Liam Bates, Nick Bates, take a break up on St Moritz's famed Corvatsch
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - GenevaLunch will soon share the results of the one week, best of Swiss ski slopes dream trip taken by our two reporters, Liam and Nick Bates, but in the meantime, here is today’s quick update from St Moritz.
“Snow is good, but too thin for real off-piste skiing. Wednesday offered brilliant blue skies but a biting wind. Thursday, up on Corvatsch, the wind had died down and the morning weather was fine, but faded into white-out conditions as it clouded over. Snow on the way, we hope!”
Tomorrow: Scuol, then on to Davos for more hard work on the slopes!
Max the white stork, in early March 2009, on her snowy nest near the Swiss-German border (photo: Heida Buergermeister)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Max the white stork, who winters in Spain or, some years, in North Africa, has returned to Switzerland, usually a sign that spring is on its way.
Max, 11, is a female white stork born near Avenches, Vaud in Switzerland. She is the longest-living satellite-tracked bird in the world. The Natural History Museum in Fribourg, which tracks her migrations and nesting habits.
She began her flight from Madrid 14 January, was in the south of France 5 February and Monday 7 February she crossed into Switzerland, spending the night in Baden.
She was mating by the first of March in 2010, so she probably has three weeks now to prepare a nest and get ready to welcome a mate.
Public transport special offer will run to 15 February
Saleve rises out of the fog: Lake Geneva in winter often sits in a damp blanket of fog that traps fine particles (photo taken 23 January 2010, ©2011 Obwoodman, http://www.flickr.com/photos/86813892@N00/)
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Last week’s too-high level of fine particles in the air around Lake Geneva, higher than allowed by federal legislation, has fallen to within limits, according to canton Vaud.
Geneva and Vaud both issued warnings to residents last week to stay indoors and do fewer sports if they are elderly or susceptible to lung problems. The combination of cold air above and warmer air on the lake combined to trap fine particles in the air, up to about 1,000 metres altitude. The problem is not uncommon in the Lake Geneva region in winter.
Warmer air throughout Switzerland has eased the situation and warm, sunny weather for most of this week should help keep the air clearer.
Vaud offers 3 month half-price CFF card to increase public transport use
Vaud’s Bol d’Air programme will remain in place until 15 February, says the canton: for CHF34 instead of CHF54 the canton’s residents can buy a half-price CFF rail card that is good all trains, boats and postal buses in Switzerland, and it provides reductions on urban transport systems, including the Mobilis regional system. Details and coupon
The programme is designed to encourage people to switch to public transport once an alarm is sounded for unacceptable levels of air pollution.
Geneva Friday offered an explanation, in French, and fine particles levels in neighbouring towns, to put the problem in perspective. The web page is worth bookmarking if you have allergies or lung problems, for future pollution alerts.
Australia’s neighbour New Zealand has been watching the lethal floods and storms in Australia, keeping a comfortable distance, but some residents of the land where the Hobbits make movies have been asking why extreme weather conditions seem to skirt around them.
The New Zealand Herald took time out from Australia-watching to explain: “New Zealand is unaffected by such a monstrous weather event because it does not have the warm oceans needed to fuel a tropical cyclone. Our geography protects us from the worst cyclones because we are too far south of the tropics. Australia’s east coast, on the other hand, is firmly in the middle of the tropics and their cyclone-producing warm currents.”
Cyclones, the paper says, come out of ocean waters that are at least 27C, whereas New Zealand’s coastal waters are never warmer than 25C.
Only once, in 1968, have winds of cyclone 5 strength been recorded in New Zealand, the Herald notes, the result of a rare incidence of a drifting tropical storm meeting a polar storm.
Links to other sites: New Zealand Met Office, New Zealand Tourism Office on weather
You may have to go higher for the snow in Verbier, but the view is great and there is snow on those mountains!
We will be publishing our regular Swiss weekend winter sports report here Friday evening, a bit later than usual, but we can already tell you this much: the snow in most places is in good shape thanks to the cold weather, with the Jura in surprisingly good shape. And prepare for great weather for the weekend! Temperatures rising to 5-7C with sunshine and low winds in most parts of western Switzerland.
More to follow, including beautiful hot-air balloon photos, details about the Junior World Cup ski races in Crans-Montana and the Nissan Free Ride World Tour, on in St Moritz Sunday.
Current La Niña episode started in June 2010, expected to die down over next four months
Milton Road, Brisbane, Australia January 2011 - part of a collection of Brisbane flood photos on flickr by Eric Veland: www.flickr.com/photos/erikveland
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in Geneva has published data confirming that recent heavy rains that led to flooding in Australia are linked to a La Niña “episode” that began in June 2010.
Areas including Australia and Indonesia that have already been affected are warned by forecasters to expect more unusually heavy rain for the next one to two months before the episode dies down.
The WMO is a United Nations organization, whose member countries’ national weather and meteorological services use it to work together.
The WMO says that “during La Niña episodes rainfall is increased across the western equatorial Pacific, including northern Australia and Indonesia during December-February and the Philippines during June-August”.
Below average sea level pressure and above average sea surface temperature in some areas, coupled with La Niña “have led to much above average rainfall in parts of Australia, Indonesia and southeast Asia. This La Niña situation is also believed to be linked to above average rainfall in southern Africa, below average rainfall in eastern equatorial Africa, and below average rainfall in central southwest Asia and southeastern South America.”
It is the opposite of El Niño, which brings unusually warm ocean surface temperatures.” Both events disrupt the large-scale ocean-atmosphere circulation patterns in the tropics and have important consequences for weather and climate around the globe. Once established, they typically last for 9 months or more,” according to the WMO.
Devastating floods in the Rio de Janeiro region in Brazil continue to take a high toll, with the number of deaths now well above 400 and expected to rise as rescuers find more bodies. Some 14,000 people are homeless and the country’s new president, Dilma Rousseff has promised US$400 million in aid to clean up and rebuild.
In other extreme weather news, Brisbane and the Queenlands area in Australia fear more rain is on the way, with a cyclone building up offshore while the massive damage from high waters of the past two weeks is assessed. Reuters reports that 12,000 homes have been destroyed and 118,000 buildings are without electricity. The World Meteorological Organization in Geneva, Switzerland 10 January confirmed that the heavy rains are part of the La Nina weather pattern.
In the Boston area and much of the rest of the northeastern US, heavy snows are threatening again, but schools and airports have re-opened after being closed for two days while the area dug itself out.
Links to other sites: Boston.com, Los Angeles Times, Reuters
Video, Boston.com
Sun and some snow over Lake Geneva
Lake Geneva Region, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Four towns in the Lake Geneva region: Geneva, Nyon, Payerne and Pully-Lausanne registered today 8 January, some of the warmest temperatures on record for the month. Overall Geneva recorded the highest temperature in the region.
In the Changins-Nyon area temperatures rose to 15˚C breaking the previous record set on 10 January 2007.
In Geneva it was a rather balmy day with temperatures reaching 15.6˚C that is the third highest temperature for the month since 1901. The all-time high for Geneva was set in 1920 when the mercury topped out at 17.3˚C.
Payerne saw the second highest temperature on record since 1978 reaching 14.9˚C.
In Pully-Lausanne the temperature reached 14.2˚C, the third highest for that area; the second highest temperature for Pully-Lausanne was 14.9˚C registered in 2003.
The German-speaking area of Switzerland also benefited from mild weather with some regions well above 17 degrees:
- Zürich-Kloten 14.3°C
- Vaduz 17.5°C
- Basle 16.7°C
- Altdorf 16.5°C
However, in the usually warmer canton Ticino temperatures didn’t get past the 5˚C.
Say goodbye to the sun and the mild temperatures, MeteoSuisse forecasts rain and colder weather in the region on Sunday 9 January with some snow over the St. Bernard Pass and Samedan.
Sunrise 31 December 2010, fog-enshrouded Rhone Valley
Cross-country skiing, Goms Valley, Valais 27 December
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The sun is out on the mountains, but fog hovers in most lower areas in French-speaking Switzerland Friday afternoon. If it’s sunshine you want as the new year of 2011 comes in Saturday morning, head for the heights!
Weather forecast
Pea soup on the plains, clear skies in the mountains: Rhone Valley, Valais
Expect stable temperatures with highs of 2C in the Lake Geneva area and 0C in Valais, then highs hovering around 0C throughout western Switzerland until at least Tuesday 4 January.
Fog will continue to hug the plain Saturday, but will lift in Valais, where you can expect mostly sunny skies until Wednesday, when the forecast is for partly cloudy skies. Sunday will bring changeable weather to Geneva and Lausanne, with partly cloudy skies until Tuesday, when heavy fog is expected to return.
Reminder: check holiday traffic forecasts, published earlier by GenevaLunch, to avoid the worst of the holiday traffic jams.
Resorts and winter sports update
Goms Valley, the tiny hamlet where Cesar Ritz grew up before making his fortune in the hotel business
With the slightly milder weather and the sunny days this week, our Jura resorts have been able to offer great conditions for skiing. We have had a little new snow and a number of our lifts are now operating. Take care, as the snow cover is still fairly thin, but we are expecting more snow in the New Year. Enjoy the skiing.
