Swiss railways uses drones against graffiti sprayers
The Swiss Federal Railways is taking action against graffiti artists.
Keystone-SDA
Select your language
Generated with artificial intelligence.
Listening: Swiss railways uses drones against graffiti sprayers
The Swiss Federal Railways has been using drones in the fight against graffiti sprayers since the beginning of July, having received authorisation from the Federal Office of Civil Aviation to do so.
The company confirmed a report in the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper, according to which the drones fly up to 30 metres high and are only used in the track area, where unauthorised access is prohibited.
The target is people who trespass on railroad premises at night, namely graffiti artists.
The Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) has issued a permit to the Video and Graffiti Unit of the Federal Railways Transport Police for this purpose. This authorises the operation of the Beehive 1 drone system from Sunflower Labs. The drones are automated, but are monitored by humans.
The federal railways is not disclosing how many such drone missions have been flown since the beginning of July and where they have taken place “for police reasons”.
According to the federal railways, damage caused by vandalism costs the company several million francs a year.
More
More
Graffiti removal costs Swiss railways millions
This content was published on
This is an increase compared to the year before (little over CHF5 million) but less than the all-time record in 2015 when the clean-up bill reached CHF6.3 million. According to the company, “the aim of the sprayers is to make their graffiti visible to as many people as possible. This is why railway carriages are…
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Most Read Swiss Abroad
More
Thousands of emigrants’ descendants in Argentina demand Swiss citizenship
Basel diocese files five claims of sexual abuse in Swiss Catholic Church
This content was published on
The diocese of Basel has received 141 reports of sexual abuse since the publication of a sweeping study on violations in the Catholic Church by the University of Zurich in 2023.
Swiss president calls for open markets and stable institutions in WEF speech
This content was published on
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter was among speakers at the WEF in Davos to make the case for fair competition, a day after Donald Trump became the 47th president of the United States.
Swiss film in competition at the 75th Berlinale has a shot at Golden Bear
This content was published on
The feature film La Cache by Lausanne screenwriter and director Lionel Baier has a chance of winning the Silver or Golden Bear at the 75th Berlinale, festival organisers said on Tuesday.
Swiss politician who shot at image of Jesus resigns from Liberal Green Party
This content was published on
Sanija Ameti, who caused controversy after shooting at an image of Jesus and Mary last September, has resigned from the Liberal Green Party.
Swiss campaigners gather enough signatures to submit ‘responsible business’ initiative
This content was published on
The Swiss people are set to vote again on the corporate responsibility of multinationals after campaigners collected 183,661 signatures in 14 days for their new 'responsible business' initiative.
Several Swiss municipalities and banks hit by cyberattack
This content was published on
Russian hackers attacked the websites of several Swiss municipalities and banks on Tuesday, just as the World Economic Forum (WEF), got under way in Davos.
Music strengthens brain connections in premature babies, Swiss study shows
This content was published on
In premature babies, music strengthens connections in certain areas of the brain, according to a years-long study by the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG).
WEF gives Crystal Award to Beckham, Yamamoto and von Fürstenberg
This content was published on
The World Economic Forum in Davos handed out awards to UNICEF ambassador David Beckham, Japanese architect Riken Yamamoto and women's rights activist Diane von Fürstenberg.
Swiss CEOs betting on a strong domestic market in 2025
This content was published on
Swiss business leaders are optimistic about 2025, despite a world in crisis, says a new survey by Pricewaterhouse Coopers.
This content was published on
Economics Minister Guy Parmelin and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis have welcomed Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang to Bern
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.