London & Continental Railways has the lead responsibility for the multi-billion pound regeneration of land around HS1 stations.

In 1996, London & Continental Railways (LCR) was selected by the Government to build and operate the high speed Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), now called High Speed (HS1).

LCR owns and operates the UK arm of the Eurostar international train service. HS1 Ltd is the owner of the high-speed railway infrastructure and stations along the route. On 6 November 2007, LCR delivered HS1 to the nation. Britain finally had its first new railway in more than a century, and was fully connected to the rapidly expanding European high speed rail network.

LCR and its subsidiaries, working with key business partners, has responsibility for the multi-billion pound regeneration of land around the HS1 international stations. HS1 is driving over £10 billion in regeneration around the international stations at Stratford, Ebbsfleet and King's Cross/St Pancras - creating jobs, homes and new infrastructure along the way.

LCR has always seen Kent Thameside as a key part of that regeneration, which began with the high speed line rejuvenating the railway system of the North Kent corridor and Thames Gateway region. Ebbsfleet International was seen as a strategically strong new international station and as a hub for Southeastern’s high speed domestic services.

The journey to St Pancras International on Southeastern’s high speed trains takes only 17 minutes, on the Hitachi 395 Javelin train – the fastest domestic train service in the UK. The station is the first tangible piece of infrastructure in one of the UK's most ambitious and largest regeneration and development projects - Ebbsfleet Valley. LCR sees Kent Thameside as an opportunity to create a vibrant cosmopolitan development, in the very heart of the high-speed rail corridor.

“Kent Thameside brings together the historic town centres of Gravesend and Dartford with fantastically successful developments like Bluewater, The Bridge and Crossways Business Park. Adding the international link created by HS1 at Ebbsfleet, plus the 17 minute connectivity to central London provided by Southeastern's Javelin trains, and you can see Kent Thameside emerging rapidly as the pre-eminent commercial driver for Kent and the south eastern section of the Thames Gateway.” Stephen Jordan, Managing Director, LCR.