Drought Now a Recurring Structural Threat to UK Rail as Speed Restrictions Return for a Second Summer

Network Rail will impose speed restrictions and timetable changes across English routes from 3 August 2026 as shrinking clay-soil embankments destabilise track. Similar measures were deployed in summer 2025. Network Rail plans to deploy 49,000 tonnes of ballast in 2026 to counter the effects. The UK is entering its fourth heatwave of the year.