Rhine almost no longer navigable owing to low water levels

Low water levels mean the River Rhine is now barely navigable for cargo ships at one point. However, this does not affect the supply of essential goods to Switzerland.

At the village of Kaub, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, the water level of the Rhine is currently so low that the river has, in effect, almost split in two. This was confirmed by a spokeswoman for the Swiss Rhine Ports (Port of Switzerland) in response to an enquiry from the Swiss News Agency Keystone-SDA.

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Drought forces Basel ferry to suspend service

This content was published on

Aug 10, 2026


The St Alban ferry in Basel has been closed since Monday morning due to low water levels and will remain so until further notice. The other three Rhine ferries are still operating, as Dieter Bühler, President of the Basel Ferries Foundation, told the Keystone-SDA news agency.

Read more: Drought forces Basel ferry to suspend service

Many ships are no longer operating at all, or are only doing so with greatly reduced cargo, according to the website of the Federal Office for National Economic Supply. Transport capacity for imports is significantly restricted.

However, thanks to a shift to rail and road transport, Switzerland’s supply of essential goods such as petroleum products and foodstuffs remains guaranteed, it said.

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Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist.