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Comment by kuerbel | Hacker News Reader

I think 40 Swiss Francs per year is a really fair price, if you live there and use the Autobahn regularly it's very cheap per km and if you happen to drive through you also have to pay, which is only fair to residents. but 40 francs flatrate even if you only pass through is still better than whatever is going on in france!

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That said if we're counting bridge/ferry in other countries why not also count it in Switzerland? (Ferry: Horgen and Beckenried, for trains: Lotschberg, Furka, Simplon, Vereina)

What I find amazing is that the price hasn't changed in years, it was already 40 CHF when I lived there in 2003 - 4.

The price increase (to 100chf) was voted down. I understand the vote too - it wasn't so much as people saying they don't want to pay more as it was people saying we shouldn't be putting more money into auto transport. If they let only car owners vote I bet it would have passed.

Wait, I don't quite follow the logic. How is charging car owners (and only car owners) more money the same as investing into auto transport? Does the state have to use the extra money in a certain way?

Because its not a major source of revenue and not primary income for road maintenance (swiss have stellar overall road quality compared to neighbours), and mostly intended for foreigners to not overuse swiss highways in summer & winter tourist seasons.

This can happen easily due to location of Switzerland. Its true that inflation is basically non-existent here, something about fiscal discipline and overall highly moral population not afraid of work (unlike france or italy for example), and thus also government. Overall country is low to medium tax place so vignette price is in line with that.

Follow a bit their politics a bit and their domestic affairs and you will quickly note how unusual that population and this country is. Best place overall for me to live and raise my kids, thats for sure.

Inflation in Switzerland is weird. It's not in groceries, but it's in coffee and restaurants, it's not in electronics, but it's in health insurance and rent. And there, it's very high - health insurance (mandatory) grows +5% per year, rent is complicated, but could be 10-20% per year or 0, depends on your luck.

>whatever is going on in france

Two things:

-a design choice: the fee also pays for rest areas every 15-20 km, for both cars and trucks

-an unchosen situation: France is right in the middle of Europe and sees half* the of the population of Northern European countries driving through it to go on vacation in the Southern ones every Easter, Summer and Autumn vacations (and to the alpine ski stations in Winter).

*Kidding, but only slightly

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