Locals and businesses in Ashford are pleading for the Eurostar to return after a five-year absence - saying the centre has become "depressing" since the rail service disappeared.
In September 2020, Eurostar announced that due to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent collapse in ticket revenue, both Ebbsfleet and Ashford International stations would not be served by Eurostar services.
Eurostar trains have not stopped at struggling Ashford, Ebbsfleet or Stratford’s platforms despite increasing public and private pressure to reopen them.
Council leaders pointed out that the absence of the stations' service has impacted businesses employing over 30,000 people across Kent.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, responding to a question in the House of Commons from Ashford’s Labour MP Sojan Joseph, recently encouraged Eurostar to restart services at its abandoned stations in Kent.
Locals were left disappointed by Sir Keir’s statement that the decision was “ultimately for Eurostar”.
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