Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the resilience of road surfaces to increasingly frequent periods of extreme heat.

The Department and Met Office have published evidence that road surfaces are typically tested to withstand temperatures up to 60 degrees celsius. However, some roads may begin to soften at lower temperatures.

The Department is working closely with National Highways to take forward measures to improve the climate resilience of motorways and trunk roads.

The Department is also supporting local highway authorities by providing guidance on climate adaptation resilience and developing updated guidance on this topic with the sector. In addition, resources are available to authorities to support their adaptation and resilience plans, including the Department’s climate risk assessment guidance.

More widely, the Government is investing £24 billion of capital funding between 2026-27 and 2029-30 to maintain and improve our motorways and local roads across the country and help ensure these networks are resilient to climate risks, including extreme heat.