One of our German phrases this week was the uplifting «Leben heisst nicht, zu warten, bis der Sturm vorbeizieht, sondern lernen, im Regen zu tanzen.» It means «Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, but about learning to dance in the rain.»
Immigration Rules Agreement Reached; Tram Trauma Continues; Redevelopment To Proceed At Hochstrasse; Speed Camera Caught Speeding
News For 13 December 2016
After nearly three years of studies, consultations and political bargaining, the Swiss federal parliament has reached an agreement on how to implement 2014's Mass Immigration Referendum. The referendum had called for "control" and quotas for immigration into Switzerland from the EU despite principles guaranteeing free movement of people and labor. The rules, which will be presented to the EU for acceptance in the coming weeks, are seen as a massive departure from the purpose of the referendum. Specifically, the rules focus on addressing Swiss unemployment resulting from EU immigration, rather than outright immigration quotas as sponsors of the referendum had hoped. Companies will be required to post vacant positions to Swiss job centers before making a hiring decision, or face a fine. Companies however, will not be required to justify the hiring of a non-Swiss job candidate when one was available. In addition, EU citizens working in Switzerland will be required to leave the country after six months if they lose their Swiss job in their first year of employment.
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2017 will not be the best year for riding trams in town. The BVB has announced that they will be doing construction on no less than five track sections around the city, namely the Dorenbach roundabout, Aeschengraben, , the Mittlere Brücke, Greifengasse and the Münchenstein bridge. The Dorenbach roundabout will be closed down the longest, between March and June, and the affected tram lines will be rerouted with buses. The Mittlere Brücke and Greifengasse lines will be out of service for eight weeks during the school summer break and Aeschengraben will be closed for 16 days in May. The last renewal will be taking place in October on the Müncheinstein bridge. This won’t be the last of the construction though. The BVB plans to completely renew all of the tracks by 2020.
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A row of houses on Hochstrasse and its tenants have been given notice that they have until September, 2017 to vacate the premises. Zurich based real estate developer Turidomus has been given approval to proceed with its seven year old plans to redevelop the properties. Approximately 100 tenants, most of whom are students are now searching for comparable, inexpensive living space. The developer has apparently offered assistance with the students' search for accommodation as part of their approval to proceed with the construction plans. The site, once demolished will be rebuilt with 47 rental units, commercial and office space according to Turidomus.
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If you've ever experienced the frustration of the flash of a speed camera as it catches you unawares and a few KM over the speed limit, then you'll appreciate this story: It seems a private company is contracted by the various municipalities to move around the portable cameras which stymie so many of Basel's drivers. A few months ago, one of the drivers of the contractor, while pulling a speed camera in tow, was itself caught speeding on the A2 highway entry to the Arisdorf Tunnel. Although the speed limit on that stretch of road is 100 KMH, it is reduced for those with trailers, like the contractor and his camera-in-tow. Not knowing this, the driver was clocked at 93 KMH, in excess of the 80 limit for his type of vehicle. No word on the fine imposed on the driver, the company or the speed camera.