Wealthy foreign residents turn parts of Zurich into upscale neighbourhoods; a new app aims to simplify payments for Switzerland’s public transport; plus other news in our Tuesday roundup.
Expats turn parts of Zurich into upscale neighbourhoods
The so-called ‘Gold Coast’,’ located on the lower eastern shore of Lake Zurich has been a magnet for the wealthy foreigners for quite a while.
But now the area is facing competition from the ‘Platinum Coast’, on the lake’s left bank.
Previously more proletarian than its Gold counterpart, the Platinum has since caught up and even exceeded its wealthy neighbour: in Kilchberg and Horgen a square metre of space now costs 35,000 francs, while on the Gold Coast, it costs “only” 30,000 francs.
This newly chic Platinum coast attracts scores of foreigners, who now outnumber Swiss residents.
A new app could simplify payments for public transport
Dubbed ‘Bibo’, the automatic fare system uses Bluetooth to automatically detect when a person is on a bus, train, or tram, and calculate the corresponding fare at the end of the journey.
According to industry group SwissPass Alliance, the pilot project for the new app will begin in late April, with 3,000 participants.
Its objective will be to assess the reliability of trip recording and fare calculation, as well as the feedback the new system received from the test group.
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Despite a ban, cold calls from insurance companies continue
Since September 1st, 2024, unsolicited marketing calls from health insurance companies have been prohibited in Switzerland.
However, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), which is responsible for regulating activities for health insurance carriers. said this practice has not disappeared.
“We continued to regularly receive reports regarding violations of this rule,” said FINMA’s spokesperson Ursula Keel.
One of the reasons for non-compliance could be that no fines have been imposed for violations so far.
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Swiss mayor was unaware there were no safety checks at burned bar before New Year fire
Crans-Montana Mayor Nicolas Feraud said on Monday he had not known that safety checks had not been carried out for six years at a bar where a fire killed 41 people and injured 115 others..
Feraud was questioned for the first time by public prosecutors investigating the blaze that swept through the bar during New Year celebrations.
He had said the day after the fire that safety inspections had not been carried out at the bar since 2019, despite a requirement for annual checks. (AFP).
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