Swiss Alps
Snow fell early in the week, but slightly warmer weather 29-30 December has reduced the snow cover slightly in most areas. Snow is hard, with a 70cm base in Crans-Montana at 2,400m. Verbier reports
Prepared cross-country ski trails are virtually all open, and all but the lower ends of most luge (sled) runs. Snow-shoe trails are in decent shapes, most resorts are reporting.
The Goms Valley above Brig, en route to the Nufenen and Furka passes, both suffers and benefits from heavier snowfalls than the rest of the country in winter, but it also has some of the most piercingly blue sunny skies. Its famously long kilometres of flat cross-country ski runs are in excellent shape right now and good for beginners and families, with many options for more experienced skiers. The trains are often packed with skiers, so travel light if you’re taking the train (a great way to get there).
Events, speedy skiers’ tool and avalanche bulletins
The sun never managed to burn off the Rhone Valley sun during the day 31 December
Good crowds are expected at upcoming World Cup Alpine ski events, including:
Adelboden, canton Bern – 8 January
Wengen, Bern – 11 January (European Cup, 7 January)
Kitzbuehel, Austria – 19 January
Chamonix – 27 January
How fast do you really ski?
And for those who prefer to speed down the slopes themselves, the Swiss Safety Council has a new tool for skiers, an iPhone app to measure your speed. The idea is to better assess the risks you’re taking, not just try to beat your best time, of course.
Avalanche bulletins are currently at level 2 out of 5, “moderate” with the risk subsiding over the next few days, thanks to cold and sunny weather. Check the daily national avalanche service bulletins for details if you’re going off-trail.
Happy New Year 2011!
Goms Valley, Valais, farms in sunshine, side valley storm brewing, 27 December 2010
Zurich Airport
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Swiss government says it has started studying an increase in night flights to and from Zurich Airport after the number suddenly rose in December, apparently mainly due to weather causing delayed flights.
The airport has had, since July 2010, one of Europe’s strictest sets of rules for night flights, which are banned from 23:00 to 06:00, with 30 minutes’ grace for delayed flights. The number of night flights dropped as a result of the newer rules, which cut the flying day by a half hour, until the December increase.
Switzerland and Germany have had tense discussions over Zurich’s flight patterns, and Switzerland is appealing a September 2010 European Union ruling that flights in and out of Zurich may not use a southern Germany air corridor.
More snow!
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Switzerland’s Christmas snow has begun to fall steadily, and up to 10cm are expected on the plain, with 20cm at higher altitudes, but early afternoon 24 December showed relatively few signs of the winter weather snarls neighbouring France and Germany are experiencing. Geneva’s Cointrin Airport recommends that travellers arrive at least two hours before departure for all flights, given that up to 56,000 passengers are expected on Sunday, with traffic building up from the 20,000 travellers handled by the airport on a normal day.
Flights, trains and road traffic in France are all snarled by fresh snow on Christmas Eve day, throughout the country, with repercussions in neighbouring countries. Flights from Paris to Switzerland in the early afternoon were cancelled, although some later flights are still displayed as operating. Train stations are expected to handle some two million people over the Christmas weekend, with 800,000 Friday 24 December alone. Areas along the eastern borders with Germany and Switzerland as well as mountain regions further south are on orange alert for icy, snowy roads. Traffic at noon Friday was disrupted particularly in the Calais area and Charles-de-Gaulles Roissy
German train service was disrupted between Berlin and Hannover for several hours late Thursday when lines were iced over, stopping five intercity trains for five hours. Rail delays are expected to continue throughout Friday. Germany has also seen several highway accidents due to ice, with North Rhine Westphalia recording 1,734 accidents in 24 hours, according to The Local, Germany. A 24km tailback was formed, heading into Munich, after a spectacular pileup that involved 51 vehicles on the A9 motorway.
Belgium is also experiencing traffic problems due to snow, with flights from Brussels airport delayed and in some cases cancelled.
Roads in the UK are mostly cleared, according to the Guardian, allowing motorists a chance to get away for Chistmas, but it points to a reminder from the Automobile Association that stopping takes 10 times longer on icy, snowy roads than under normal conditions, so leave plenty of space between cars.
Links to other sites: Geneva Airport departures and arrivals, Guardian, UK, Le Monde (Fre), The Local (Ger), TSR (Fre)
Expect fresh snow for the holidays in Switzerland, accompanied by icy winds that might make the indoors an appealing option
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Weather in the Swiss Alps turned unseasonably mild 22 and 23 December, with highs of 10C Wednesday and expected to be around 8C Thursday. The Lake Geneva area is also experiencing a warm-up, with highs of 6C forecast for Thursday. The weather should change starting Friday, with temperatures dropping to a high of 0C, snow down to the plain and by Saturday temperatures dropping with an icy bise wind blowing across the plains and around the lake. Sunday: -2C, with snow flurries and the cold wind continuing.
Consider giving warm hats and scarves for Christmas gifts, for immediate use.
Party-time: a reminder from Nez Rouge to call them rather than drinking or taking drugs and driving home over the holidays. Keep in mind that exhaustion can also incapacitate you. Swiss-wide the number is 0800 802 208, but you can also phone locally: numbers and more on the volunteer work by Nez Rouge.
Driving plans: if you’re travelling by car over the holidays, review the list of expected traffic jams in Switzerland published by the Federal Highway Department, with the Swiss road traffic forecast published in English by GenevaLunch. Three good sources of live traffic reports: Highway Department truck information in English, TSR map showing traffic flow (Fre) and TCS (Touring Club Suisse) state of the roads map.
Trains are in Europe are filling up, as flight options shrink (photo: Zurich main station)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - European flights remain chaotic Tuesday morning 21 December, and there are now fears that the repercussions will continue to affect flights through Christmas. Among Tuesday’s announcements from airports and airlines: no flights are departing or arriving at Geneva’s Cointrin (update: still closed at 11:00). BA says that only half its Heathrow flights are operating (Gatwick and City flights are running, however), Duesseldorf in Germany is iced in, Frankfurt is closed due to fresh snow, after first cancelling 300 flights on the heels of cancellations for nearly 600 Monday. Brussels is accepting flights, but none are leaving, reports TSR, due to a shortage of de-icing liquid for the planes.
Trains are proving a difficult option as well, with a one-kilometre line forming at St Pancreas station in London for the Eurostar train, Swiss television TSR reports.
Background and contacts for airlines in Geneva / GenevaLunch
Links to other sites: BBC, Guardian, Le Monde (Fre) TSR (Fre), The Local, Germany
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Geneva’s Cointrin International Airport has announced that there are currently some flights arriving and departing, but travellers are cautioned to check with their airlines before going to the Geneva Airport. European weather continues to cause severe disruptions: flights have been cancelled or postponed in London, Amsterdam, Paris and Frankfurt due to snow, wind and icy conditions.
The web site of Geneva’s airport has been overloaded several times and only part of the site is accessible, but airport authorities are advising passengers to check directly with their airlines for flight information.
Here is the list of airlines from www.gva.ch 19 December, reproduced in pdf as a public service announcement. Note that if looking at this list later it will not include any contact information changes.
Update from Heathrow, 16:15
“Heathrow Airport will not be accepting arrivals on Sunday, and will only manage a handful of departures as our airfield team continues to deal with the impacts of yesterday’s bad weather.
“No flights will operate from Terminals 1 or 4 and a limited number of departures will leave from Terminals 3 and 5. We are extremely sorry for the disruption this will cause to passengers and airlines and we stress that passengers must check with their airlines before travelling to the airport. We will provide regular updates and you can contact your airline here.
“This morning, we listened carefully to the advice of our airside operations team and reluctantly judged that while Heathrow’s northern runway remains clear, the change in temperature overnight led to a significant build up of ice on parking stands around the planes and this requires the airfield to remain closed until it is safe to move planes around.
“We have 200 aircraft parking stands and have a team of several hundred people working to treat these airside areas and to keep passengers in the terminal as warm and as comfortable as possible while we do everything we can to get Heathrow moving.
“We are removing 30 tonnes of snow from each stand, but the temperature remains firmly below zero and Heathrow’s capacity is limited to the extent that all parking stands are occupied by aircraft, making the job of clearing and treating them more difficult.
