Ticino fury at minister’s comments
The Ticino tourism industry has attacked the Swiss transport minister, Moritz Leuenberger, after he warned the public against travelling south this Easter.
In an interview with the Swiss news magazine “Facts”, Leuenberger voiced his concern about the traffic situation over the Easter holidays.
“Those heading south over Easter should know exactly what they let themselves in for. Those who are still going might learn from their mistake,” he said in the interview.
Ticino hoteliers have hit back at Leuenberger’s comments by designing a postcard ridiculing the transport minister.
The postcard depicts a caricature of the transport minister standing in the rain on the left side and palm trees, street cafes and sunshine on the right side. The message on the postcard is: “We had a great Easter. Kind regards from the sunny south”.
Hoteliers are hoping to send at least 20,000 of these greeting cards, signed by tourists, to the transport minister in order to show Leuenberger their disappointment.
“It would have been nice if the transport minister had told the people how to get to Ticino without any problems, rather than telling them not to go at all,” said Giuseppe Stinca, director of the Ticino tourism board.
Slowly but surely
The annual trek south continued on Friday as Easter holidaymakers made their way through Switzerland’s mountain passes and tunnels with few reports of major tailbacks.
Motorists using the northern approach to the Gotthard Tunnel faced tailbacks of up to six kilometres by mid-morning, but delays were shorter than expected.
By late afternoon, officials said queues had all but disappeared.
With sunny weather forecast for the Easter weekend, around 30,000 cars a day are expected to pass through the Gotthard Tunnel, which was closed for several weeks after a deadly fire in October last year in which 11 people died.
Trucks were banned from using the tunnel on Good Friday and will also be refused entry on Easter Sunday.
In an effort to ease congestion on Switzerland’s roads, Swiss Federal Railways has also been encouraging people to leave their cars at home.
More trains have been laid on over the weekend to help cope with extra demand during the holiday period.
by Samantha Tonkin and Billi Bierling
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