A decision on whether the KIG road-rail depot can go ahead has been taken out of the hands of Maidstone council.

The government has validated an appeal by the Kent International Gateway project.

It means the application for a road/rail freight interchange over 264 acres of countryside at Bearsted will be determined directly by the Secretary of State.

KIG claimed Maidstone council was taking too long to determine the application. But although the initial papers were submitted in October 2007, KIG only supplied additional information asked for in January and the council was still consulting the public on the new information when KIG took the decision to appeal.

The council's director of regeneration, Alison Broom, said: “KIG has only recently supplied some of the information we requested, so it is disappointing that they have appealed. The planning committee will still consider the comments submitted by local people and others before it decides its position on the proposal.

"Representatives of local people will have a chance make their views known to the inspector.”

The appeal was validated by the Planning Inspectorate on February 23 and Maidstone Borough Council has six weeks until April 6 to hold a planning meeting to decide how it would have determined the application and then to submit a written statement setting out its case to the planning inspectorate.

A large venue will be chosen for the planning committee to accommodate the hundreds of objectors expected to attend. The date of the meeting will be announced next week.