Next year’s Swiss highway sticker goes on sale tomorrow. Every year it changes colour. This year it’s orange. At the same time stiffer penalties are being introduced for fake ones.
According to 20 Minutes, the government is putting in place new sanctions of up to 3 years in prison. The amount lost from various forms of cheating is estimated to be CHF 26 million.
Valid from 1 December 2017 until 31 January 2019, the new stickers will be available at the same CHF 40 price in the usual places. If you have a 2017 sticker it remains valid until 31 January 2018. Cars, motorcycles and trailers all need a valid sticker to be used on Switzerland’s motorway network, shown here.
Motorway costs and charging practices vary significantly across Europe. Germany charges nothing while CHF 40 does not get motorists far on French or Italian highways.
Electronic passes to replace the stickers are in the pipeline. Criticisms of the current system include the high cost of vignettes for trailers and motorcycles, and the need for those with one set of license plates, that can be used on multiple cars, to pay for every car when they can only ever drive one at any given moment. These vehicles all require the same CHF 40 sticker.
More on this:
Government press release (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
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