Climate change and the strategic road network
The challenge
We must consider how the changing climate will affect our strategic road network - the 4,500 miles of motorways and major A-roads we manage including bridges, tunnels, drains and earthworks.
The latest climate projections for the 2070s indicate that the UK may experience:
Future proofing our network
We must anticipate future trends in climate and weather conditions when planning long term development and improvement of our network.
Climate change poses many risks to infrastructure organisations. We must be work collaboratively when planning the long-term development of our network.
This includes considering future trends in climate and weather conditions and keeping up to date with the latest climate science.
Our net zero highways plan sets out how we aim to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
However, we must also adapt to the climate change we will experience over the coming decades.
This diagram shows the elements of:
- our net zero carbon strategy (electric vehicles, renewable energy, energy efficiency, low carbon materials, led lighting and minimising waste)
- our approach to climate change (flood protection, condition monitoring, business continuity, temperature resilience and risk assessment).
Some elements intersect both net zero and climate change adaptation (durable materials and asset design, technology, good governance and nature-based solutions).
How are we adapting?
Since 2022, we published Connecting the Country and our Environmental Sustainability Strategy. These documents set out our vision and priorities for 2025, to meets customers’ needs by connecting the country safely and reliably.
Asset and environmental resilience are key focus areas for us and these documents support investment planning for the future.
In 2023, we published our first Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) report. The report sets out how we recognise and manage climate risks. The report also states how we’ll include climate-related risks and opportunities into strategic planning in the future.
We achieved certification against ISO 55001, the international standard in asset management, in 2024. We will address the challenges and opportunities of climate change using a strong asset management system.
Our approach to net zero and climate change
Under the Climate Change Act 2008, we are required to produce a report detailing our climate change adaptation strategies and, optionally, revisit it every five years afterward. This is known as the Adaptation Reporting Power (ARP).
We developed ARP1 in 2011, ARP2 in 2016 and ARP 3 in 2022.
- re-evaluates significant climate risks threatening the safe operation of England’s Strategic Road Network based on experience in the last 3 years
- includes more risks associated with our estates, customers and people
- assesses progress against our ARP3 action plan
- identifies areas for improvement to be explored in the coming years
The findings of this report will support our ongoing work to keep our network fit for the future.
They will also support the climate risk and resilience work that the Department for Environment, Food and Agriculture and the Committee for Climate Change Committee are doing across all sectors of the UK.
