Network Rail doubles spending on adapting to climate risks

The owner of Britain’s rail network plans to double its spending on adapting to climate risks between 2024 and 2029 but has admitted that vital infrastructure will deteriorate over the period.

Network Rail on Friday released its Strategic Business Plan for England and Wales. The blueprint is a key part of the state-owned company’s budgeting process and covers a five-year time “control period” starting next April.

The effects of recent extreme weather events on track and other equipment have highlighted the need for the UK’s railways to invest further to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Network Rail announced its plan after the government committed £44.1bn for the 2024-29 period — known as CP7 — of the business plan. The company sets separate budgets for its work in Scotland, where transport policy is a devolved matter.

The figure is 8.1 per cent higher than that committed for the current five-year period – £40.8bn – but represents a lower-than-inflation rise.

The company said it would spend £1bn on “weather resilience” measures such as improving drainage and shoring up earthworks such as embankments. The investment is double the £500mn due to be spent on weather resilience in the five years ending in March 2024.

The railway has suffered from worsening flooding in recent years as rain storms have become heavier, while many embankments have become less stable because of long periods of drought such as last summer.

The Office of Rail and Road, the industry regulator, warned earlier this week that the company was already behind on inspections of key assets, such as bridges, and that the reliability and safety of infrastructure could suffer as a result.

The company will spend a further £600mn on reducing its own impact on the environment, through cutting its carbon emissions, enhancing biodiversity around rail lines and other initiatives.

However, Network Rail warned that constraints on its spending meant that the system’s condition would deteriorate over the next five-year period.

“We expect a decrease in asset reliability . . . given the way we have had to prioritise and allocate available funding to deliver our objectives,” the business plan said.

Network Rail said it had been forced to prioritise spending on the most safety-critical areas, such as signalling, and the areas where investment would produce the highest economic and social benefits. That meant investment in some areas, like replacing worn-out track, would have to be cut back.

Meanwhile, delays to track renovations are likely to mean the imposition of emergency measures such as speed restrictions. “The indication is that average asset age will increase and . . . have a small impact on train performance,” the company said.

The company was seeking to minimise the effect of the deterioration on passengers and freight customers, it added. It expected reduced delays from train breakdowns and issues caused by other parties, which would offset hold-ups caused by infrastructure faults.

Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines said the plan was “ambitious” and “focused on passengers and customers”. He added that it reflected the “current complexities and challenges facing the industry”.

“There will no doubt be obstacles ahead and I look forward to working collaboratively with the sector to deliver this plan, reshape the industry and build a railway that is fit for the future,” he said.