I am announcing today that Govia has been awarded the contract to run the integrated Kent rail franchise from 1 April next year.The contract my Department has signed commits Govia to introducing the high speed commuter trains that will use the channel tunnel rail link to serve the south-east from 2009.Journey times for passengers who wish to travel from Ramsgate and east Kent, through the Medway towns and Thames Gateway to the centre of London will be reduced. It will be the first high speed commuter service this country has seen. In 2012 Govia will provide the flagship Olympic Javelin rail service that helped London secure the Olympic games. This will link St. Pancras and Stratford in less than eight minutes.In addition Govia has committed to improve performance, invest around £76 million in passenger and staff facilities, oversee the construction of two depots in East Kent to maintain the new and existing fleet of trains and add a number of off peak services to the current timetable. The franchise contract is for eight years with the final two years dependent on service performance achieving preset targets.There has been significant investment in the franchise region in recent years. The taxpayer has invested more than £600 million in new rolling stock in Kent in the last three years. In addition, Kent has seen £93 million of investment in power supply, stations, depots and related infrastructure. Some £250 million will be invested in the new high speed trains.The total subsidy for IKF is £585 million over the eight years. It is therefore justifiable for the new operator to increase fares by 3 per cent. above inflation from January 2007 for five years to ensure there is fair balance between the taxpayer and fare paying passenger.I am satisfied that the competition for the franchise has resulted in a contract that represents very good value for taxpayer. It is a tough contract on which Govia will be expected to deliver. It will help support the new housing and economic opportunities in the Thames Gateway area and region beyond.

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