(as of autumn 2011)
The aim of the Federal Action Programme for Increased Road Safety (10.092) is to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on the Swiss roads. During the 2011 summer session the Council of States approved the bill, calling for more preventive measures (all vehicles using lights during daytime), more stringent application of rules of the road (including a ban on commercial appliances that warn motorists of radar installations) and improvements in road infrastructure (modification of black spots). In addition to the penalties set out by the Federal Council for speeding (impounding and subsequent sale of vehicles), data-recording apparatus, alcohol ignition locking device), the Council of States proposed tougher penalties for drivers who exceed speed limits. On the other hand, it did not support the confiscation of driving licences or compulsory eye-tests for drivers from the age of 50 upwards.
The National Council Committee has started examining the proposal in detail. During their discussions, the questions of taking away driving licences and banning school-age children from riding bicycles were the subject of fierce debate; no final decisions have as yet been reached. The Committee will continue examining the issue during the fourth quarter and it will be addressed by the National Council at the earliest during the 2011 winter session.
The so-called “second step” of the Railway Reform 2 message (05.028), which was sent back to the Federal Council in 2005 and which the latter approved on 20 October 2010, contains points of varying political consequence: the adoption of the technically relatively complex EU guidelines on interoperability is generally accepted politically as is funding for the provision of protection services. Somewhat more controversial, however, are the extension of the responsibility of the Railway Arbitration Committee and the introduction of alcohol limits for sailors of private boats on Swiss lakes, although the Federal Council’s proposals were not disputed by the Committees. The proposed competition regulations proved to be extremely controversial, however.
In the 2011 spring session the National Council, as the first council, agreed with the Federal Council on the principal points and supported the idea of a limited degree of competition via calls for tenders, including for public transport projects. In the vote on the whole text, the National Council approved the proposal with 162 votes to 1. The Council of States also approved the bill in principle. On the one hand, the second Council added a number of precisions concerning the rules for calling for tenders in connection with bus transport in order to avoid unnecessary administrative wastage and to ensure the greatest possible transparency vis-à-vis transport companies. On the other hand, it included a new clause in the bill which should give transport companies more leeway in fixing their rates (Art.15 Passenger Transport Act). This new proposal from the Council of States proved controversial among the members of the National Council Committee, which led to a delay in ironing out differences . After the National Council committee had held hearings on the Council of States’ proposal in August, it decided to postpone a decision until the fourth quarter of 2011. Consequently, it remains to be seen whether a final version of the proposal can be put forward before the end of 2011.