Zürich Warnings Or Dangers

Traditionally all trams and buses of Zurich's public transportation network aren't in service between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on the 1st of May (Labour Day). Only the urban railway (S-Bahn) can be used.

This is to allow the drivers to attend the traditional Labour Day parade. So please keep this info in mind when visiting Zurich around the 1st of May which is often a popular long weekend for city trips.

In June 2006 I found out the hard way that the city has turned most of the major roads into speed traps. Using cameras or automatic velocimetry controls they have turned foreigners and tourists into cash cows to supplement their budget. Obey the posted speed limit or pay up. But make sure you are guilty. We did a stop over in Zurich on our way to Bernese Oberland, Interlaken and .The Jungfraujoch Experience. About a month after I got back to USA, I got sent a speeding ticket from Zurich police department stating I had been five miles over the speed limit and the fine was $160 USD. I am the first to admit I sometime have a lead foot, but when driving in a foreign country I am very conservative. Especially in Europe where these types of camerfas are very common. If I had just been passing through Zurich going some other place I would have figure I had a momentary lapse and guilty as charged. I would have paid the fine.

The only problem was for the date and time listed, the car I was driving was parked in front of a hotel and I was standing in the lobby trying to check in. I pointed that it was physically impossible to be in two places at the same time. Although it took three letter including one to the Mayor of Zurich, I have hear nothing further.

My advise is if driving in Switzerland don’t be a targeted victim just because you are a foreigner or tourist . I would avoid Zurich if possible. Make your hub Geneva, Basel or Bern

Whereever many people are, you also meet "longfingers", especially in crowded areas like main stations, shopping streets or even in restaurants. This year I saw this illuminated longfinger in the main station of Zurich, warning you of pickpockets.

This tip is rather for the government, and as you would see in this picture, they are always very concerned about this danger. For me, I always love to take my destiny in my hand. Drive yourself if you can. Snow always cover the rail tracks. However, there was no recent history of derailment in this region.

Weekend snow slides killed at least five people — including three Canadians — and seriously injured about 10 others who strayed off-trail in Austria's Alps in search of adventure despite warnings that conditions were ripe for disaster. Officials had raised Austria's five-step avalanche alert to level four in recent days after a combination of heavy snowfalls, strong winds and subsequent mild temperatures made snow cover unstable and prone to breaking away.Austrian authorities recently launched a new service that delivers up-to-the-minute avalanche warnings via text messages. But frustrated emergency workers say technology is useless to those who ignore conventional warnings and take unwarranted risks just to descend mountains atop virgin snow. “If they lack knowledge and the necessary background information, then it's just carelessness — pure and simple,” Roland Mattle, an alpine gendarme helping airlift victims to safety, told Austrian television Sunday.The recent avalanche was estimated to have spanned the length of three football fields laid end to end, and struck at an elevation of about 2,300 metres in an off-trail area popular with thrill-seekers looking for deep, untouched powder. Experts regularly warn that skiing or snowboarding off-piste in unstable snow can be dangerous and triggers many of the hundreds of slides that annually claim scores of lives in Austria.Officials monitoring avalanche conditions in the Alps issued a statement Sunday warning people anew not to venture off trails known to be safe, to avoid skiing or snowboarding alone and to approach all areas “with the greatest respect.” They also urged people to wear avalanche transmitters, which emit a high-frequency signal that can save rescuers precious minutes to locate victims buried in heavy snow and dig them out before they suffocate. A transmitter helped rescue workers on Sunday swiftly locate a snowboarder buried in an avalanche in the resort of Zell am See, officials said.

Try to avoid the Rush Hour (7am - 9am and 5pm - 6pm) at the Mainstation and Bahnhofstrasse. Trains and Streets are packed with Bankers, Students and bunch of other people.

Dear Tourists, just try to go there between 9am and 12am or petween 2pm and 5pm.

Keep careful track of your receipts when using a credit card. Your entire credit card number is printed on it. (It will be listed as Eurocard). Can you imagine what could happen if some unscrulpulous person happened upon it?

The main station is a hub of constant activity and lots of people moving around. Be on guard here (especially by the phone and internet kiosks) as there are several groups of both young men and women who are looking for easy, distracted prey.
The men are especially difficult to rid yourselves of. When accosted, I was very direct in stating that I did not need a tour guide or want them near me. If they got more aggressive (or even grabbed me), I simply got louder and made a bit of a scene.
One of the many things I found great about Zurich is that when that sort of thing takes place, people stop and take notice. They don't ignore the situation like in most big cities. Often the unwanted attention from others was enough to scare the cowards off. Especially since they are there everyday and can't afford to be recognized as troublemakers.