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Local residents and council leaders in Kent are putting pressure on Westminster to restore train services between the county and the continent. Both Ashford and Ebbsfleet Eurostar stations closed in March 2020, with the rail operator stating they would remain closed until the end of 2025.
Those living in Kent, however, are determined to get their rail connection to Europe back. The two closed stations allow people in the area to access trains running between London St Pancras, Paris and Brussels. The closure in 2020 was a result of the Covid shutdown, but businesses in Kent are growing increasingly frustrated with the impact this has had on them - especially since the service has reopened to travellers from London.
Community organisers have taken the opportunity of the new government’s election to call attention to neglect of Kent’s transport connections. A petition started in March 2023 now carries nearly 60,000 signatures and highlights the absurdity of continuing to call stations like Ashford and Ebbsfleet ‘International’ when Eurostar appears to be in no hurry to restart their services to the towns. Nevermind the fact that Kentish residents currently have to travel north to London if they want to catch the Eurostar, only to travel back through Kent on their way to the Continent.
Nick Fenton, CEO of Locate in Kent, said: ‘It’s not acceptable for London alone to be reaping all the rewards and prestige of the UK’s only cross channel link with Europe. For Kent and the wider South-East region to compete and continue to attract more high-skilled, well-paid jobs, we need those trains back.’
Other local business leaders have pointed out how the lack of connectivity has reduced passenger traffic to and from Kent, which has had a substantive negative impact on local businesses. They are calling for the government to look into competitors to Eurostar, if the company fails to relaunch services in the southeast.
In other Kent news, did you see that Ebbsfleet’s ‘garden city’ is about to get much bigger?
Plus: the UK’s ‘worst connected’ train station which is getting a revamp.
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