Proposal for a Kent freight depot

Hannah Ratcliffe
BBC Kent

The proposed KIG site highlighted in red on map of Maidstone area.

The Proposal

Kent International Gateway (KIG) is a 270-acre freight depot plan. It would transfer freight between lorries on the M20 and trains on the standard London-Ashford railway line. The depot's proposed location is between Thurnham Lane in the West and Junction 8 of the M20 in the East.

Freight Facts Freight on roads expected to double in next 20 years In next 10 years rail freight could deliver £4billion of environmental benefits Rail industry says there is an argument for 4 depots in and around London

Operating 13 freight trains a day, it is expected to remove 37.3 million HGV miles from the roads each year.

Axa Real Estate Investment Management (Axa REIM) have put forward the planning permission application for the rail and road freight complex.

AREIM says the depot will create 3000 jobs and would be open 24 hours, seven days a week to receive freight, particularly from the Continent. One-third of the total site area would be given over to landscaping, woodland retention and new wildlife habitats.

The opposition

The plan has been met with strong opposition, with more than 8,800 people joining a campaign orchestrated by the Stop Kent International Gateway group.

Stop KIG

StopKIG Facts KIG would affect the villages Bearsted, Thurnham and Hollingbourne KIG's proposed site borders an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Light and noise pollution are concernts. 3000 new jobs would increase car traffic

Residents' groups, Kent County Council and Maidstone Borough Council all oppose the scheme. The opposition says this is the wrong plan in the wrong place.

Maidstone council said the depot would create huge volumes of industrial traffic on already busy roads.

Residents say the development would be "hugely damaging" to the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Kent County Council also turned down a revised proposal for a smaller development submitted in September 2009.

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Overview of the process so far...

April 2007: residents are invited to an exhibition of the KIG plans in Bearsted before a formal planning application was submitted.

June 2007: a planning application for KIG is submitted to Maidstone Borough Council. Deadline for council's decision 13th February 2008

Kent International Gateway Application

November 2007: 3,500 people give their views on the KIG during a three-week consultation period on its application.

Thousands respond to depot plans

January 2008: The Highways Agency requests more information on the impact the site will have on traffic and roads. This is an additional request for extra information to a previous request by Maidstone Borough Council. Application would now not be decided by 13th February 2009.

May 2009: Maidstone Council officers recommend the depot should not go ahead on 18 grounds.

Council rejects freight site plan

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The inquiry

Public turn out at the first day of the public inquiry

In February 2009 Axa REIM asked for a public inquiry on the grounds of the application's non-determination by Maidstone Borough Council, which then rejected the plan in May.

The inquiry began on the 13 October 2009. On 11 November local residents presented their evidence to the planning inspector.

KIG Public Inquiry

After the inquiry concludes, the planning inspector will report his recommendations to John Denham, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.