A passenger writes…

Neil P., an Ashford passenger, responds to the campaign and argues that government and Eurostar should think again:

I think the Website is excellent and it more than adequately documents the history of the campaign.

Two areas that might be added are:

A. despite the fact that Eurostar is a private company and has been given the authority to operate the franchise as it sees fit, and therefore is at liberty to remove stations from the service if it thinks there is business justification, the Government has at least a moral obligation, if not a statutory one, to ensure that the public money that has been invested in Ashford Station and in the infrastructure of the dedicated high speed railway line to the continent, and indeed in the Channel Tunnel itself, is used to the maximum benefit of all UK taxpayers; it should therefore exercise influence over Eurostar to ensure Ashford and passengers using it continue to be served reasonably by Eurostar.

B. passengers currently using Ashford for Eurostar, and wishing to continue to do so, are drawn from a wide area of South East England - not limited to Kent - but also from East Sussex. Because of Ashford’s excellent rail conections, many of them are able to effect their entire journey using public transport and in so doing are contributing to a reduction in the motor car’s impact on the environment. None of the passengers in this category will be able to make their Eurostar journeys without either using cars or making protracted public transport journeys that will add hours if Ebbsfleet becomes the only alternative to Ashford for journeys to Brussels.