“Safety is our first priority and we hope this course of action will allow us to offer a fuller service to passengers and airlines using Heathrow tomorrow.” (link)
Update from Amsterdam Schiphol, 16:15
“Due to weather conditions in Europe flights are delayed or cancelled. Please see the latest flight information on this website or contact the website of you airline. Before travelling to the airport we kindly advise you to check the latest flight information. If your flight is cancelled, please contact your airline before travelling to the airport.” (link)
Update from Paris Charles de Gaulle, 16:15
“Flights can be delayed or cancelled due to snow over Europe. Please contact your airline before going to the airport.” (link)
Update from Frankfurt, 16:15
“Flight delays and cancellations might occur at Frankfurt Airport due to wintry weather and reduced visibility. Passengers are kindly requested to contact their airline and to check traffic reports, e.g. on the radio or on teletext.” (ed. note: all flights on the departures page are cancelled or delayed), link
Frankfurt flights cancelled as heavy snow moves into city Thursday, Luxembourg passengers also stranded by snow
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Weather in the centre of Europe remains capricious, with Paris recovering from an unexpectedly heavy snowfall Wednesday 8 December and Frankfurt airport now cancelling most flights. What the forecasters called a “light snow shower” is turning out to be a heavier one. Meanwhile, the Jura, which enjoyed deep snows last weekend, and the Swiss Alps, which are mostly covered in a thin layer of white stuff, are waiting for their turn.
Luxembourg flights are being delayed, also due to snow.
Frankfurt is a main international hub for Swiss flights, so the cancelled flights between the German city and Geneva and Zurich is leading to several cancelled events, including a presentation by a delegation from the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park to the Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce Friday. Their flight was cancelled and all others are full, the chamber reports.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The cold front from the northwest that is expected to abruptly end the Lake Geneva region’s three-day warm spell starting Thursday night has taken a foothold in France, notably in Paris. Buses, regional trains and many Metro lines have virtually stopped running, airports have offered spotty service, traffic is snarled and even the Eiffel Tower, famously open year-round, has closed under a cloak of invisibility.
TGV service between Paris and Switzerland is still running, but the Paris-Basel-Zurich evening train is 1 hour 20minutes late. For CCF rail traffic updates, the French version tends to have the latest details before the English version.
Links to other sites: AFP, Le Monde offers a TV telezapping view of the crippled French capital and region around it.
Télézapping : La neige engloutit la Tour Eiffel
envoyé par lemondefr. – L'info internationale vidéo.
Expect rain, snow, wind and the occasional ray of sunshine in the Lake Geneva region, 7-12 December
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Expect warmer weather, then rain, then a sudden cold spell followed by snow down to the plain in the next five days: the forecast is for Lake Geneva area weather is changeable, according to MeteoSwiss, with a bit of everything. Check GenevaLunch for daily updates from the national weather service.
The region is, at least briefly, mostly back to normal after snow turned to rain, causing icy conditions everywhere. Hardest hit were the mountain areas where roads turned very slippery, with several accidents in the Jura-Neuchatel hills. The St Bernard tunnel and Simplon, two main north-south truck traffic routes that generally remain open, were closed Sunday night and Monday morning due to heavy snowfalls followed by icy conditions.
Wintry winds will blow in Jura, Alps
Strong winds will pick up and are likely to be around 100 kph in the Jura and Alps starting Tuesday afternoon, reaching their height Wednesday.
Take care with your umbrella Thursday if you’re near Lake Geneva. Strong winds will blow around the lake Thursday, from 50-100 kph.
Temperatures will fall Thursday
Geneva and Lausanne will have a temperature range of 4-9C Tuesday 7 December, while in Sion, where temperatures are often slightly higher in winter, the forecast is for 1-7C. Temperatures will drop rapidly Thursday and remain cold, with -1C to 2C in Geneva and -3C to 2C in Sion, with temperatures in main Alpine resorts colder: Zermatt is expected to have -7C with highs of -1C.
Rain, then snow again
Rain or snow are forecast in western Switzerland up to the weekend, but with warm temperatures until Thursday the snow line has moved up to 1900m. When the cold front moves in Thursday, snow could fall on the plains, although Valais is expected to have little or no snow Thursday and Friday, with cloudiness alternating with sunshine.
City’s 31 cm most snow in 30 years, followed by frosty temperatures
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Geneva’s Cointrin International Airport re-opened Thursday morning 2 December at 06:00 and by 08:00 flights were mostly back to normal. Airport officials warn passengers to arrive two hours early, nevertheless, and suggest taking public transport rather than driving.
The city is still digging itself out, as is most of the region on the west and north sides of Lake Geneva, after heavy snow Tuesday night and Wednesday 1 December. Geneva had 31 cm of snow, the most it has seen since 1979, when 23 cm fell 4 January. The record snowfall for one day for the city was in 1895, 25 February, when 58 cm of snow landed on the city.
Temperatures fell to nearly -6C in Geneva in the early hours of Thursday.
Brought to you earlier than expected! Lifts opening, safety, weather, cars, new radio
La Loge, Jura, November 2010 (photo, Pauline, JC Cusin)
Geneva and Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Our first real winter sports bulletin at GenevaLunch was scheduled for Friday 3 December, but the skies opened, the snow fell, the lift operators cheered, and we’ve decided to offer this to you earlier than planned. Visit us regularly on Fridays from now until April for our weekly weather and news linked to the Alpine world and winter sports.
