Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Monday
Rightwing party wants to close the Swiss-Italian border; which airport has shortest passport / security queues; and other news in ur roundup on Monday.
Right-wing party calls for closure of Switzerland’s border with Italy
Swiss People’s Party (SVP) is preparing a parliamentary motion demanding that Switzerland shuts down its border with Italy to stop migrants from third nations coming in.
The reason cited by the party’s chief Marco Chiesa is that Italy is no longer taking back refugees.
Under the so-called Dublin Treaty, which states that asylum seekers who arrive at their destination via a transit country without being properly processed, can be sent back to that country.
Italy reportedly doesn’t process refugees before they arrive in Switzerland.
“There cannot be open borders with states that do not respect the Dublin Treaty,” Chiesa said. “If a country that has committed itself to this and does not take the refugees back, we must ensure that the migrants cannot even enter Switzerland.”
Basel’s airport is best for short queues
If you are planning to travel abroad and are worried about long lines at the airport, your best bet is to fly out of Basel’s EuroAirport.
While Switzerland’s two largest airports — Zurich and Geneva —are expected to be more crowded, with longer queues, the average wait a EuroAirport is half as long — at least based on times recorded during Ascension and Pentecost holidays.
Though getting through passport control and security check in Zurich takes at least half an hour (and oftentimes longer), in Basel it takes, on average, 12 minutes.
The only problem is that EuroAirport doesn’t have direct long-haul, intercontinental flights, so depending on your destination, Basel airport may not be an option.
READ ALSO: How Switzerland is expanding flight connections to the USA
And if you prefer trains to airplanes…
Night trains: Demand outstrips supply
Night trains that travel between Switzerland and European cities seem to be ‘victims’ of their success: they are at the height of their popularity, according to Sabine Baumgartner, spokesperson for Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
The unusually high demand strongly restricts the number of available seats, with commuters having a hard time finding berths, either online or at SBB offices.
Destinations that are particularly impacted for summer travel include Amsterdam, Hamburg, Berlin , Rome, and Barcelona.
READ ALSO: Switzerland mulls new direct Basel – London Eurostar connection
This is the canton with most deadly car accidents
In 2022, 241 people lost their lives in traffic accidents on Swiss roads.
Nearly 22,000 others were injured, 4,002 of them seriously. This is what emerges from the latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
However, road safety records vary among cantons.
Most accidents had been reported last year in Uri, where there were 40 victims per 10,000 inhabitants, a figure well above the national average.
Next, in the second and third place, are Lucerne (32) and Bern (29.6), respectively.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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Right-wing party calls for closure of Switzerland’s border with Italy
Swiss People’s Party (SVP) is preparing a parliamentary motion demanding that Switzerland shuts down its border with Italy to stop migrants from third nations coming in.
The reason cited by the party’s chief Marco Chiesa is that Italy is no longer taking back refugees.
Under the so-called Dublin Treaty, which states that asylum seekers who arrive at their destination via a transit country without being properly processed, can be sent back to that country.
Italy reportedly doesn’t process refugees before they arrive in Switzerland.
“There cannot be open borders with states that do not respect the Dublin Treaty,” Chiesa said. “If a country that has committed itself to this and does not take the refugees back, we must ensure that the migrants cannot even enter Switzerland.”
Basel’s airport is best for short queues
If you are planning to travel abroad and are worried about long lines at the airport, your best bet is to fly out of Basel’s EuroAirport.
While Switzerland’s two largest airports — Zurich and Geneva —are expected to be more crowded, with longer queues, the average wait a EuroAirport is half as long — at least based on times recorded during Ascension and Pentecost holidays.
Though getting through passport control and security check in Zurich takes at least half an hour (and oftentimes longer), in Basel it takes, on average, 12 minutes.
The only problem is that EuroAirport doesn’t have direct long-haul, intercontinental flights, so depending on your destination, Basel airport may not be an option.
READ ALSO: How Switzerland is expanding flight connections to the USA
And if you prefer trains to airplanes…
Night trains: Demand outstrips supply
Night trains that travel between Switzerland and European cities seem to be ‘victims’ of their success: they are at the height of their popularity, according to Sabine Baumgartner, spokesperson for Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
The unusually high demand strongly restricts the number of available seats, with commuters having a hard time finding berths, either online or at SBB offices.
Destinations that are particularly impacted for summer travel include Amsterdam, Hamburg, Berlin , Rome, and Barcelona.
READ ALSO: Switzerland mulls new direct Basel – London Eurostar connection
This is the canton with most deadly car accidents
In 2022, 241 people lost their lives in traffic accidents on Swiss roads.
Nearly 22,000 others were injured, 4,002 of them seriously. This is what emerges from the latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
However, road safety records vary among cantons.
Most accidents had been reported last year in Uri, where there were 40 victims per 10,000 inhabitants, a figure well above the national average.
Next, in the second and third place, are Lucerne (32) and Bern (29.6), respectively.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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