On 8 September 1947, the Brisbane City Council wrote to the Commissioner for Transport to explain the rationale behind its application to compulsorily acquire 20 privately operated bus services in Brisbane.
At this time there were:
- 67 vehicles owned by 20 licensees operating between the suburbs and the City terminating, at the City end, mainly at either North Quay, King George Square or Duncan Street (Valley).
- 45 vehicles operated by 6 owners between the seaside (Lota, Manly, Sandgate, Cribb Island) and the City, terminating either at North Quay, Eagle Street, or Valley.
- 32 vehicles owned by 14 licensees providing feeder services to tram routes and in one case, the railway.
- 3 purely local seaside services.
- 7 vehicles operated by three Aircraft Service Organisations to aerodromes.
- 12 miscellaneous licences, including services to Abattoirs, and local suburban services to schools, etc.
The Brisbane City Council acquired these 20 bus operators between October 1947 and April 1948.
| Licensee | Route | No. of Buses |
| Christian Ferdinand Berndt | Taringa to City (King George Square) | 4 |
| John Robert Boon | Thompson Estate to City (William Street) | 4 |
| Cecil George Brighouse, Alfred Robert Bunning and Norman Hamilton McKillop (Wilston Bus Service) | Wilston to Valley (Duncan Street) | 3 |
| Horace Walter Bruce | Everton Park to Valley (Duncan Street) | 2 |
| Peter O’Hara and George Merland Burke (Burke Bros) | Toowong to City (King George Square) | 3 |
| Joan Eileen Clarke | Doomben to Valley (Duncan Street) | 1 |
| Thomas Findlay | Tarragindi to City (William Street) | 5 |
| David Roslyn Harrison and William Allan Tyalgum Bothwell (Harrison and Bothwell) | Yeerongpilly to City (William Street) | 7 |
| Cecil John and Honour Maureet Healy | Birdwood Terrace to City (King George Square) | 2 |
| Clifford Frank Holden | Walton Bridge to City (King George Square) | 3 |
| Margaret Henrietta Jackson | East Brisbane to City (William Street) | 1 |
| John Jones | Yeronga to City (William Street) | 5 |
| Thomas Arthur Lewis | Moorooka to City (William Street) | 2 |
| Francis Jacob and Marie Cecilia Mesh | Indooroopilly to City (King George Square) | 8 |
| Albert John Mullen | Pinkenba to Valley (Duncan Street) | 2 |
| George Andrew and Rueben Arthur Nicol | Hendra to Valley (Warner Street) | 1 |
| John Joseph O’Connell | Swann Road, Taringa and St Lucia to City (King George Square) | 7 |
| Ernest Parker | Dornoch Terrace to City (William Street) | 1 |
| David Richard, Harry Jones, Richard Herbert and Leslie Howard Stephens (Stephens and Sons) | Norman Park to City (William Street) | 5 |
| Harold Joseph Walker | Teneriffe to Valley (Duncan Street) and City (William Street) | 1 |