Keeping Britain moving in winter isn’t easy, and active travel is no different. Those on the ground explain how new water management systems helped to combat a particularly cold and wet start to 2025.
The UK charity Sustrans looks after 12,700 miles of routes across the country for people walking, cycling and using mobility aids. Around a third of the paths are traffic-free, including many former railway lines and canal towpaths.
Flooding is a regular problem across much of the network during the winter months. This prevents many users from accessing paths. It particularly affects disabled people and young families, and the organisation is always looking for cost effective ways to improve drainage, while protecting the environment.
When the charity’s Midlands team attended an event for small and medium sized businesses, organised by the Department for Transport, they pitched to use the network as a testing ground for innovative technologies. That’s when they met drainage solutions company Civil Water Management.
The firm’s Hydrotrench technology is porous and sustainable as it’s made from recycled tyres. It is applied to the edges of the path, which means water drains off the path without the need for the pipes and more complex drainage systems. It has already been used before on highways and railway lines.
Sustrans engineers from the Midlands and East team wanted to try it for the first time on the National Cycle Network. The route they had in mind was a section of Route 6 between Milton Keynes and Castlethorpe, which regularly flooded during the winter months. The path has potential to be a well-used green trail for people exercising, commuting or accessing Wolverton station on foot, bike or wheelchair.
But its condition had deteriorated, particularly after recent wet weather. Sustrans wanted to try out the technology on a short 200 metre stretch. If successful they planned to roll out Hydrotrench across the whole route.
‘The path was in a dreadful state. After heavy rains water was standing for a long time. A tough mountain biker might get through, but most people were put off using it. The local community were keen to find a solution,’ recalls Sustrans engineer Nigel Brigham.
The team partnered with Milton Keynes City Council and Civil Water Management to win funding from the DfT’s Catapult scheme to trial the technology on a short section. If successful they hoped to win more funding to do a longer section of the route.
It was a challenging project: the path runs close to the West Coast Main line railway and the River Ouse. Any drainage system needs to prevent increased water runoff into these channels. It had also narrowed to a muddy two metres, so access with machinery and tools was difficult. The team also needed to work closely with ecologists to ensure the local badger population was not negatively affected by the intervention.
During summer 2024 contractors widened the route to three metres, and a new tarmac surface laid. They fitted Hydrotrench along the edges of the path. So far the results have been encouraging. During winter the path didn’t flood, and the drainage system didn’t have an impact on the river Great Ouse or the railway line.
A social value report by the Rural Design Centre found local people were highly supportive of the changes. The report estimated that the improved drainage would have £453,298 of social impact value in 10 years, due to more people travelling actively, flood reduction, as well as health and environmental benefits.
‘Following completion of the installation and a recent survey, the response showed that improvements have been very well received. The social impact for families and commuters to easily access public transport infrastructure using greener flood-free paths, makes journeys far safer and provides accessibility for all users,’ says Carl Hopkins, Civil Water Management Managing Director.
Sustrans is now tendering for the next phase of work. It’s early days but Brigham is hopeful that the technology could be rolled out on other flood-risk areas of the Network.
‘We’re inspecting the site regularly and there is even a live camera taking regular photos so we can quickly see if there’s an issue with flooding or debris accumulation,’ he says. ‘So far the system seems to be doing its job. It allows the water to go where it wants to go naturally, into nearby fields and hedges.
‘If it continues to be successful we think this could establish a new benchmark in rural drainage solutions with low maintenance,’ Brigham continues. ‘By developing new methods for use across the Network we hope to reduce flooding problems on traffic-free paths across the country, and develop an efficient, wildlife-friendly rural transport infrastructure.’
This article was contributed to Environment Journal by Sustrans. Find out more about Sustrans work to create accessible paths across the National Cycle Network.
Images: Sustrans