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Heatwave: Melting roads, buckling tracks, productivity loss – Britain needs to adapt to more soaring temperatures | UK News


Britain is not built for this heat.

Our rail network is only designed for temperatures up to 30C (86F). Only half of our strategic path is made of heat-resistant materials.

And in the five years to 2021, 570,000 homes have been built in the UK completely unaffected by the high temperatures that will affect our future.

Heatwaves have cost us a lot.

It’s not just lives lost – about 2,000 people a year die from the heat.

There is an economic cost too.

Read more: Schools closed, hospitals canceled appointments and events scrapped as UK endures record temperatures

Road repair after the 2003 heatwave cost £41m; damage and delays on the rail caused an additional £2.5 million in damage.

Then there is the factor that leads to loss of productivity.

In the summer of 2010, five million employee days were lost due to the heat, costing businesses and the public sector £770 million. In today’s money, that’s almost £1 billion.

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What is the urban heat island effect?

The temperatures we are enduring now will be negligible in some countries.

But they designed their towns and cities to cope – think shaded squares, shuttered windows and whitewashed Mediterranean houses.

They should also invest in heat-resistant rails, more resilient grids, and pavement that doesn’t melt.

Britain will now have to do the same.

The London of 2050 is expected to have a climate like today’s Barcelona. By the end of the century, temperatures will peak at 40C (104F) every decade or so according to current projections of future greenhouse gas emissions.

It means an expensive retrofit for the country.

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Transport containers against climate change

Network Rail has begun painting the rails white in the hope of reflecting some of the sun’s energy. But more expensive techniques may also be needed.

Our homes and workplaces will need much better shielding and ventilation to prevent people from overheating.

And city planners will have to dedicate more tree-lined green spaces to provide natural air conditioning.

Lifestyle and behavior changes will also help.

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Why is retrofitting so important?

We need to learn to live like them in hot countries. Operate early or late and stay in the shade during the burning time of the day. People who grew up in the heat take it very seriously.

Noel Coward said only mad dogs and Britons hang out in the midday sun.

As one physiologist told me, in the future it should only be dogs.

Watch the Daily Climate Show at 3:30pm Monday through Friday and the Climate Show with Tom Heap on Saturdays and Sundays at 3:30pm and 7:30pm.

It’s all available on Sky News, on the Sky News website and app, on YouTube and Twitter.

The program examines how global warming is changing our landscape and highlights solutions to the crisis.



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