On track for the ‘M25 for rail’ plan

Ambitious plans for a new high-speed railway which could take passengers from Kent to Gatwick airport in just 25 minutes have been revealed.

Engineering consultancy Expedition is behind the £10bn proposal, which bosses have described as the ‘M25 for high speed trains’.

Dubbed HS4Air, it would connect the existing high-speed rail line in Ashford to the planned HS2 project along a route passing Gatwick and Heathrow airports. Some services could also call at Tonbridge.

The 140km-long line would link Kent to major cities north and west of London including Birmingham, Manchester and Cardiff – without taking passengers through the capital.

Expedition director Alistair Lenczner, who is in talks with several parties about the scheme, says it would bring a “massive economic benefit” to Kent, with Ashford becoming a boom town.

He said: “It would link Kent to the rest of the country and people wouldn’t have to go through London to get to other places.”

Bosses would upgrade the existing train line between Ashford International and Tonbridge to cater for the high-speed service.

Being almost dead straight, it is thought the stretch can be easily upgraded for the running of high-speed trains.

After that, HS4Air would run in tunnels to avoid adversely impacting on environmentally sensitive areas such as the Surrey Hills.

Mr Lenczner added: “In a way HS4Air can be regarded as a high-speed railway version of the M25 around London, except it allows much faster journey times with no congestion and with less environmental impact.

“HS4Air has been developed to allow rail and aviation infrastructure projects in south east England that are currently unconnected to become joined-up.

It is also thought it would alleviate pressure on the M25 and numbers of domestic flights involving Heathrow and Gatwick.