Kentish Express Ashford & District
Ky in the 1990s
m the unitary authoredway, while the QEII elcomed its first drivers
a mammoth six-year ction project costing lion, the Channel Tuned in 1994 and Samphire ntry Park - created with spoil from the scheme o the public three years
first time in its history, r de France weaved its ugh Kent in 1994 for the urth stage from Dover ton. ater opened its doors mers in 1999, while GilFC survived the threat sion from the Football in the 1994–95 season ul Scally stepped in to club.
GILLINGHAM CANTERBURY
France raced through Canterbury’s high 94 as part of the Dover to Brighton stage. rst time the race had come through Kent. n returned to the county in 2007, with the ge ending on the city’s Rheims Way.
Known as Medway Hospital until the end of the decade, 1999 saw the introduction of the Medway Maritime title. A £60 million development saw services get transferred from neighbouring hospitals St Bartholomew’s in Rochester and All Saints’ in Chatham. An extensive period of reconstruction at Priestfield Stadium took place from 1997 with a new Gordon Road stand built first and the main Medway Stand and new Rainham Ends being built shortly after.
Lydd Airport, operated by London Ashford Airport Ltd, continues to be a hub for private planes and cargo loads. It did run a passenger service to Le Touquet but it has now ceased.
The 90s saw the airport host huge dance raves. Plans for an extended runaway have rumbled on for years, but are yet to come to fruition.
MAIDSTONE HOSPITAL WEST MALLING AIRFIELD LYDD ASHFORD
1991 saw the last of the Great Warbirds Air Displays before the airfield was transformed into Kings Hill.
The annual shows drew in immense crowds each year, with many believing their sheer size and spectacle haven’t been repeated in Kent since.
Now incorporating the services of a host of former hospitals and clinics, Maidstone has expanded since the 90s.
Extra wings have been added since the hospital opened in
1983, including a self-contained orthopaedic unit and a new eye, ear and mouth unit which opened in 2003.
The Peggy Wood Breast Care Centre was established a year later.
A £2 million emergency care centre - one of the first of its kind in the country to offer full A&E services, a GP out-of-hours service and a walk-in centre all under one roof - opened in 2005.
The £80 million redevelopment of the town’s train station was finished in 1996 - bringing with it a new name, Ashford International.
A multi-storey car park, footbridge two new platforms, and European departure lounge catering for 800 people, other new car parks and whole new entrance were all constructed at the station. When the Channel Tunnel Rail Link was completed in 2007, a dedicated fast line was built allowing trains to thunder past and bypass the station. This coincided with the opening of the neighbouring Hitachi maintenance depot.
The high-speed service was then introduced two years later - significantly cutting journey times to London St Pancras - paving the way for Ashford to become a commuter town for the capital.
Ashford College opened on the corner of Elwick Road in 2014, and the 20mph ‘shared space’ road scheme was introduced in 2008.
The Curious Brewery has since launched, along with a neighbouring Aldi, an under-construction Hampton by Hilton hotel and 200 apartments.