December 10, 2025

What do we do about the UK’s aging infrastructure?

Climate change and extreme weather are stressing our bridges and flood defences. Our aging roads and water systems are strained from rising demand.  Many of the 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts across Britain are over 150 years old, the number of defects being found in these structures is increasing, and their deterioration accelerates over time.

The UK’s infrastructure faces a tipping point which is addressed in a new report from the National Engineering Policy Centre (NEPC), led by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng).  

The report argues that disruptive and costly events such as the closures of the Hammersmith Bridge or the Nuneham Viaduct should not be seen as isolated incidents but as an early indicator of the challenges ahead. It presents a number of actions the Government should take and lays out the problems that mount if we kick the can down the road. But it also argues that the strong return on investment in infrastructure means tackling it now is cost-effective and rewards the Treasury.

Journalists came to this online briefing to hear from the report’s authors and put their questions to them.

Speakers included:

Dr Steve Denton FREng, Managing Director of Civil Engineering, WSP

Eva MacNamara, Director at Expedition Engineering and Useful Simple Trust 

Jo Parker, VP of Engineering, Institute of Water