The Confederation is interested in “superblocks” to eradicate traffic in cities

blue News and Keystone-ATS give you a first overview of the news, with the latest news unearthed in the press. Without forgetting birthdays and the saying of the day!

Today’s highlights

RESPONSIBLE COMPANIES: The Coalition for Responsible Multinationals presents its new initiative on Tuesday. A previous initiative of the same type was submitted to the ballot box in 2020. A majority of the population then voted in favor and a majority of the cantons against, which led to its rejection, a double majority being necessary.

VALAIS: The number of candidates and lists submitted for the election to the Valais Grand Council on March 2 will be known late Tuesday morning. The same will apply to the relationships and sub-relations. In addition, the draw to find out the number of each list is scheduled for around 10:30 a.m. in Sion. The Valais Grand Council has 130 deputies and as many substitute deputies.

FRANCE: “The desire to laugh will never disappear!”, assured the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on Tuesday, ten years after the jihadist attack which decimated part of its editorial staff. A special issue is planned, focusing in particular on “God’s laughter” through some 40 caricatures.

ICE HOCKEY: The marathon at the start of the year continues Tuesday from 7:45 p.m. in the National Ice Hockey League. In the midst of a revival after winning the Spengler Cup, Fribourg-Gottéron has the opportunity to continue its momentum at Ambri-Piotta. The task promises to be more complicated for Genève-Servette, which hosts Berne aux Vernets. Facing Lugano, Bienne must revive after three defeats in a row. And the red lantern Ajoie receives a surprising team from Langnau.

Seen in the press

TRAFFIC: The Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) has commissioned a study into road traffic calming systems, the newspaper Blick reported on Tuesday. In particular, experts must determine how one-way street systems can help reduce the number of vehicles in cities.

The aim of this study is to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of such a system to make it a manual for the Swiss authorities, a spokesperson for the Federal Roads Office (FEDRO) explains in the newspaper. According to Blick, these are primarily “superblocks” or “anti-car zones”, which virtually completely prohibit motorized transit traffic.

BANKS: As a US Senate committee revealed that Credit Suisse withheld information during previous investigations into bank accounts that belonged to Nazis during the Second World War, the former scientific adviser to the independent commission of Bergier experts, historian Marc Perrenoud, believe in Tuesday’s Le Temps that the banking and lawyers’ archives have not yet revealed all their secrets.

“The Bergier commission discovered so much documentation that we could not go through it during the five years of our mandate” (1996-2001), he said. He notes that the commission suspected banks of withholding information in certain cases, “but we were not informed of this and we had no proof”.

Birthdays and jubilees

– One year ago (2024): death of German footballer Franz Beckenbauer at the age of 78. The “Kaiser” won the World Cup in 1974 as a player and in 1990 as coach of the “Mannschaft”.

– 10 years ago (2015): attack on the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris. Two armed jihadists kill twelve people, including the cartoonists Cabu, Charb and Wolinski.

– 10 years ago (2015): death of Australian actor Rod Taylor (“The Time Machine”, “The Birds”). He was born in 1930.

– 40 years ago (1985): birth of British racing driver Lewis Hamilton, seven times Formula 1 world champion.

– 130 years ago (1895): birth of the Romanian-Swiss pianist Clara Haskil, considered one of the greatest interpreters of Mozart. The musician lived in Vevey since 1942. She died on December 7, 1960.

Saying of the day

“If it freezes on Saint-Raymond’s Day, the winter is still long.”