Getting hammered by “les flics” for racing a red light seems fair enough in the thrust and parry of Swiss urban traffic. But did you know that if you fail to move forward when the light turns green you can also be fined? Simply put, the law says that failure to obey traffic signals is an offence.
So the light turns green, you have to move forward the 10 metres you can actually travel before jamming into the car ahead. You move forward, you stop and you now obstruct the crossing traffic. Horns are blaring, tempers flaring. You sit studiously avoiding eye contact with anyone, relieved that at least you cannot be fined for failing to move.
