Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Thursday
The government issues a warning about imported fireworks; Swiss commuters swelter on public transport; and other news in our roundup on Thursday.
Government warns about illegal fireworks
As the August 1st national holiday approaches, the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (OFDF) issued a warning on Wednesday against buying abroad potentially dangerous fireworks that are banned in Switzerland.
“Any violation of the federal legislation on explosives is reported to the competent authority,” OFDF said, adding that anyone who violates this law could be sentenced to up to three years of prison and be fined up to 20,000 francs.
READ ALSO: The rules around fireworks in Switzerland
The Swiss don't seem to understand the purpose of air conditioning
It is a well known fact that Switzerland is not exactly at the forefront when it comes to cooling the indoor spaces in the summer: strict environmental rules make buying and installing AC units in homes very difficult.
But this phenomenon also extends to public transport: passengers have taken to Twitter and other social media to complain about sweltering trams and buses, even in 30C-plus temperatures.
As one person tweeted after riding in a Basel tram (BVB), "I'm a big friend of BVB. But currently I'm recovering from a ride in a barely ventilated toaster with dead air conditioning, where the summer heat outside was a relief compared to what I went through inside."
As a spokesperson for Basel’s transport company told SRF public broadcaster, trams and buses are deliberately not cooled too much “to avoid a temperature shock.”
Zurich public transport company VBZ and Bern’s Bernmobil take the same approach.
The air is dehumidified "to make the heat more bearable," and cooling systems are fixed so that they adapt the indoor temperature to the outside.
The same system is also found on Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), where the air is not cooled down to a fixed temperature either, but adjusted to the one outside.
All this to say that commuters in Switzerland don’t get much relief from the heat.
Switzerland’s passport ranks among the best in the world (but not as well as its neighbours’)
In terms of the the number of countries citizens of a nation can enter without a visa, Swiss passport ranks in the fifth place worldwide.
This is the finding of the Global Passport Ranking 2023, released this week by London-based Henley & Partners migration consultants. The index is based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which gathers information about 199 different passports and 227 travel destinations.
Switzerland’s passport shares the fifth spot with Portugal, Norway, New Zealand, and Malta.
However, it ranks lower than its neighbours: Germany's and Italy’s passports are in the second place, and Austria's and France’s in the third.
The country with the best passport in the world, at least in terms of international travel, is Singapore.
You can see the ranking here.
Meanwhile in Valais…
Firefighters are still trying to contain forest fires that erupted on Monday in the community of Bitsch, forcing more than 200 residents to evacuate.
The Swiss army joined the firefighting effort, but winds in the area are making the blaze even more difficult to extinguish.
The situation could deteriorate further if winds grow stronger, local authorities said.
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]
Comments
See Also
Government warns about illegal fireworks
As the August 1st national holiday approaches, the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (OFDF) issued a warning on Wednesday against buying abroad potentially dangerous fireworks that are banned in Switzerland.
“Any violation of the federal legislation on explosives is reported to the competent authority,” OFDF said, adding that anyone who violates this law could be sentenced to up to three years of prison and be fined up to 20,000 francs.
READ ALSO: The rules around fireworks in Switzerland
The Swiss don't seem to understand the purpose of air conditioning
It is a well known fact that Switzerland is not exactly at the forefront when it comes to cooling the indoor spaces in the summer: strict environmental rules make buying and installing AC units in homes very difficult.
But this phenomenon also extends to public transport: passengers have taken to Twitter and other social media to complain about sweltering trams and buses, even in 30C-plus temperatures.
As one person tweeted after riding in a Basel tram (BVB), "I'm a big friend of BVB. But currently I'm recovering from a ride in a barely ventilated toaster with dead air conditioning, where the summer heat outside was a relief compared to what I went through inside."
As a spokesperson for Basel’s transport company told SRF public broadcaster, trams and buses are deliberately not cooled too much “to avoid a temperature shock.”
Zurich public transport company VBZ and Bern’s Bernmobil take the same approach.
The air is dehumidified "to make the heat more bearable," and cooling systems are fixed so that they adapt the indoor temperature to the outside.
The same system is also found on Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), where the air is not cooled down to a fixed temperature either, but adjusted to the one outside.
All this to say that commuters in Switzerland don’t get much relief from the heat.
Switzerland’s passport ranks among the best in the world (but not as well as its neighbours’)
In terms of the the number of countries citizens of a nation can enter without a visa, Swiss passport ranks in the fifth place worldwide.
This is the finding of the Global Passport Ranking 2023, released this week by London-based Henley & Partners migration consultants. The index is based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which gathers information about 199 different passports and 227 travel destinations.
Switzerland’s passport shares the fifth spot with Portugal, Norway, New Zealand, and Malta.
However, it ranks lower than its neighbours: Germany's and Italy’s passports are in the second place, and Austria's and France’s in the third.
The country with the best passport in the world, at least in terms of international travel, is Singapore.
You can see the ranking here.
Meanwhile in Valais…
Firefighters are still trying to contain forest fires that erupted on Monday in the community of Bitsch, forcing more than 200 residents to evacuate.
The Swiss army joined the firefighting effort, but winds in the area are making the blaze even more difficult to extinguish.
The situation could deteriorate further if winds grow stronger, local authorities said.
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]
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.