The Government has announced that their new National Underground Asset Register (NUAR), which is a digital UK map of underground pipes and cables (broadband, water etc.) that is partly designed to help reduce accidental damage, will finally be made available as a public beta service by spring 2025.
Both the past and present governments see huge potential for such maps to help improve the way that national infrastructure is planned, built and managed (e.g. future full fibre broadband and 5G mobile networks). The map could also cut the amount of accidental damage that occurs to existing infrastructure (one estimate suggested this costs up to £2.4bn each year) and boost economic growth by “at least £400m” per year due to increased efficiency, fewer asset strikes and reduced disruptions.
The NUAR – developed alongside Ordnance Survey (OS) and Atkins – is the solution they came up with, which has so far only launched in the form of a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), where use is constrained to testing and feedback. But the big news today is that the government plan to push this into a “public beta service by spring“.
From that point the NUAR will be able to be used in real-life situations by any eligible asset owners, their contractors and accredited surveyors to help ensure safe digging and excavation. In addition, the government has announced that Ordnance Survey (OS) will be the future operator of the NUAR; this won’t come as a huge surprise, given their prior involvement.
Otherwise, the Geospatial Commission will retain long-term policy and performance oversight of the service.
Baroness Jones of Whitchurch, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (DSIT), said:
“We are committed to unlocking the power of data to reduce disruptions to the public and help deliver economic growth across the UK. From spring, NUAR will minimise the chance of accidental damage to the pipes and cables beneath our feet, protecting the supply of gas, water and electricity to our homes and businesses.
By harnessing the Ordnance Survey’s centuries of expertise in managing critical national geographic data, we will ensure this service can deliver for the public and industry from Newcastle to Newport and Brighton to Belfast.”
Admittedly, all of the positivity around the NUAR does rather ignore the fact that alternative platforms, such as the LSBUD (Line Search Before You Dig) service, already exist to provide a roughly similar facility (although NUAR seems to be aiming to go further).
In addition, the UK Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA) has previously warned the government against putting the NUAR on a statutory footing before it’s truly “fit for purpose, proportionate and can fully deliver on expectations“. Clearly the move to a public beta represents progress, but it will be vitally important that it doesn’t exit that phase before it’s ready.