We explore the similarities and differences between the governing Risk Evaluation and Assessment (REA) principles for rail and road infrastructure. We frame our analysis with infrastructure managers in mind. In England, Network Rail and National Highways are the key rail and road infrastructure managers, respectively. The intention is to demonstrate that seemingly unrelated rail and road infrastructure upgrade projects are not that different – at least from the REA point of view. By breaking the potential REA barriers between the two modes, a number of benefits can be realised across the project lifecycle and beyond. Safely allowing the space for future change and innovation is a key guiding principle. Our findings point towards ‘systems thinking’ where rail and road can be approached as a single system – at least from the REA activities point of view. At a project level, this means that there are potentially many unexplored synergies between the two sectors. This may not only be in terms of safety, but also in terms of managing capital expenditure and operational expenditure and efficiencies. Future work would concentrate on drawing parallels between rail and road REA approaches for operating companies (and vehicles) to support our ‘Systems Thinking’ vision.