Author: switzerlandtimes.ch

Vehicle noise is a problem in Switzerland. The authorities receive a numerous and growing number complaints, particularly in cities. Switzerland’s Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) placed noise detection radars in Geneva to quantify the problem. This week, they released the results, reported RTS. Radars erected in a number of places in Geneva flashed between 100 and 200 noisy vehicles a day. The devices record licence plate numbers and the noise to ensure there are no errors. The Radars are in zones where the speed limit is between 30 km/h and 60 km/h. The noise threshold was set at 80…

After adjusting for weather conditions, emissions from heating oil and gas fell by 8% 2023, according to data published this week by the Federal Office of the Environment (FOEN). The main driver of the improvement is improved building efficiency from better insulation and more efficient heating technology. The fall in emissions from burning gas (-41.7%) since 1990 is particularly striking. However, overall, Switzerland still has a long way to go. Since 1990, total emissions have fallen by 27%. The internationally agreed target is a cut of 50% by 2030. If the annual average rate achieved since 1990 is maintained, Switzerland…

In 2022, 24% of Switzerland’s population smoked, according to data published on 2 July 2024 by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO). This percentage is down 3 percentage points from the rate in 2017 when the survey was last done. The smoking rate has fallen most significantly among people with tertiary education. The proportion of heavy smokers (20 or more cigarettes a day) has more than halved in the last 30 years. New types of tobacco products or e-cigarettes are particularly popular among younger people, consumed by 17% of 15- to 24-year-olds in 2022. In 1992, 30% of the population aged…

Currently, Switzerland’s mountain regions are suffering badly from flooding following thunderstorms and exceptionally heavy rain. However, Switzerland’s plateau is not immune to flooding, reported SRF. New calculations suggest more than half of Switzerland’s buildings are at risk of being damaged by storms and floods. As the climate changes, devastating thunderstorms are becoming more frequent everywhere, said Olivia Romppainen, co-director of the Mobiliar Lab for Natural Risks at the University of Bern. A one degree rise in air temperature increases its moisture carrying capacity by seven percent. A key problem is water absorption. When so much rain falls quickly the ground…

Swiss Post buses are equipped with horns to warn on coming vehicles as they navigate tight corners on Switzerland’s mountain roads. The horns sound out the first few notes of the Andante of the overture to Gioacchino Rossini’s opera William Tell. These notes were first heard on Swiss roads 100 years ago. In 1919, when Switzerland introduced a motorised Alpine postal service post buses frequently ran into increasing numbers of private vehicles. To avoid accidents, the postal service added horns to their vehicles to warn on coming vehicles where visibility was poor. However, the early manual horns proved inadequate so…

On 22 September 2024, Swiss voters will decide whether or not to accept the latest round of government reforms to employee based pensions known as the second pillar pensions. Swiss trade unions are against the reform, which reduces the annuity rate from 6.8% to 6.0%. Instead they are calling for a higher rate to compensate for recent inflation. Switzerland’s pension system faces a similar demographic challenge to many developed nations. Its population is ageing and people are living longer. This means fewer people putting money in and more taking money out and for longer. This is a problem particularly for…

Dans le monde complexe de l’investissement pour les grandes fortunes, une approche sur mesure est primordiale. Nuevida Capital, un important family office, est à l’avant-garde en offrant des services spécialisés de conseil en investissement et de médiation, répondant aux besoins et aspirations uniques des particuliers fortunés (HNWI). Nuevida Capital reconnaît que les particuliers fortunés ont besoin de plus que de simples conseils financiers génériques. Ils recherchent un partenaire de confiance qui comprend leur situation financière complexe, leurs objectifs à long terme et leurs aspirations en matière d’héritage. Grâce à une équipe d’experts chevronnés et à une gamme complète de services,…

After recent flooding took out a stretch of the road in the Misox region the A13 Alpine route connecting northern Switzerland to the south has been closed. On 27 June 2024, the Federal Roads Office (FEDRO) said that it expects the damaged stretch of road to reopen as a single lane, reported SRF. Reconstruction of the washed-out section between Lostallo and Mesocco is progressing very well, according to FEDRO. The original repair plan aimed to reopen the road on 10 July. The forecast has now been moved to 5 July. However, a 120-metre-long crack in the ground has formed at…

Data published by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) show a sharp rise in the number of people moving to Switzerland from EU/EFTA nations. In 2023, 68,000 people arrived in Switzerland from EU/EFTA countries to live, the highest number since 2008 when 72,100 arrived. The 2023 figure is 29% higher than the number of people arriving in 2022. According to SECO, the rising number reflects Switzerland’s robust employment growth and low unemployment. Immigration and employment go hand in hand, said the agency. Employment growth was solid in 2023, while the unemployment rate reached its lowest level since 2001. As…

On 24 November 2024, Swiss voters will be called on to decide on four things, announced the Federal Council this week. The four votes include one on road and tunnel extensions, two on rental contracts and one on healthcare funding. Road and tunnel enlargement The first is a government plan to extend road infrastructure in six places. Switzerland’s population continues to grow and the amount of time spent stuck in traffic has reached record levels. Three motorway extensions are planned between Geneva and Nyon, Wankdorf and Schönbühl ,and Schönbühl and Kirchberg. In addition, tunnel expansions are planned at Rosenberg, the…