A Network Rail report has outlined the risks to Britain's railway posed by climate change - and the measures needed to improve resilience.

The third climate adaptation report, published this month in partnership with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), sets out work done from 2016 to 2021 on climate change and resilience. It also discusses actions for the next five years and provides a comprehensive quantitative risk assessment of assets and regional weather and climate change risks.
(Permalink) Climate change DEFRA Holywood Network Rail Resilience

ScotRail is already going the extra mile to keep safe, people, like key workers, who use the railway for essential travel.

But, the train operator is also helping make Scotlands Railway healthier in general by fighting climate change as we look forward to Novembers COP26 event in Glasgow.
(Permalink) COP26 Climate Change Green ScotRail

The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (UK) Scottish Region (CILT) was privileged recently to hear from Sarah Boyack MSP who was Scotland's transport minister at the dawn of devolution.
(Permalink) CILT Climate Change Sarah Boyack

The Scottish forestry sector is estimated to contribute around £1bn to the economy each year, with around three-quarters of that coming from forestry and timber processing. Around 10m tonnes of timber are harvested each year, and this is forecast to increase over the long term as Scottish Government increases forest planting to support its green recovery and climate change ambitions. The most recent update to the Climate Change Plan stated that Government will increase woodland creation from the current level of 12,000 hectares in 2020/21 up to 18,000 hectares in 2024/25.
(Permalink) Climate Change Green Timber

Network Rail has announced a major step forward in tackling climate change by becoming the first railway company in the world to set the most ambitious Science-Based Targets to limit global warming.
(Permalink) Climate Change Network Rail

A report into the fatal derailment near Stonehaven says the industry must improve its response to extreme weather.
(Permalink) Carmont Carron Water Bridge [West Carmont] Climate Change Derailment Stonehaven derailment

Scientists agree that today's climate is very different to when the railways were built by our Victorian ancestors.
(Permalink) Climate change Stonehaven derailment

More needs to be done to tackle the impacts of climate change on the railway, which has seen risks increase over the last year, according to a new report published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) today (14 July).
(Permalink) Carmont Climate change Flood Landslide ORR Stonehaven derailment

Switching goods from road to rail offers a 'quick win', argues Joe ODonnell.
(Permalink) Climate change

The new National Transport Strategy (NTS) for Scotland published earlier this month was greeted as a disappointment and a wasted opportunity by organisations with particular concerns about the all-encompassing climate emergency.
(Permalink) Climate change David Spaven National Transport Strategy

Trains could run 24 hours a day between Glasgow and Edinburgh during the COP26 climate conference in November following a request by the UK government.
(Permalink) COP26 Climate change

Since First Minister Nicola Sturgeon declared a 'climate emergency' in April, the political agenda has been moving inexorably - albeit too slowly - towards a radical transformation of Scottish transport investment priorities. Last month, a collaboration of seven sustainable transport campaigns came together to make the case for a fundamental reprioritisation, 'starting with an end to creating new trunk road capacity'.
(Permalink) Climate change David Spaven Nicola Sturgeon

If we are to provide a serious response to the present climate emergency, there will have to be behavioural change, not only by customers, but also by providers of transport services. The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport was fascinated to hear from Karl Watts, chief executive of new kid on the track, the Rail Operations Group (ROG), about a big new opportunity for rail freight to raise its game.
(Permalink) CILT Climate change ROG

Scotland faces 'huge' bills to upgrade its often Victorian-era railways and drains to cope with the extreme weather provoked by climate change, an expert has warned.

(Permalink) Climate change