Ski resorts open
A good starting place for information about Swiss ski resorts, if you’re unfamiliar with them, is the Swiss Tourism Office web site, which has a wealth of information. Note that historically their information about snow conditions is not up to date for all resorts, but maybe 2010-11 will see a change.
Jura
A number of ski resorts have already opened but be sure to check before you head there. The Jura, which has had snow steadily for over a week, already has a good base.
La Loge, Jura, November 2010 (photo, Pauline, JC Cusin)
The Monts Jura area issued this notice before Tuesday night’s fresh 20-plus cm of fresh snow: “Because of the recent snowfalls, the Monts Jura website is announcing the early opening of some of its installations. This weekend, there will be installations operating with reduced personnel at the Col de la Faucille and Crozet/Lélex and pistes open at La Vattay. Depending on snow conditions, these are the ones that will be running:
La Faucille: Télécombi and the Myrtilles skilift
Lélex: Catheline télécabine, the Loges six-place high-speed chairlift (if there is adequate snow at the summit), the Monthoisey skilift, Crozet Fierney télécabine, Télécorde, the Bergers chairlift
Vattay: Verte de la Vattay, Bleue de la Puthod, Petite Grand and Grande Grand, Noire de Divonne and Verte du Plateau.
Valais, Vaud
Few ventured out early Wednesday morning (Saint Prex, canton Vaud)
An aptly named street Wednesday morning
Update 09:30 Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The overnight snowfall throughout the Lake Geneva region is causing major traffic disruptions Wednesday 1 December. Cointrin Airport in Geneva is closed until at least 14:00 and travellers are being advised to check with their airlines.
The TPG in Geneva decided early in the morning not to run any of its buses and trams until further notice. The Tribune de Geneve is providing regular updates on the city’s public transport situation, as is RSR, which says some trams are running in the city, at 08:00.
Geneva, with 20 cm of fresh snow overnight, and more falling, has been the hardest hit area, according to MeteoSwiss reports.
Roads are considered moderately dangerous, with icy conditions, from Geneva to Lausanne and up the hillsides to the Jura. Road conditions in Valais are good, with less fresh snow than around the lake.
Everyone's new best friend, on a topsy-turvy snowy morning (Saint Prex, canton Vaud)
Lausanne’s public transport is running, with relatively minor delays, after 10 cm of snow fell overnight.
The CFF Swiss train system is operating, but with some delays: details for delayed trains and a map are updated frequently. Passengers were stranded Tuesday evening along the Lausanne-Geneva line when the Intercity train had a technical problem from about 18:00-20:00, but the problem was not weather-related.
The Swiss highway department’s truck info road updates and TCS (Touring Club Suisse) provide details of congestion and closed roads, with traffic in the Lausanne-Geneva area slow Wednesday morning, but with fewer people than usual on the road before 08:00, reports one commuter.
Schools are open in Geneva and neighbouring France, but with limited public transport, some children will not be making it to school.
Lake Geneva area and plains expected to get 10cm fresh snow Wednesday
Cosmos prediction, snow during 24 hours starting Wednesday 1 December, Switzerland
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The cold air dominating regional weather Tuesday 30 November is setting the stage for what is heavy snow by Lake Geneva region standards, with the forecast calling for 10-20 cm of fresh snow Wednesday.
Lausanne and Bernese Alps, seen from Lavigny, canton Vaud, 29 November 2010
MeteoSwiss‘s warning bulletin says snow will start Tuesday during the night and will fall throughout the day Wednesday.
Highs of -1C are expected in most of western Switzerland.
Click on images to view larger
Snowman Monday in Etoy, canton Vaud, Switzerland: he'll soon get a new white cape, warmer and thicker
Swiss snow forecast, road alerts, Anzere traffic change, kids’ competitions this winter
La Loge at Crozet, Jura, 24 November 2010 (photo, Jean Charles and Pauline Cusin)
Update 13:20 Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - It’s official: time to pull out those skis and head for the Jura slopes, or tuck up inside and light a fire, because this weekend will be cold and wintry. MeteoSwiss (see GenevaLunch weather pages) is predicting highs of 1 to 2C throughout central and western Switzerland, with sun alternating with snow.
New booklet helps winter sports fans shift to public transport
Leisure time activities account for a hefty part of road use in Switzerland. ATE, Association Transport & Environnement, has just published an excellent guide to using public transport for winter sports, with details for the time it takes, how to best get there, equipment rental and more for each Swiss resort. The guide is an excellent resource and good addition to the information available about winter sports (Fre, Ger, Ita).
