Plans to divert Eurostar services from Ashford International to the new station at Ebbsfleet may impact on the French property market. When Ebbsfleet Eurostar station opens in October this year, services from Kent will be diverted to cater for M25 commuters. The Ashford terminus will lose all of its services to Brussels and more than half of its services to Paris. "The closure of Ashford station will be devastating for Kent commuters who are heading for France," says Jane Dinsdale from JDS Property Liaison. "I have several properties to sell in Picardie and now with all this talk of air travel pollution surely we need some green transport links, which indeed the trains are."

Other property agents, however, are more sanguine about the change. "Ashford is only reducing its already limited service to France," comments Peter Wheelton, Manager of the VEF Pas de Calais Partner Office. "Ebbsfleet is opening, so what will no longer stop in Ashford will stop in Ebbsfleet, which is not too far from Ashford anyway. Ebbsfleet station is simply there to give people the convenience of taking the Eurostar from the edge of the M25 without having to go into central London." Wheelton also believes that potential property purchasers will not be deterred by Eurostar station closures. "If Ashford were to close it will not put people off, as most people are commuting by car, ferry or tunnel to their homes in the Nord pas de Calais region," he explains. "Eurostar is not the reason why people are buying in Nord Pas de Calais. People are buying here for a better quality of life and because you get more property for your money. If people want to get back to the UK to work, there still are, and always have been, plenty of options."

To widen these options, Wheelton predicts that we could soon see a dedicated commuter rail service from Calais to Kent or London. "There are numerous groups pushing for such a service. Let's not forget that such a link would also benefit French people who want to work in England. I belong to a pressure group started by a local Frenchman to promote a Calais to Kent/London commuter link. xamples of a successful cross-border train link is Annecy to Geneva. Annecy has grown tenfold since the link and many French people who can't afford to live in Switzerland now live in Annecy and commute to Geneva to work." Since this link has yet to materialise in Northern France, it's perhaps revealing that few people choose to make the daily commute between their Calais homes and English jobs.
"From my experience, I don't think many people commute between Northern France and England," says Laetitia Hodson from French Property Shop. "It was often mentioned before, but in reality it's just not practical, what with train fees, etcetera, unless you work for Eurostar itself."

Concerns have been expressed that major French stations such as Lille could suffer the same fate as Ashford. However, Wheelton believes that this is unlikely. "The fact is that the Eurostar stops at Lille because it's a big city and ideally situated for corresponding trains to Brussels and the south of France," explains Wheelton. "Lille could never close, it was well-established as an international station even before the Eurostar came along." While some French transport options are closing, however, others are opening up. TGV Est Européen is set to launch a new high-speed service from Paris to the east of France – the first high-speed line to open in  the country since the TGV Méditerranée in 2001. Linking Paris Gare de l'Est to 23 destinations in Eastern France, the line will reduce journey times by up to half – no doubt generating new interest in property in eastern France.  The 100 daily departures from Paris will make cities like Reims, Metz and Nancy accessible in under two hours. It is anticipated that passenger levels between Paris and eastern France will increase by 65 per cent when the line opens on 10th June, many of these extra passengers being tourists. Those looking to take advantages of the likely price rises in the east should act fast to beat the rush.

Read the latest French Property Bulletin ezine FREE

Search and browse French property

Request a FREE copy of World of Property magazine

Article published on 4 June 2007