NYCT Bus sale

Pete Donohue of the NY Daily News reported yesterday that New York City Transit is putting three New Flyer Viking express buses up for auction; they had originally been purchased in 1999 for evaluation.

Here's my question: Why are we purchasing buses for evaluation? I would think that NYCT, as the largest transit agency in the country, would have enough clout to be able to evaluate equipment at the manufacturer's expense, rather than at the taxpayer's, wouldn't you? This sounds like yet another example of the rampant waste that has long been a hallmark of the MTA's operations.