UK: Network Rail is working with WSP to create a Flood & Coastal Risk Management Framework which will help standardise the infrastructure manager’s readiness for floods and coastal erosion and increase its knowledge of potential problems across the network.
The work aims to:
- improve understanding of vulnerability to flood and coastal risks now and in the future;
- improve the effectiveness of processes, forecasting and decision-making tools;
- agree Network Rail’s role in wider emergency response and risk management.
Dr Kat Ibbotson, Strategic Advisory Director at WSP, said ‘the partnership will enable a more consistent, data-driven approach to risk management across the network. By helping Network Rail shift from reactive responses to proactive flood and coastal erosion risk management, we’re not only safeguarding vital transport assets but, also shaping a transformative blueprint for long-term climate adaptation and national resilience.’
Network Rail said climate change has led to an increase in disruption from extreme weather over the last five years, and this trend is expected to continue. Its current approach to flood response is split between regions and relies heavily on local knowledge, while different train operators have different rules about how they run through flood waters, which means the impact of flooding varies across the country.
‘Our railway is often the lowest part of the landscape, providing an accidental drainage channel, or sits just above water level’, Network Rail’s industry weather response director Lisa Angus said on September 2.
‘In addition, railway embankments were never designed to be flood defences, and are not classed as such, but they often still act that way for communities. Climate change means those weaknesses are becoming a greater problem and we need a new approach to tackle flooding, not on our own but as part of the country’s critical infrastructure.’
