INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
Following three major landslides in August 2004, the then Minister for Transport commissioned two studies, one into the risk factors associated with landslides and their potential effects on the trunk road network, and the other into the potential trends in climate change in Scotland and how these might affect the road network. These studies reported in June 2005 and presented a series of recommendations.
This report has been prepared to detail how the recommendations made in the 2005 Climate Change Study have been progressed in the intervening period. This process has been co-ordinated by a joint working group comprising staff from Transport Scotland supported by staff from ‘the consultant’ (Jacobs) who prepared the June 2005 report. Representatives from local authorities nominated by the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland (SCOTS) also provided input to the process, and the working group has met at regular intervals to review the recommendations and agree actions for their implementation.
It should be recognised that although this report addresses progress on recommendations identified in the original study, it has always been foreseen that these recommendations would be subject to re-evaluation in the light of updated climate change predictions, emerging technical knowledge and any changes in desired levels of service or road safety. This report does not attempt to address any of these issues, these will be considered in a future report which will update the original report. That report will not be produced until some time after the next issue of the UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) datasets takes place, these being currently expected to be available in November 2008.
It is also noted that the Scottish Government released a consultation paper in January 2008 for the proposed Scottish Climate Change Bill. The recommendations within this report are being progressed within the current legislative framework and are not dependent upon legislative changes within the proposed Bill. However, as noted above, it is envisaged that the recommendations will be re-evaluated at a future date and any changes in legislation will be considered as part of this process.
The June 2005 report considered six broad categories:
- Temperature
- Rain
- Snow
- Wind
- Fog
- Coastal Flooding
In addition to these broad categories, further categories were defined of:
- Winter Conditions (various winter weather types in combination)
- Severe Weather Events (generic description for any type of severe weather)
- General (relating to climate change predictions as a whole)
Following consideration of the potential trends in climate change, actions were identified in four categories relating to the means by which the recommendation could best be implemented:
- Design Issues
- Operational Issues
- Research Issues
- Policy Issues
In addition to considering the means by which recommendations could be implemented, consideration was given to the relative urgency of the recommendations by classifying them as:
- Priority Recommendations
- Other Recommendations — Short-Term
- Other Recommendations — Long-Term
This report details the progress in implementing each of the recommendations in terms of their relative urgency, sub-divided by weather type and means of implementation. It also provides a selection of case studies, which highlight how issues identified within the recommendations are being or may be addressed.
The overall status of each recommendation is described in the report as ‘Complete,’ ‘Progressing’ or ‘Pending.’ Each of these terms is defined as follows:
- Complete: Actions to support the recommendation have been taken and are complete. Ongoing application may be necessary on an individual basis.
- Progressing: Actions to support the recommendation have been initiated but are not yet complete. Further work is required to complete the necessary action.
- Pending: Actions to support the recommendation have not yet commenced, for reasons noted in the report.