass, sail-shaped roof. Picture: Osaka Terminal Building*.* (The Australian)
The Osaka Prefectural Assembly rejected Monday a controversial plan to sell a private railway company to a U.S. investment firm after local residents shared concerns that the plan puts too much emphasis on the bidding price rather than maintaining stable local transportation, officials said.
A slight majority of the prefectural assembly member opposed the governor's proposal on Monday afternoon to sell the non- profit railway operator, Semboku Rapid Railway, which run trains on the 15-km section between the Sakai City and the Izumi City in the prefecture to Dallas-based Lone Star Funds, according to the prefectural assembly secretariat said.
A spokesperson at the secretariat told Xinhua that the plan was rejected by a vote of 53 to 51 after some members from the main political group Osaka Ishin no Kai, a local group of the national party Nippon Ishin no Kai, changed their political stance and opposed finally the proposal.
Local media reported that the U.S. company has proposed purchasing the railway operator for 6 billion yen (about 58 million U.S. dollars) more than its competitor, Nankai Electric Railway Company, which would rather propose reducing the fare a further 80 yen.
The two mayors, meanwhile, have expressed their strong opposition to the prefecture's proposed sale of the commuter railway company to the U.S. firm, noting that the current plan neglects improvements to make the rail line more convenient instead of trying to make gains from the pending sale, therefore urging the prefecture to sincerely discuss the matter.
