This Sunday, Swiss voters get to decide on whether to elevate cycling to the same status as hiking and driving. Currently, Switzerland’s constitution mentions roads and hiking trails, but not cycling lanes, something cyclists would like to see changed. Many cities and communes already have cycle paths, however in many places they are forced to […]
Nearly 250,000 Swiss drivers caught by French speed cameras last year
Many Swiss drivers holidaying in France last year returned home to a nasty surprise among the pile of mail waiting for them. In 2017, 249,236 were caught speeding by French speed cameras. The French government raked in over 1 billion euros from 17 million heavy-footed drivers in 2017, up 2% on 2016, mainly because of […]
Switzerland fast losing its snow to global warming
Researchers at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the United Nations recently unveiled the results of an analysis of 22 years of satellite imagery showing the evolution of snow cover in Switzerland. Swiss snow is disappearing fast, something probably linked to global warming reckon the researchers. Over the period from 1995 to 2005, the area […]
Swiss consumption of bottled water rises significantly
Consumption of bottled water has risen dramatically in Switzerland, according to figures published in the newspaper Blick. Before the 1970s, few in Switzerland drank water from anywhere other than kitchen taps or fountains. By 1998, 680 million litres of bottled water a year were consumed. Now the figure is an eye watering 977 million litres, […]
Swiss housing – the hardest and easiest places to find a home
Recent government figures show a 13% rise in the number of vacant homes over the 12 months to June 2018. The number has more than doubled since 2009 when there were close to 35,000 vacant dwellings. By 1 June 2018, there were more than 72,000, a vacancy rate of 1.62%1 This might sound like good […]
Welfare fraudster risks expulsion from Switzerland
After listening to the culprit claim she had committed the fraud to help her family, the judge sentenced her to deportation, according to the newspaper 20 Minutes. For the judge, the woman’s latest act of fraud, claiming unemployment benefits while working, was the straw that broke the camel’s back. This was the woman’s third welfare […]
Some Swiss Rail ticket machines set to disappear
Ticket machines once replaced many of the people selling ticket from counters. Now the internet and mobile phones threatens ticket machines. As more and more people dash past ticket machines with an electronic train ticket in their pocket, Swiss Rail is looking at phasing out some machines according to various newspapers including 20 Minutes. The […]
Number of cases of tick-borne encephalitis rises sharply in Switzerland
In around 1% of cases tick-borne encephalitis can be deadly. It is a virus carried by ticks, which can cause brain swelling and neurological damage. The period between March and November is when most people get infected, according to the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). Ticks become active when the temperature reaches 7 […]
Swiss agricultural policy costs households 2,500 francs a year, according to study
Switzerland’s agricultural sector costs the country CHF 19.9 billion while contributing only CHF 3.4 billion, concludes a study published by the think tank Avenir Suisse. The CHF 19.9 billion cost is made up of tax breaks and direct federal and cantonal payments to the sector (4.9b), the cost of artificially inflated consumer prices due to […]
Switzerland slides significantly in expat country ranking
A recent survey suggests Switzerland might be losing its attractiveness as a place for foreigners to live and work. Switzerland fell 17 places from 27th to 44th in the ranking of 68 countries done by the networking company Internations. Switzerland’s overall ranking is a mix of good and bad. 78% of expats in Switzerland said […]
