Swiss Federal Railways launch pilot project for invisible disabilities

The sunflower badge is an internationally-recognised symbol for showing invisible disabilities. Keystone-SDA

From next Tuesday, and on a trial basis, Swiss Federal Railways will offer sunflower badges to passengers with non-visible disabilities to help them draw attention to their needs.

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The Railways will initially make 10,000 of the badges available at selected stations in the cantons of Zurich, Geneva, St Gallen, Zug and Vaud. The system could be introduced nationwide from 2026, the company told the Keystone-ATS news agency, confirming a report on Saturday in the Schweiz am Wochenende newspaper.

The badge, in the form of a green keyring with yellow sunflowers, is intended for people with disabilities such as autism, attention deficit disorder (ADD) or Parkinson’s disease. The badge is designed to indicate that the person wearing it may need extra patience, consideration or support, for example when checking tickets.

Train staff will be made aware of the symbol and trained in how to react to it. The Railways spent CHF25,000 ($30,840) on the badges. After the pilot trail, they plan to evaluate demand and acceptance before extending the offer throughout the country.

Translated from French by DeepL/dos

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