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DRIVING

Student loans could help Swedes get driving lessons

Swedes will soon be able to get a student loan to pay for their driving licence if the government has its way. That was one of the budget updates the centre-left coalition revealed on Tuesday.

Published: 6 September 2016 16:11 CEST
Student loans could help Swedes get driving lessons
Swedes could help paying for their driving lessons. Photo: Bertil Ericson/TT

The scheme forms part of the Social Democrat-Green government's budget proposal this autumn. It was supported by the leading coalition party, the Social Democrats, but mainly pushed through by the Left Party, on whose support the government relies to get its budget through parliament.

“A majority of young unemployed people today have no driving licence, while employers require one in order to hire them. Giving young people the chance to get a driving licence is thus a smart investment to get more young people into work,” Prime Minister Stefan Löfven told Aftonbladet.

The proposal would mean that everyone who has graduated from school would be able to borrow a maximum of 25,000 kronor (almost $3000) from Sweden's student loan agency CSN to pay for driving lessons.

The process of getting a driving licence currently costs on average 15,000 kronor, according to Körkort Online, but the price varies significantly depending on how successful you are and where you live.

“For many people this is a lot of money; many can't afford to get a licence. So we think that this will help get young people onto the labour market,” said Left Party leader Jonas Sjöstedt.


From left, Karolina Skog, Stefan Löfven, Isabella Lövin and Magdalena Andersson. Photo: Janerik Henriksson/TT

The scheme was announced on Tuesday morning, ahead of a press conference at which the Prime Minister presented a series of separate measures included in the budget proposal.

Joined by Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson, Environment Minister Karolina Skog and coalition partner Green Party leader Isabella Lövin, the afternoon announcement focused on the environment.

Löfven referred to the budget as Sweden's biggest ever investment in climate-related issues.

“We're taking responsibility for the climate challenges instead of lowering taxes and making cuts,” he told reporters.

Andersson listed climate investments of up to 12.9 billion kronor in the next four years, including 200 million kronor for urgent railway maintenance (and 5.9 billion in 2019-2020), 250 million for improving city environments, and 500 million in financial contributions to buyers of electric and hybrid cars.

“This is a unique initiative, we have never had anything similar,” commented Lövin.

Budget proposals, which the Finance Minister is expected to formally present to parliament later this month, began trickling through after Midsummer. Some of the suggested schemes announced so far include raised income taxes and 10 billion to help local authorities cope with the refugee influx.

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DRIVING

EXPLAINED: When can a child sit in the front seat of a car in Switzerland?

Babies and children must be safely secured in a child’s car seat designed for their weight and age group whenever they travel in a car in Switzerland. We look at the rules around driving with children.

Published: 13 April 2023 11:17 CEST
EXPLAINED: When can a child sit in the front seat of a car in Switzerland?

In Switzerland, a simple rule for taking children in motor vehicles has been in place for a good two decades: Every child up to a height of 150 cm or the age of 12 must travel in a suitable child seat.

Its Austrian neighbour has even stricter rules in place. Babies and children in Austria must be correctly secured in a child’s seat up to the age of 14 if they are below 135 cm in height.

The German law takes a more relaxed approach and regulates that children from the age of 12 or those that are taller than 150 cm can ride in the vehicle without a child seat – with the appropriate seat belt, of course.

When can a child sit in the front?

According to the law in Switzerland, once a child has reached a height of 150 cm, they can sit anywhere in the car with or without a child or booster seat.

However, a child needs to reach a minimum height of 150 cm for the safety belts to guarantee their safety in a way that the neck is not constricted while driving in the event of sudden braking or an accident.

In principle, children are allowed to sit on the front passenger seat regardless of their age, however, this is not recommended by experts who argue that children are much safer in the back of the car. Furthermore, if a vehicle is equipped with airbags, rear-facing car seats may only be used if the front airbag on the passenger’s side is deactivated.

A driver at the Stelvio Pass, Santa Maria Val Müstair, Switzerland.

A driver at the Stelvio Pass, Santa Maria Val Müstair, Switzerland. Photo by Jaromír Kavan on Unsplash

Can I be fined for my child travelling without an appropriate car seat?

You can and you will. The fine for transporting an unsecured child under the age of 12 is 60 francs, which, given the risk driving without an appropriate child seat poses to your child’s life, is mild. 

But what about public transport?

Though this may seem illogical to some, Switzerland does not have any safety laws dictating that car seats be used on its buses, meaning it is not uncommon to see mothers standing in the aisle of a packed bus with a baby in a sling while struggling to hold on to a pole for stability.

Though politicians did briefly discuss equipping buses with baby and child seats in 2017 to avoid potential risks to minors, nothing came of it. Ultimately, supplying buses with special seats or introducing seat belts proved unrealistic given the number of seats and considering how often people hop on and off a bus – there is a stop almost every 300 metres in Switzerland.

Instead, drivers are now better informed of the dangers posed to minors travelling on their vehicles and parents are advised to leave children in strollers and not load those with heavy shopping bags.

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