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Swiss learn democracy by voting

This content was published on Dec 14, 2004 “The Guidebook to Direct Democracy in Switzerland and beyond”, published on Tuesday, explains citizens’ involvement in the political decision-making process. Bruno Kaufmann is one of the editors of the book and president of the non-governmental Initiative and Referendum Institute Europe (IRI) in Amsterdam. Kaufmann has a very positive view of the Swiss system, which allows…

New rail timetable passes acid test

This content was published on Dec 13, 2004 While nearly all of the country’s trains arrived and left on time during the morning rush hour on Monday, more than a dozen were delayed or taken out of service later during the day. An army of 2,300 extra rail staff were deployed in 80 stations around Switzerland to help commuters make their connections. However,…

New railway timetable stays on track

This content was published on Dec 12, 2004 The company warned, however, that the real test would come on Monday and Tuesday, when commuters headed to work and freight traffic picked up. The first train pulled out of Bern station on Sunday shortly after 4am, carrying around 250 railway buffs and night owls. Benedikt Weibel, head of the Federal Railways, said he was…

Railways’ new timetable gets smooth launch

This content was published on Dec 12, 2004 The first train pulled out of Bern station shortly after four am, carrying a large number of railway buffs. The head of the federal railways, Benedikt Weibel, said on Sunday he was relieved that the launch of new timetable, part of the Rail 2000 programme, had gone ahead smoothly. Around 90 per cent of train…

High-speed rail connections divide parliament

This content was published on Dec 12, 2004 With budget cuts threatening the links, the House of Representatives is set to tackle the thorny issue on Thursday. A fairly dense high-speed railway network should cover most of Europe by 2020. Switzerland, with its central position on the continent has always said it wanted to be connected. But to benefit, the Swiss must upgrade…

Rail 2000 pulls out of station

This content was published on Dec 12, 2004 Cantons Glarus, Lucerne and Zug are among the first to benefit from the massive Rail 2000 programme revamping of the railways’ operations. Swiss president Joseph Deiss inaugurated the new Glarus Sprinter with the head of the federal railways, Benedikt Weibel on Saturday. The new express train will link the canton with Zurich. Glarus is the…

Slow trains keep chugging for railway buffs

This content was published on Dec 10, 2004 swissinfo took a nostalgic journey on a line which is being consigned to history with a man who has been an eyewitness to much of its rich past. Alex Amstein was born in Basel 77 years ago in a hospital built on the grounds of Switzerland’s very first railway station, constructed in the heady days…

Greens cry foul over factory plans

This content was published on Dec 10, 2004 They say the proposal breaches planning regulations and has exposed weaknesses in the system. The village of Galmiz and the canton Fribourg authorities want to reclassify 55 hectares of agricultural land as an industrial zone in order to attract an unnamed United States pharmaceutical company, which wants to build a new plant in Europe. The…

Business warns central bank against rate hike

This content was published on Dec 9, 2004 The Swiss Business Federation, economiesuisse, said on Thursday that the plunging US dollar was hurting Swiss exporters. A rate hike would probably push up the value of the franc even further, dampening demand for Swiss exports. Chief economist Rudolf Walser said at a news conference that the combination of the weak dollar, the recent international…

Left demands affordable health care

This content was published on Dec 9, 2004 It is the latest in a series of attempts to cut spiralling health-care costs in Switzerland. Supporters handed in more than 113,000 signatures to the federal authorities on Thursday in a bid to force a nationwide vote. The proposal outlines a standard scheme for mandatory basic health insurance and the introduction of income- and wealth-related…

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Swiss learn democracy by voting

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New rail timetable passes acid test

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New railway timetable stays on track

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Railways’ new timetable gets smooth launch

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High-speed rail connections divide parliament

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Rail 2000 pulls out of station

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Slow trains keep chugging for railway buffs

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Greens cry foul over factory plans

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Business warns central bank against rate hike

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Left demands affordable health care

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