Water levels on the Rhine have fallen to the lowest ever recorded at several points, forcing cancellations and lighter cargo loads on one of Europe’s busiest waterways.
DR reports that the gauge in the town of Kaub, south of Koblenz, showed 16 centimeters on the morning of August 11, 2026. DR cites the newspaper Landesspiegel for the reading. It is below the previous lowest measurement for the same time of year, 25 centimeters in 2018.
According to DR, the shipping channel is still deep enough for traffic, but the effects are visible. Ferries and river cruises have been canceled, and smaller cargo ships with reduced loads have been brought in. Freight prices are rising, and sandbanks along the narrowing river have become picnic spots.
Mads Jedzini, Germany expert at the think tank Tænketanken Europa, told DR the river is of completely central importance to the German economy. As an example, he said the chemical group BASF transports 40 percent of its production via the Rhine. He added that the modest upswing bought with last year’s debt-financed fiscal package could end up amounting to nothing.
Short-term measures are now being tried, Jedzini explained to DR. More freight is being shifted to the roads, and the ban on trucks driving on Sundays has been lifted. He said this helps only a little, while companies face extra costs, motorway queues grow, and truck drivers’ unions complain about the lost day off.
Kaub is the bottleneck
German business is watching Kaub closely, DR reports. The town has fewer than a thousand residents and is known for the Pfalzgrafenstein castle on an island in the river. It also marks a bottleneck where the Rhine narrows.
Jens Schwanen, director of the German inland shipping association BDB, warned that traffic on the Rhine could be split in two if levels drop slightly further. Speaking to Rheinische Post, he said the trend in water levels does not look good. In that case, neither commercial shipping nor excursions and cruises could be carried out, he said.
If the river is divided, some vessels would sail north toward the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp, while others would head south toward the Danube, according to DR. Proposals to deepen the navigation channel lack broad support, partly because of consequences for fish and plant life.
The low water follows a long, hot and dry summer. DR reports that the climate service Copernicus registered the warmest June and July on record in Western Europe, with an average temperature of 21.62 degrees Celsius, breaking the previous record from 2022. Andreas Wagner, a meteorologist at the news broadcaster ARD, pointed to unusually little snow in Switzerland, where the Rhine has its source.
Save up to 2,800 DKK on Your Electricity Bill
FindElpriser helps you switch electricity providers quickly and easily.
Meltwater normally feeds the river in spring. In Lake Constance, between Germany, Switzerland and Austria, the water level is one meter lower than usual for the season. Wagner said levels normally reach their lowest point in late summer and autumn.
