US president bashed Switzerland, and its former president, during a speech in Davos; Geneva motorists spend 141 hours in traffic jams each year; and other news in our roundup on Friday.
‘Absurd, incoherent: Swiss react to Trump’s Davos speech
In his speech at the WEF in Davos, President Donald Trump talked a lot about Switzerland saying, among other things, that “without us, Switzerland wouldn’t exist any more.”
He also attacked former Swiss president Karin Keller-Sutter, saying that during their telephone conversation in 2025 about the tariffs the US imposed on Switzerland (39 percent at the time), Keller-Sutter – to whom he referred as prime minister “annoyed me” and “didn’t leave a good impression.”
Neither, it seems, did Trump’s speech.
“Is it just me or is this a new low of absurd, incoherent, fake-free babble, even by Trumpian standards?” Cédric Wermuth, Co-President of the social Democratic Party asked on social media.
He added that the speech was “far more extreme and lunatic than anything previously heard”.
As for Swiss president Guy Parmelin, he only stated after Trump’s speech that “We’re not used to this, it’s nerve-wracking. But we have to keep a cool head.”
141 hours: That is how long Geneva motorists spend in traffic jams each year
This finding emerges from a new study published this week by the GPS navigation company, TomTom.
It puts Geneva in the 23rd place out of 256 European cities examined in the study.
This is not, however, a total surprise to local residents, or anyone has ever driven through Geneva: the streets of Switzerland’s second-largest city are notoriously congested:
READ MORE: Why has traffic in Geneva become a nightmare for residents?
Advertisement
Basel’s population has a growth spurt – mostly due to immigration
In 2025, the population of Basel-City had increased by 3,014 people, for a total of 210,529 residents.
This represents a growth of 1.5 percent, the cantonal statistical office said on Thursday.
The increase is primarily attributed to immigration – currently, 39.2 percent of the population are foreign nationals.
Advertisement
Unruly tourists endanger a nature reserve in Aargau
Lake Egelsee, a popular excursion spot, is suffering consequences of over-tourism – the bad kind.
Ruedi Vogel, nature conservation and fisheries warden in the area, was called out 141 times in 2025 to respond to non-compliance with the posted signs.
Some tourists were even caught brazenly taking nude selfies.
A large part of his work, however, consists of tidying up and cleaning the mess tourists leave behind.
They also break the no-driving rule by bringing and riding their mopeds.
“Some people just lack respect for our beautiful nature reserve,” Vogel said.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at news@thelocal.ch