'Lives will be changed by £100m Ebbsfleet station'
Nov 20, 2007
Ebbsfleet International Station will "transform" the lives of people travelling from Kent into Europe.
And the £100 million station, which was officially opened on Monday, will provide a great boost for the county's economy, it is claimed.People will be able to travel by train from Ebbsfleet International to Paris in just two hours five minutes and to Brussels in one hour 51 minutes.
There are seven trains per day to and from Paris, with five each way to Brussels.
In two years' time, Kent passengers will be able to use high-speed domestic services linking east and north Kent with London, with journey times into the capital falling to 17 minutes from Ebbsfleet and 37 minutes from Ashford International.
Gravesend, Canterbury, Thanet, Folkestone and Dover will also have much faster links to the capital. In 2012, journeys from Ebbsfleet to the Olympic village will take just 10 minutes.
But the opening of Ebbsfleet has resulted for Ashford in fewer trains to Paris and none to Brussels.
Cllr Roger Gough, Kent County Council's cabinet member for regeneration, said the opening of Ebbsfleet International station was a "great boost for the county's economy".
He added: "It will create a lot of job opportunities, promote interest in Kent as a tourism destination, strengthen rail connections to London and the regions, and help attract more businesses relocating to Kent.
"There will be a dramatic reduction in travel times, which is tremendously important. Historically, the county has under-performed other areas around London but the closer links to the capital will help us achieve a real step change in economic performance."
But he said the fight would continue to bring back international services to Ashford International. KCC is working with UK and French partners to make the case for Ashford services to Brussels to be restored, he said.
"KCC has not forgotten that Kent now has two international stations. We will continue to press for Ashford to be reconnected to Brussels so that both Kent's growth areas will benefit."
The first Eurostar train for Paris left Ebbsfleet International at 5.38am on Monday.
The South East England Development Agency (Seeda) said the opening of the station would "transform" the lives of people travelling from the South East into Europe.
Richard Brown, chief executive of Eurostar, said: "Ebbsfleet International is as close to the M25 as any London airport, and is the fastest way to Europe.
"It enables business travellers to get up later, arrive earlier, and do a full day's work."
He added: "Leisure travellers can avoid congested airports, long check-in queues and baggage reclaim delays and nip across to mainland Europe in relaxing style.
"It's a lot better for the environment than flying too."
Source: kentnews.co.uk
