Météo-France on Monday kept 37 départements under red alert as the country’s third—and longest—heatwave of 2026 drags on. Daytime temperatures of 40 °C are forecast from the Rhône valley up to Île-de-France, while night-time lows above 26 °C give crews and infrastructure little respite. Under the ‘Orsec Chaleurs Extrêmes’ civil-protection plan activated last week, prefects can adjust working-hour regulations, restrict heavy-goods vehicle movements in the afternoon, and allow transport operators to modify timetables. SNCF has already introduced a 20 km/h speed cap on sections of track where rail steel temperatures exceed safety thresholds, and some TER regional trains will be replaced by buses after 15:00. Airports authority ADP has warned of potential runway-surface ‘soft spots’ at Orly and Lyon Saint-Exupéry, asking airlines to consider weight restrictions on wide-body departures scheduled in the hottest part of the day. RATP is running additional maintenance teams to monitor rail expansion on the Metro network; ventilation failures caused brief service suspensions on Line 4 over the weekend. Employers with posted workers should note that labour inspectors will carry out unannounced site visits, and that outdoor construction must cease when the wet-bulb globe temperature exceeds 30 °C. Corporate travel managers are advised to build in transfer buffers, ensure travellers carry water and sun protection, and verify whether afternoon meetings can be held virtually to avoid peak heat exposure. Meteorologists expect a gradual cooldown from Wednesday, but warn that thunderstorms could compound delays by causing flash floods on already-stressed infrastructure. The government’s new heat-adaptation doctrine explicitly classifies mobility continuity as a critical function, meaning operators can requisition additional staff or equipment if needed.
Source: Météo-France
