The train, which takes sightseers to the Jungfraujoch in the Bernese Alpes, carried 916,500 passengers in 2016, significantly fewer than the year before. In 2015, a record 1,007,000 made the journey. Despite the decline, 2016 was still the second best performance recorded. And, at the price of CHF 218.80 for a first class round trip, brought in […]
Speeder gets 6 months in a Swiss prison
20 Minutes. A German motorcyclist was sentenced to 19 months in prison by a court in Luzern, a canton in Switzerland. Six of the 19 month sentence must be served behind bars. The motorcyclist was flashed going 150 km/h in an 80 km/h zone between Gisikon and Inwil in the canton of Luzern. The defendant had already […]
Tax declarations found in a skip in Schaffhaussen
20 Minutes. Hundreds of tax declarations containing private information were found discarded in a skip in the Swiss canton of Schaffhausen. The tax returns, with clearly visible data, were thrown out by the city according to 20 Minutes. The tax returns date from 2006. The person in charge of data protection for the canton, spoke […]
Big financial blow for separated fathers in Switzerland
24 Heures. These days, one child in five is born to unmarried parents in Switzerland. For this reason, new laws came into effect on 1 January 2017, which require separated unmarried parents to pay substantially more to the parent looking after their children, most often the mother. Broadly speaking, the new laws bring the rules […]
Illegal resident requests right to stay in Switzerland after taking aggressor to court
Tribune de Genève. On Wednesday, the government of Geneva received a request for a pardon. Last summer, a 46 year old Bolivian woman, living illegally in Switzerland, went to court after she was assaulted in a bar in Geneva. The woman, who was badly hurt on the face with broken glass, won her case and her […]
Forest fires in Ticino and Graubunden now under control
20 Minutes. Only one army helicopter is now covering Val Mesolcina in the canton of Graubunden, now that forest fires there have been brought under control, according to 20 Minutes. A no fly zone imposed on the region has also been lifted. At the same time the Swiss air force says it is ready to spring […]
The ten most popular Swiss Google searches in 2016
According to Swiss broadcaster Swissinfo, the following ten items in the video below were the most searched things in 2016. The list includes, terror, a new train tunnel, sport, and one particular Swiss vote. More on this: Swissinfo article (in English) For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Snow finally falls after driest December since 1864
In 2016, the Swiss plateau experienced its driest December since records began in 1864, according to Swiss Meteo. Across the area between Lake Geneva in the west and Lake Constance in the East, an average of only 2mm of precipitation was recorded. Across half of the plateau, not a single drop of moisture fell. From 1981 […]
SMI set to end 2016 in negative territory
30 December 2016 – Swiss and global market roundup. Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. In the last week of the year, the Swiss Market Index deepened its loss for the year as banks continued lower on low trading volumes. The SMI is set to end 2016 with an annual loss of 6.8% as banking and […]
50 percent of Swiss sleep with their pets, estimates vet
20 Minutes. Is it OK to sleep with your cat or dog? There appears to be no evidence that the practice presents any dangers to human health. According to vet Gabrielle Brunner, from Basel, the phenomenon is widespread in Switzerland. “I estimate that half of Swiss do it” she told 20 Minutes. From a sanitary perspective […]
