§ Mr. WyattTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what representations he has received on the closure of Ashford International Station on the weekend of the Francev. England rugby match in Paris; and if he will make a statement. [26888]
§ Mr. SpellarMy understanding is that the possible closure of Ashford over this weekend has yet to be confirmed, and that, currently, the station is scheduled to be open on Saturday 2 March, although possibly closed on the Friday and Sunday. These timings are provisional and therefore subject to change.
Although occasional weekend closures are an inevitable consequence of the essential work for the channel tunnel rail link (CTLR) currently being undertaken at and around Ashford, the timing of this particular closure, if confirmed, is particularly unfortunate. I therefore propose to raise the matter with the company building the link, Union Railways.
The CTLR project itself remains on time and on budget and when section 1 opens in 2003 the people of Kent will of course benefit from improved international rail services on a purpose-built high-speed line that will free up capacity on existing track.