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Swede faces massive fine over Swiss speeding

Police in Switzerland said Monday that they had seized a Swedish motorist's $240,000 sports car after he was caught doing 290 kilometres per hour (180 mph) on a Swiss motorway.

Published: 9 August 2010 18:31 CEST

Swede faces massive fine over Swiss speeding

Swiss officials were unable to say if it was a record because they do not keep such nationwide data, but it “looks very close to one,” federal roads office spokesman Thomas Rohrbach told AFP.

Police in the western canton of Fribourg said in a statement that the 37 year-old driver had to be stopped by a neighbouring police force last Friday after he shot past a permanent speed trap.

His driving licence and 570-horsepower black Mercedes-Benz were seized after he was released from custody, and he could face a fine of up to one million Swiss francs ($962,000) depending on his income.

A local magistrate ordered police to keep the car as security pending a likely court ruling and an eventual sentence.

Driving more than 25 kilometres an hour over the 120-kilometre speed limit on motorways in Switzerland is regarded as a criminal offence, and fines are based on a driver’s income.

The Swedish motorist’s alleged speed goes off the scale and the penalty is at the judge’s discretion, up to a maximum of 1.08 million Swiss francs for speeding, Rohrbach said.

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Three scenarios: How Switzerland plans to fight a Covid resurgence

Authorities want to prevent overcrowded hospitals if new wave comes. Photo by Fabrice Coffrini / AFP

Although Switzerland relaxed a number of coronavirus rules from June 26th and 28th, “the pandemic is not over”, as Health Minister Alain Berset said at a press conference on Wednesday.

Berset said Switzerland should not become complacent, with last summer a warning against feeling that the battle is won.

He added, however, that the new wave is unlikely to be as large as the previous ones due to the country’s vaccination campaign.

This situation leaves a degree of uncertainty for which the government wants to be prepared as well as possible, Berset noted.

The Federal Council established a “just-in-case” procedure on Wednesday for three possible scenarios that could take place in the autumn and winter.

These plans focus mainly on the rapid detection of variants and the continuation of vaccination, testing, and tracing.

The best-case scenario: status quo

In this scenario, the number of cases remains at a low level, though small outbreaks are still possible.

The number of infections may increase slightly due to seasonal factors — the virus is known to spread slower in summer and faster in autumn and winter— but does not place a significant burden on the health system.

If this happens, no measures beyond those already in place would be necessary.

READ MORE: ANALYSIS: Is Switzerland lifting its Covid-19 restrictions too quickly?

Not so good: more contaminations

In this second scenario, there is an increase in the number of cases in autumn or winter.

There may be several reasons for this, for example the large proportion of unvaccinated people, seasonal effects — people tend to stay indoors together in cold weather, and contaminations are easier — or the appearance of new, more infectious variants.

This situation could overburden the health system and require the reintroduction of certain measures, such as the obligation to wear a mask outdoors.

Booster vaccinations may also be necessary.

The worst: new virus mutations

In scenario three, one or more new variants appear, against which the vaccine or the post-recovery immunity are less effective or no longer effective.

A new wave of pandemic emerges, requiring strong intervention by the public authorities and a new vaccination.

Which of the three scenarios is most likely to happen?

The government hasn’t said, but judging by the comments of health officials, the latter two are the strongest contenders.

Firstly, because the highly contagious Delta mutation, which is spreading quickly through many countries, is expected to be dominant in Switzerland within a few weeks.

It is expected that the virus will spread mostly to those who are not vaccinated and, to a lesser degree, to people who have only had one shot of the vaccine, according to Andreas Cerny, epidemiologist at the University of Bern

READ MORE: How Switzerland plans to contain the Delta variant

Another concern is related to the appearance of the new variants which could be as or possibly even more contagious than Delta and not as responsive to the current vaccines.

The government said the best chance of avoiding the second or third scenarios is to ensure people are vaccinated.

“Widespread vaccination of the population is crucial to relieve the burden on the healthcare system and to manage the epidemic. A possible increase in the number of coronavirus cases in the autumn will largely depend on the proportion of the population that has been vaccinated,” the government wrote in a press statement.

The government has also indicating it is preparing for booster vaccinations to take place in 2022 and are encouraging cantons to keep their vaccine infrastructures in place.

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