From storms to landslides: how climate change is putting paths under pressure

Climate change and the National Cycle Network: A rising challenge across the UK

Intense weather, such as storms and heavy rainfall are becoming more frequent and more severe, fuelled by a warming atmosphere that can hold and release more moisture.

According to the Met Office, six of the UK’s ten wettest years on record have occurred since 1998, and heavy rainfall events are increasing in both intensity and frequency.

There is an urgent need for climate-resilient infrastructure across the nation to combat this.

Climate change is amplifying storms, with human-induced warming increasing rainfall during major weather events by around 20%.

Wales, in particular, is already experiencing disruptive weather extremes, according to the National Infrastructure Commission for Wales.

These changes pose significant challenges for the National Cycle Network, much of which relies on historic railway embankments, Victorian bridges, culverts and waterways, none of which were designed to withstand today’s extremes.