Call for additional stop to help boost HS1 passenger take-up Town misses out on high-speed link
HIGH-speed trains that will run from MaidstoneWest to London St Pancras from next month will not stop at Snodland. Hopes that the peak-time service would include a local link have been dashed for the time being, but the county council is still pressing the case for a stop in its new Rail Action Plan for Kent*. Maidstone’s rail champion, Cllr Malcolm
Robertson, hailed the high-speed service as great news for the town’s commuters and its economy.
WEST Malling area commuters are distinctly unenthusiastic about the high-speed trial from MaidstoneWest. They continue to bemoan the
loss of the faster, peak-time City services, axed in December 2009 by Southeastern and describe the HS1 experiment as a “useless” token gesture. The Malling Dis- trict Rail Travellers’ Association has a log of their gripes on its website. ‘Jane’: “The majority of Malling commuters want City trains from West Malling to the City, not a drive to Maidstone, nowhere to park and then catch a train that delivers you in North London. “This is a pointless and some-
what contrived offering that I, for one, do not accept.” Bill Reeves: “I agree that the fight for City trains from West
He also believes it may stop at Snodland
in the future – but not from May 23 when the high-speed trial begins.
For many commuters St Pancras is not handy for those who work further south in the capital and face a cramped, onward Tube journey to the office.
A return journey from Maidstone will cost £37.50. Taking less than 50 minutes to
Fight on for the axed City trains, say commuters
St Pancras. The comfortable, air-condi- tioned train will stop at Strood, Gravesend and Stratford International – the latter will make it “very attractive” for Canary Wharf workers, said Cllr Robertson. The morning service will take just 47 minutes, and 48 minutes in the evening, compared to about an hour between Maid- stone East and Victoria. But it will only be truly high-speed from Ebbsfleet as it will “trundle up” the Medway Valley line on existing third-rail power, explained Cllr Robertson. There will be four ‘up’ and
Malling to Cannon Street must go on. Do not be distracted by the news of a trial of HS1. It is a di- versionary tactic, ill conceived and pointless.” ‘Fay’: “I am not going to drive
from Kings Hill to Maidstone, es- pecially when I have just bought an annual season ticket at the ex- cellent Kenden car park.” ‘Craig’: “If you don’t drive,
Felipe Baquero, chair- man of the Malling District Rail Travellers’ Association, said: “People are not happy because, as you know, the cost of the HS trains is substantially higher and it is not going directly to the City.”
…at least we have a good car park!
COMPLIMENTS have flooded in for the new car park serving West Malling station. One satisfied customer, writing on the MDRTA ‘blog’, said: “I
live at Kings Hill and do not want to drive further than West Malling to catch London trains. With the excellent Kenden car park I now have confidence in securely parking for little more than catching a bus. “The service provided is extremely good. This new car park
ticks all the boxes. “Like many others I bought a six-month season ticket and
saved a lot of money.” Meanwhile, Angela Hardy commented: “What a relief it is to
have the new Kenden car park. It is a great facility for all of us. Top quality and run with an eye for customer service and af- fordability. The personal service is the best I have encountered.” She added: “I suggest not using the Southeastern car park as
you are giving more money to the train company. I purchased a six-monthly ticket on line and saved a lot of money. “It is superb to have floodlighting and CCTV on all night.” The borough council has approved a new exit from the car
park, allowing drivers to avoid the drop-off lay-by and exit to- wards the A228 bypass. Entry remains the same.
Skydive appeal THE Breast Cancer Campaign is appealing for skydivers to take part in a fundraising event at Maidstone Airfield inWest Malling on the week- end of April 23-24. For information call 0207
749 4114.
Super-glued lock A LOCK was damaged by super-glue at a home in Swan Street,West Malling.
6 Malling
FRUIT grower Hugh Lowe has been honoured for his many years of dedication to the in- dustry. He was awarded the Ridley
Medal by theWorshipful Com- pany of Fruiterers at its annual banquet at the Mansion House, London. Mr Lowe started his career
when he joined his grandfa- ther Bernard Champion on the farm at Barons Place, Mere-
Southeastern charges £21 per week and £77.50 per month to park at its West Malling station. The Kenden car park of- fers equivalent tickets for £15 and £55.
The new Kenden car park atWest Malling ticks all the right boxes for rail commuters.
Industry honours ‘elder statesman’ of fruit growers
worth. He took up responsibil- ity for the farm in his early 20s, and at a young age, be- came chairman of Kent NFU, a district councillor and a mag- istrate. A former governor of Wye College, he was the first chair- man of the board at East Malling Research when it be- came independent of Defra in 2004.
Having retired to Dorset, he Visit Downs Mail’s website—
downsmail.co.uk
remains chairman of Hugh Lowe Farms and continues to take an interest in the busi- ness, which specialises in soft fruit. It is now owned and run by
his daughter and son-in-law, Marion and Jon Regan. Noted for his passion for in- novation as well as his volun- tary work, he was described as “a highly respected elder statesman of our industry”.
you have to get a down train to Maidstone East, then walk to Maidstone West, therefore any time saving has been wasted and (you) pay extra for the privilege. “The London service was poor before the Cannon St cuts. It needs to be improved over and above what it was, by eithermore trains to Cannon St or Blackfri- ars.” Lesley Ann James: “HS1 is of
no use to man nor beast travelling fromWest Malling.”
four ‘down’ trains – 06.56, 07.26, 07.56 and 19.13 from Maidstone West and 05.14, 05.44, 06.14 and 06.25 fromSt Pancras. Cllr Robertson warned the
service would be experimen- tal. “It’s critically important that a lot of people use it. It could be a case of use it or lose it.” He said that was a good rea-
son for it to stop at Snodland, otherwise it would be too re- liant on Maidstone for cus- tomers. *The action plan sets out
KCC’s principal objectives to ensure that the new rail fran- chise for Kent, due to com- mence in April 2014, delivers a “rail service that meet the needs of residents, commuters and visitors”. Its aims include an all-day high-speed service, not just peak times.
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