
Winterthur Opposes the 2040 Land-Use Plan
A planning tool that sets out more than 100 policy objectives. A referendum committee that speaks of a “political straitjacket.” On November 29, 2026, Winterthur will decide at the polls how much leeway the city’s development should retain over the next 15 years. The referendum against the

Lugano Falls Behind in the Federal Program
For the time being, the Luganese region will come away empty-handed in the fifth-generation agglomeration programs. Bern cites an insufficient overall impact and a lack of concrete plans for urban development as the reasons for this. This sends a significant signal regarding location and site

Lerchenfeld Plans to Build Denser and Taller
In St. Gallen’s Lerchenfeld district, the city is establishing the framework for an increase in gross floor area from 65,000 to approximately 185,000 square meters. In certain areas, buildings up to 85 meters tall would be possible, supported by job creation, new green spaces, and the momentum

Emmen secures access to the Sonne site
By approving 1.36 million Swiss francs for Gersagstrasse, Emmen is directly linking transport infrastructure improvements with site development. The short section near Gersag railway station remains a bottleneck, yet it is also essential for providing access to the planned ‘Sonne’

New replacement development combines housing, commercial use and urban regeneration
In Rapperswil-Jona, the redevelopment of the vacant centre on Untere Bahnhofstrasse is set to deliver not only 77 flats and new retail space. The project will also alter the street layout, make a tricky bend safer and promote low-car living in its letting

Stadelhofen is reorganising its traffic
The Zurich Cantonal Council has approved the amendment to the structural plan for the area around Stadelhofen railway station. This brings the reorganisation of traffic in the front part of Seefeld a step closer: Falkenstrasse is to become a priority cycle route, whilst through traffic will be

Zug launches public transport hub with a residential development
Following years of planning, work is now getting underway on an infrastructure project at the An der Aa site in Zug. The new base for the ZVB, the emergency services and the administration will also provide space for around 160 flats from 2031, 40 per cent of which will be affordable

Niederlenz is tightening up its building zones
On 25 June 2026, the municipality of Niederlenz adopted the revised building and land-use regulations. The core principles are clear: more infill development, denser development in suitable locations, and stricter quality standards for the townscape, open spaces and

Housing preferences and the market are drifting apart
According to the 2026 Dream Home Study, 43 per cent of those surveyed would prefer to live in the countryside, but rising prices, a shortage of properties and high barriers to financing are keeping many in urban centres. The gap is particularly wide among young city

Asphalt, Heat, Collapse, and Who Pays the Bill
At the end of June 2026, temperatures in Germany exceeded the 40-degree mark for the first time ever in June. In Möckern-Drewitz, Saxony-Anhalt, the thermometer read 41.5 degrees Celsius, a new all-time record. This is no fluke. It is the result of decades of poorly planned urban

St. Gallen is refining its vision for the future of Lerchenfeld
In the west of St. Gallen, Lerchenfeld is set to become denser, taller and more diverse over the next two decades. The new development strategy links additional residential and commercial space to the future Bruggen-Haggen dual railway station and to new green spaces and

Two Areas, One City, One Vision
A residential town, a business hub, a transportation hub—Dietikon has many faces. In this interview, Mayor Roger Bachmann explains how the Niderfeld and Silbern projects are becoming key initiatives for the entire region and what modern urban development means in the Limmat Valley

Frauenfeld Becomes the Heart of Package Logistics
On June 14, 2026, Swiss Post broke ground in Frauenfeld on a new regional parcel center. The 200-million-franc investment is not a response to an immediate problem; rather, it is a strategic move that will shape the company’s course for the coming decades. This will make Thurgau the hub of Swiss

Charging Regulations Put Residential Buildings Under Pressure to Renovate
The Federal Council wants to grant tenants and condominium owners in residential buildings the right to have the basic infrastructure for electric vehicle charging stations installed. For owners and property managers, this would make the expansion of parking facilities, load management, and cost

Growth without stagnation. The new Limmat Valley takes shape
An economic area has grown up between Zurich and Baden that was long considered a transit zone. Today, the Limmat Valley has around 110,000 inhabitants and around 70,000 jobs. It is densifying, rebuilding and reorganizing its traffic. Anyone who still describes the Limmat Valley today as a


Transport and nature project sustainably enhances urban area
STRABAG is modernising a 700-metre stretch along the Mühletychbach stream between the cantonal school and the swimming pool in Zofingen with water, road and utility line construction work. Once construction is complete in October 2026, the watercourse should return to its natural

Preliminary project for Thun railway station district is launched
As part of the public consultation process, around 80 submissions were received from interested parties regarding the municipal area development plan for the Thun railway station district. The preliminary project is now being launched. The go-ahead for the first stage should be given by 2032 at the

Software acquisition expands portfolio for automated passenger processes
Dormakaba is acquiring the German software company Airsphere to expand its portfolio in the airport sector. The aim is to use this broader range of solutions to improve the efficiency of passenger processes, logistics and security at airports and within airlines


New partnership expands the range of products available on the Swiss construction machinery market
BRC Baumaschinen AG is to become the exclusive general importer for Shantui in Switzerland. The supplier of machinery for building construction, civil engineering, road construction and landscaping will in future offer a wide range of machinery and related services from the Chinese manufacturer at

When the roof of the car becomes a power station
An electric car that is largely self-powered sounds like a dream of the future. But a European research project is now providing tangible figures. Solar cells integrated directly into vehicles could dramatically reduce the electricity requirements of entire fleets and relieve the strain on the

Lugano is building an urban region on rails
766 million Swiss francs, a 2.2-kilometre tunnel under Breganzona, travel times of seven minutes between Bioggio and the city center. The Rete Tram-Treno del Luganese is the largest transport project in southern Switzerland. At the same time, it is also an endurance test for the development

10 million and then
The debate sounds simple. Less immigration, less pressure. But space works differently. Where living space is scarce, workers are in demand and mobility has long been organised across borders, a hard limit often only shifts the pressure further. This is precisely what makes the 10 million vote so

Electric bus marks a new chapter in regional transport
STI Bus AG has put its first electric bus into service. It is currently operating in Grindelwald. Three more electric buses are set to follow there by the end of the year, with a further two in Thun. By 2036, the entire STI fleet, comprising over 100 regular service vehicles, is set to be

The city shapes the traffic and the traffic shapes the city
Why does traffic congestion in Los Angeles differ from that in Zurich? And what does the construction of a new neighborhood have to do with commuter traffic? A new study by ETH Zurich provides answers for the first time and provides urban planning with a tool that was previously

From the construction group to the top of the railway
Swiss Federal Railways elected a new Chairman of the Board of Directors at its Annual General Meeting on 29 April 2026. André Wyss, former CEO of Implenia, has big shoes to fill - and brings with him a profile that has never been seen before at SBB. What he plans to do and why his election is more


