the mechanical signalling system, consisting of five lever-operated boxes, was replaced with an all-electric system, coming into service on 29 April 1962. When sectorisation was introduced in the 1980s by British Rail, the station was served by Network SouthEast until privatisation. In 1984, the track layout at the station was simplified, restricting the Maidstone and Canterbury West connections to the north of the track layout, and the Marshlink line to the south. This allowed the speed limit through the station to be increased to . International station The station was rebuilt as Ashford International to serve trains to mainland Europe. Construction was planned to begin in 1991 but delayed owing to a lack of government approval. It was planned as a partial park and ride side, catering for up to 2,000 vehicles, and as a means of regenerating the town. Work started on the rebuilding in June 1994 and continued for 18 months. The project was designed by the British Rail Architecture and Design Group, and was inspired by the Maison de Verre, Paris. Two new platforms were built to the north of the station, with the original down island platform taken over by international services. The total cost of the work was £80 million. The platforms reallocated for international services needed to be lengthened to in order to accommodate the British Rail Class 373 trains used by Eurostar. To segregate passengers from domestic and international services, a dedicated entrance from the ticket barrier to the platforms was built. This included a separate departure lounge that could accommodate up to 800 passengers. A multistorey car park was built, connecting to the international end of the station via a footbridge. The rebuilt station opened for international services on 8 January 1996, with the first stop being the 06:19 service from Waterloo. The station was formally renamed Ashford International on 28 February. When phase 1 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link was completed in 2003, a dedicated fast line was built allowing through trains to bypass the station via a tunnel and a viaduct. Before the completion of High Speed 1 in November 2007, twelve Eurostar trains a day called at Ashford, seven heading to Paris and five to Brussels. However, after the opening of Ebbsfleet International, this was reduced to three trains to/from Paris, and a daily service to Disneyland Paris. Eurostar defended the reduction, saying stopping at Ashford International added