UK authorities backs return of worldwide rail journey to Kent stations | Rail transport

Hopes that worldwide rail companies may return to UK stations deserted by Eurostar have grown, with the federal government backing new opponents who plan to serve stops in Kent.

Ministers have been leaning on the rail regulator to provide essential house on the railway to potential entrants who pledge to deliver cross-Channel companies again to Ashford and Ebbsfleet stations – and probably London’s Stratford International.

All stations between London St Pancras and the Channel tunnel have been closed to worldwide high-speed companies since 2020, when Eurostar’s future was unsure in the course of the pandemic. Eurostar, majority-owned by the French state-owned SNCF, maintains that the stops are unviable, however new competing practice operators are hoping to enter the market.

In a speech in Ashford on Friday, the rail minister, Lord Peter Hendy, is predicted to say he has inspired practice companies to work with the area’s councils and companies to “explore solutions” for Kent, including: “I firmly believe that competition offers the best prospect of international services returning to Kent stations, and welcome the recent announcements that several new entrants are exploring the possibility of serving Ashford, Ebbsfleet and Stratford International stations.”

He will say he has made written representations to the impartial regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), “to make clear our support for competition and the benefits this brings, including the potential for services to be reinstated at Kent stations”.

The ORR is because of adjudicate subsequent month on whether or not different companies will likely be given entry to a important London practice depot for worldwide companies, Temple Mills, at present occupied solely by Eurostar, which maintains there isn’t a house, given its personal growth plans.

In a letter to the regulator, Hendy stated the federal government “strongly welcomes” the truth that potential opponents may go to the unused worldwide stations, concluding: “The government believes these are important considerations for ORR in determining the various access applications.”

Potential opponents embody Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, the British startup Gemini Trains and a partnership between the Italian state rail operator, FS Italiane, and the Spanish firm Evolyn.

Campaigners are centered significantly on reopening Ashford International, which is nearest the Channel tunnel and was a part of the Kent financial system which owed important improvement to new high-speed rail hyperlinks.

Helena Dollimore, MP for close by Hastings and Rye, has campaigned out and in of parliament for the restoration of the station. She estimates it could price about £2m-£3.5m to reopen the station with border controls, together with new EES (Entry/Exit System) kiosks.

She stated: “I used to go to Ashford when I was little to get the train across the Channel. We really miss that link with our neighbours – but for our constituents it is also jobs, business, and opportunities.

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“It’s a ghost terminal. The British taxpayer spent £80m on it – it’s a no-brainer to get it up and running again because of the benefits it would bring: more jobs, more visitors more tourism. It’s crazy they have lost that closest European link.”

For Kent residents travelling to London for Eurostar, reopening Ashford International would scale back return practice journey occasions to Paris and Brussels by a minimum of two or three hours respectively. A report by the Good Growth Foundation claims it may ship as much as £2.7bn in financial progress over 5 years, and usher in half one million extra guests per 12 months to the area.

A Eurostar spokesperson stated: “Our Kent stations will remain closed throughout 2025 and will be reviewed in 2026. We understand that this may be frustrating, and we want to stress that we are closely monitoring the situation.”

Only 4% of passengers used Ashford or Ebbsfleet in 2019, with about 50 passengers from Ashford on peak companies, based on Eurostar.