https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Switzerland in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed There is a kind of 'duality' about Zurich: on one hand, the quality of life there is very high, but on the other, living in Switzerland's largest city is expensive. Does the former compensate for the latter? Share your views in our reader survey. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260730/tell-us-is-the-quality-of-life-in-zurich-really-worth-the-high-cost-of-living Thu, 30 Jul 2026 16:16:19 +0200 tell-us-is-the-quality-of-life-in-zurich-really-worth-the-high-cost-of-living The number of drug users and dealers on Zurich’s streets has risen during the summer months, prompting authorities to introduce new measures to combat the trend from spreading to other parts of the Swiss city. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260722/zurich-steps-up-fight-against-growing-open-air-drug-use Wed, 22 Jul 2026 13:07:09 +0200 zurich-steps-up-fight-against-growing-open-air-drug-use Faced with a combination of summer travel and new EES border checks, Swiss airports are advising that passengers prepare for longer queues and leave extra time to deal with delays. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260703/swiss-airports-advise-travellers-to-get-ready-for-long-queues-over-summer Fri, 03 Jul 2026 11:25:33 +0200 swiss-airports-advise-travellers-to-get-ready-for-long-queues-over-summer Six motorways are currently crossing Zurich, but soon the Swiss canton will ‘lose’ one of them. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260701/why-is-zurich-getting-rid-of-a-motorway-from-it-its-territory Wed, 01 Jul 2026 14:45:14 +0200 why-is-zurich-getting-rid-of-a-motorway-from-it-its-territory Passengers flying from Zurich Airport will soon be able to carry up to two litres of liquids in their hand luggage after the airport installed high-tech security scanners, bringing an end to the the strict 100ml limit established in 2006. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260623/zurich-airport-relaxes-liquid-restrictions-for-hand-luggage Tue, 23 Jun 2026 10:32:41 +0200 zurich-airport-relaxes-liquid-restrictions-for-hand-luggage Switzerland's Federal Court has ruled in favour of allowing Zurich and Wintertur to set a minimum wage after years of legal wrangling threatened to prevent the measures coming into force. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260611/zurich-and-winterturs-minimum-wage-gets-green-light-from-top-court Thu, 11 Jun 2026 11:03:45 +0200 zurich-and-winterturs-minimum-wage-gets-green-light-from-top-court A man wounded three people with a bladed weapon at the Winterthur train station near Zurich on Thursday morning, in what Swiss authorities have said was a "terrorist act". https://www.thelocal.ch/20260528/breaking-three-wounded-in-blade-attack-at-winterthur-train-station Thu, 28 May 2026 11:46:47 +0200 breaking-three-wounded-in-blade-attack-at-winterthur-train-station For more than three decades, Switzerland has been dispensing heroin to addicts. How does this innovative project work? https://www.thelocal.ch/20210819/explained-what-is-switzerlands-heroin-distribution-programme Thu, 19 Aug 2021 12:10:23 +0200 explained-what-is-switzerlands-heroin-distribution-programme One of the biggest annual events in Zurich, the Sechseläuten, takes places every April. The Local explains what it's all about...and what the Böögg is. https://www.thelocal.ch/20230404/sechselauten-what-you-need-to-know-about-zurichs-snowman-burning-spring-festival Tue, 04 Apr 2023 10:22:38 +0200 sechselauten-what-you-need-to-know-about-zurichs-snowman-burning-spring-festival Zurich real estate is among Switzerland’s most expensive, and in some lakeside areas prices are driven upwards by international residents. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260414/how-wealthy-foreigners-are-driving-up-prices-in-zurich-neighbourhoods Tue, 14 Apr 2026 14:15:42 +0200 how-wealthy-foreigners-are-driving-up-prices-in-zurich-neighbourhoods American fast-food chain McDonald’s is set on expanding its operations in Switzerland, but not everyone is happy about its plans for a new Zurich location - including British actress Emma Thompson. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260414/oscar-winning-british-actress-joins-fight-against-new-mcdonalds-in-zurich Tue, 14 Apr 2026 11:30:38 +0200 oscar-winning-british-actress-joins-fight-against-new-mcdonalds-in-zurich Only 276 kilometres lie between Switzerland’s two largest cities, but distance is not the only thing that separates Switzerland's German and French-speaking hubs. https://www.thelocal.ch/20191031/swiss-city-differences-updated Thu, 31 Oct 2019 16:15:22 +0100 swiss-city-differences-updated A new global report ranks three Swiss cities - Zurich, Geneva, and Lausanne - among the world’s ‘smartest. What exactly does this mean? https://www.thelocal.ch/20240409/what-makes-zurich-a-smarter-city-than-geneva-and-lausanne Tue, 09 Apr 2024 13:39:16 +0200 what-makes-zurich-a-smarter-city-than-geneva-and-lausanne A curious phenomenon is underway in the Swiss city of Zurich: instead of trying to raise their fares, a group representing taxi drivers wants to see them capped. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260311/62-francs-for-3km-taxi-drivers-in-zurich-demand-new-price-caps Wed, 11 Mar 2026 12:19:39 +0100 62-francs-for-3km-taxi-drivers-in-zurich-demand-new-price-caps Zurich's population has reached a new high, but data also reveals interesting information about foreigners who call Switzerland’s largest city ‘home’. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260206/what-we-know-about-zurichs-population-of-foreign-residents-in-2026 Fri, 06 Feb 2026 13:35:49 +0100 what-we-know-about-zurichs-population-of-foreign-residents-in-2026 Each year, some 40,000 people move away from Switzerland's largest city, Zurich, and 55 percent are foreign nationals, new municipal figures show. https://www.thelocal.ch/20260116/in-numbers-how-thousands-of-foreigners-leave-zurich-every-year Fri, 16 Jan 2026 14:50:39 +0100 in-numbers-how-thousands-of-foreigners-leave-zurich-every-year People who live in Zurich, Switzerland’s most expensive city, can look forward to some financial relief in 2026 – lower tax rates. But is this really good news? https://www.thelocal.ch/20251218/zurich-announces-biggest-tax-cut-for-residents-in-20-years Thu, 18 Dec 2025 12:15:38 +0100 zurich-announces-biggest-tax-cut-for-residents-in-20-years New cantonal figures reveal that communes in Zurich are relying less and less on personal interviews with applicants as part of the Swiss citizenship procedure. https://www.thelocal.ch/20251205/why-are-zurich-authorities-skipping-naturalisation-interviews Fri, 05 Dec 2025 16:03:06 +0100 why-are-zurich-authorities-skipping-naturalisation-interviews Thanks to new CT scanners being installed at Zurich airport, bottles of water and other liquids will no longer have to be surrendered at security checks at Switzerland’s largest airport. https://www.thelocal.ch/20251208/zurich-airport-to-lift-restrictions-on-liquids-in-2026 Mon, 08 Dec 2025 13:35:50 +0100 zurich-airport-to-lift-restrictions-on-liquids-in-2026 A 55-year-old tram driver will appear in the Zurich District Court this week, accused of ‘negligent homicide’ after an elderly American tourist was hit and killed by the tram. https://www.thelocal.ch/20251209/zurich-tram-driver-goes-on-trial-for-american-tourists-death Tue, 09 Dec 2025 11:40:44 +0100 zurich-tram-driver-goes-on-trial-for-american-tourists-death