Winter roads: reminder from Vaud that conditions can dictate legal speed
If you don’t yet have your winter tires on the car, don’t delay, as snow as low as the plains makes for slippery driving, Canton Vaud’s highway department reminds drivers they are legally obliged to drive at lower speeds when road conditions, such as ice and snow, call for it.
Cantonal road authorities say they replenished their stock of salt this summer, but if the winter is a tough one, supplies in Europe are likely to run short.
Road clearing times, list of Vaud closed roads
View of Lake Geneva, distant jet d'eau, from Signal de Bougy 20 October 2010
Wineries, autumn colours, Leman Expat Fair, marathon are Lausanne area highlights
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – October 2010 has given us chilly hands, so this weekend put on your gloves, don’t forget your umbrella and head outdoors to see the wonderful autumn colour displays.
Expect temperatures up to 13C Friday with sunshine, slightly cooler Saturday with some rain and a high of 9C Sunday, with sun and showers at the eastern end of the lake. In canton Valais, expect temperatures ranging from freezing to 17C during the day at the start of the weekend.
The unstable weather is great for photography, so put your camera in your pocket. If you want to see where it’s been raining in the past half hour, Meteoswiss has a map that shows you.
Sugar-beet harvest in Pizy, canton Vaud, next to Signal de Bougy, with Lausanne in distance
Parents or anyone with visiting relatives should consider a walk, playground time and lunch at Signal de Bougy (7/7 from 09:00-22:00) near Rolle/Aubonne, where summer crowds are gone, but the view of Lake Geneva is arguably one of the most beautiful in the region. It’s a 20-minute drive from the centre of Lausanne, 35-40 from Geneva: autoroute exit Aubonne, next to Ikea.
The restaurant, bakery and shop close after Sunday 7 November, until February 2011. The park, owned and run by Migros, offers families 31 October Halloween festivities and costume parade for children, which are free.
Vetroz, canton Valais, Switzerland and the Alps, 16 October 2010 (click on image to view larger)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - For those of you hoping that the woolens you’ve put on will be needed only temporarily, the chilly autumn in Switzerland looks set to continue, with just a a flash of near-warmth Saturday 23 October, when temperatures in the west of the country might rise to 16C.
The vineyards throughout the country are showing spectacular colours this year as a result of the continuing colder than usual weather.
Temperatures in September in 2009 were frequently above 30C, according to Meteoswiss, but in 2010 they never rose above 25C in German-speaking Switzerland, and rarely elsewhere.
Geneva had one day of 25C and Sion in Valais only three.
Overall, September was colder than usual, but it was also drier than normal.
For weather in Geneva and Zurich, be sure to check our GenevaLunch weather page.
The Rhone valley in late October
Aigle, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – An early Indian Summer has brought record temperatures across Switzerland.
According to the Swiss national weather service, Meteo Swiss, temperatures around Lake Geneva peeked at almost 25 degrees on 2 and 3 October and reached 28 degrees in canton Vaud on 4 October.
Although more rain is expected in the next 48 hours the temperatures will remain warm and the sunny days will soon return to the Lake Geneva region, notes a written statement by Meteo Swiss.
Due to a strong foehn in the Alps, which reached 90 kph over the Rhone valley on 4 October, the temperature rose to 26.8 degrees in Aigle, canton Vaud.
That is the highest temperature ever reached during October. The last record was reached in 2001 with 26 degrees.
The foehn is a strong, dry wind descending from the lee of a mountain.
Foehn winds of up to 105 kph were registered at Altdorf which saw temperatures of 24 degrees.
Fine weather offers window of opportunity for test flight
Solar Impulse will start its flight to Geneva around 03:00, using only solar power
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Solar Impulse’s test flight to Geneva and Zurich, its first foray into airspace with regular traffic and landing at commercial airports, has been moved to this weekend, with a planned 03:00 departure Saturday 11 September from Payerne. Flight plan map
The golden weather forecast for this weekend provides a safe window for the solar plane, which uses only solar power. It made its maiden flight in early July in a protected air corridor. Early this week it announced that the test flight would likely take place at the end of September.
The flights will be at low altitude, so easily visible to plane-watchers, and the flight path can be followed live. Solar Impulse is running a photo competition, with first prize a visit to the project centre in Payerne. Photos and videos can be uploaded directly to the site, while the plane is flying.
