ONE of Penarth's oldest taxi firms is celebrating its 50th birthday this year and has vowed to continue serving the town for decades to come after the recent death of its owner.

K-Tax, based on Station Approach, is still going strong and is now being run by the family of former owner Gareth Williams.

His widow Patricia Williams has thanked the community for standing by them and paid tribute to her husband for building the company up over the last 13 years.

“He was dedicated to the company and was always hard working,” she said.

“He was always running around for the business and was instrumental in building it up in Penarth.”

She added: “I intend to carry on with the help and support of my family, as that is what he would have wanted.

“We believe it’s the oldest taxi firm in Penarth, and we plan on continuing to serve the people of Penarth and the Vale.

“It’s quite an achievement for anyone to run for 50 years.”

Gareth Williams, who was aged 69, died in a road traffic collision on Cog Road in Sully last month. Before buying K-Tax he worked for a haulage company driving Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) and was well known for driving with his customised plate M4 TAF.

Patricia, who was married to Gareth for 40 years, added that he had built the firm into “more than just a taxi company” and that he “always went the extra mile to help people”.

“He built up a relationship with people,” she said.

“The church at his funeral was full to bursting point, with loyal customers, friends and family all coming to pay tribute.

“We are very grateful to the people that have stood by us.

“We would like to say thank you to all the K-Tax staff for helping us throughout this difficult time.”