The programme for Saturday:
First snow, winter 2010-11 (30 August!), near Crans-Montana, Switzerland
Monts Jura, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Monday morning brought chilly temperatures, 9C at 1,000 metres in the Alps, where autumn apples are ripening earlier than usual, and fresh snow at 2,200 metres! If you’re hiking, climbing or mountain-biking, take warm clothes.
It’s not too early in the season to think about ski tickets, reports Shirley Curran, our Jura correspondent, with her first pre-season ski news for 2010-2011:
Jura season tickets
This is the last weekend that the telecabines from Lelex and Crozet will operate for the summer season but winter is on its way and, exceptionally this year, from September 6, it will be possible to buy Monts Jura season tickets on-line at the considerably cheaper pre-season ‘super-promotion’ rate. The resort will be operating one of the races from the Women’s International calendar in February.
Click on images to view larger
Rechy, Valais, near Sion, Switzerland, first snow, 30 August 2010
Moon rising over Sierre, Valais, Thursday 26 August, in time for a blues festival
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Outdoor festivals are playing out the last notes of summer, in Saint Prex (Negro spirituals and classical), Lausanne at the Chocolate music festival and further afield, blues under moonlit skies in Sierre. The weather promises a bit of everything this weekend, according to Meteo Swiss, with temperatures ranging from 8-23C, showers, thunderstorms and sunshine.
If you’re short on ideas for this weekend, check out our events calendar.
And whatever you decide to do, take something warm, an umbrella and, just in case, sunglasses. And don’t forget your camera, because changeable weather makes interesting scenery!
Swiss Alps 27 August 2010
Click on images to view larger: split-second series showing gusting winds in Saint Prex, canton Vaud, Thursday evening, in less than one minute
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – After central Switzerland, the weather demons turned on western Switzerland’s Jura mountain range and La Côte, with windy storms late Monday afternoon 12 July. Winds gusted to well over 100 kph in several areas, according to MeteoSwiss, the national weather service.
Vaud police say they received 122 emergency calls between 17:00 and 19:00. Several people in pedalos near Ouchy/Lausanne and amateur sailors were rescued by lake emergency teams and staff from the Compagnie générale de navigation (CGN) when winds on the lake suddenly whipped up to 90 kph. Shortly after, emergency teams rescued others on Lake Neuchatel. Several pleasure craft on Lake Geneva were tossed from their moorings and police evacuated the VD 8 campground at Cheseaux-Noréaz after trees fell on some of the caravans and some 100 campers’ tents were threatened by other trees.
Campers at the Morges TCS campground on the shore of Lake Geneva held onto their wildly flapping tents. British campers Pat Stevens and her husband Bob said they repegged their tent when they saw red dust from the nearby tennis courts rising in one-storey high clouds.
The CFF trains were badly disrupted by a tree blowing over on the rail line at Rolle: between Gland and Allaman, on the heavily travelled Lausanne-Geneva tracks, rail service was halted from 17:55 to 18:55. Intercity and Inter-regio trains from Lucerne remained out of service for longer, with traffic limited to one track while the tree was removed and repairs were made.
Hot days with evening storms are expected to continue for the next week, a boon for swimming pools in the region, which suffered from under-attendance during the first cold month of the season, but which are now packing the crowds like sardines during the day.
The storms also swept other parts of Switzerland. News service ats reports that 24 people were rescued by boat and helicopter from the banks of the Kloentalersee when their cars were trapped between two mud and rock slides during a violent storm that began abruptly and caught them by surprise. Two passes, the Albula and Susten, were closed until Tuesday to clear up rock slides set off by heavy mountain storms.
Links to other sites: 20 Minutes, GenevaLunch weather forecasts from the national weather service
Heavy rain falling on fields in Valais, taken through open window Sunday evening
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Château d’Oex, canton Vaud, was one of the worst hit areas Sunday evening 11 July, when thunderstorms broke out in the Bernese Oberland and other parts of Switzerland. High temperatures in recent days have resulted in early evening thundershowers, often with high winds that have caught sailors by surprise and interrupted train service in parts of German-speaking Switzerland. In Château d’Oex the Eau Froide river filled rapidly and spilled over its banks, causing a rockslide that carried away a car, with no one in it. The national weather service clocked 3,900 lightning bolts in Lucerne and 900 in Zurich. On Lake Zurich winds reached 155 kph.
Meteo Swiss offers a page of explanations and advice on how to behave in thunderstorms, in French but with easy-to-follow sketches of right and wrong behaviour.
More high temperatures, in the low- and mid-30s, with late afternoon thunderstorms are expected.
Note: GenevaLunch offers five-day forecasts provided by Meteo Swiss.
Links to other sites: Meteo Swiss, TSR
