Switzerland votes on motorway expansion, tenants’ rights and health insurance

Swiss citizens have until midday on Sunday, November 24, to cast their votes on four federal bills. The issue stirring the most debate concerns the proposed expansion of the country’s motorways. The results of the referendums should be known before the day is out.

On November 24, the Swiss will have their say on four decisions adopted by the Swiss parliament. Keystone / Gaetan Bally

The Swiss go out to vote on national issues up to four times a year. On November 24, they will have their say on four decisions adopted by the Swiss parliament, and which various interest groups and political parties are seeking to oppose by means of a referendum. This means that at least 50,000 signatures were collected per issue from people in favour of a vote.   

Specifically, the decisions being put to referendum are:

• the widening of key stretches of the Swiss motorway network
• stricter rules for subletting rented accommodation
• eased conditions for landlords wishing to terminate a lease to reclaim their property for personal use
• standardised financing of health insurance services.

If Swiss voters had cast their votes in early November, it would have been a tight race for all four bills, according to a survey by the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation, SWI swissinfo.ch’s parent company. The motorway expansion and the eased conditions for landlords to terminate a lease would have been rejected. The standardised financing of health insurance services and the stricter rules for subletting rented accommodation would have been approved.

Referendum against motorway expansion

Switzerland is a relatively small country. Its longest motorway, the A1, runs just 422 kilometres from west to east. Not only is it the longest Swiss motorway, but it is also the most congested. In 2023, a total of 16,279 hours were lost in traffic jams on the A1, up 17% from the previous year, according to the Federal Statistical Office. Motorway junctions around the larger Swiss cities have some of the slowest traffic in the world, an international ranking by GPS provider TomTomExternal link found.

To improve the situation, the government proposed six motorway expansion projects to parliament – four of them for the A1. The parliament approved the package, which is expected to cost around CHF5 billion ($5.7 billion).

The Swiss motorways are marked in red. Four of the six expansion projects – marked with the construction site symbol – affect the A1 motorway (in bold). swissinfo.ch

Within three months, 100,000 signatures – twice the number necessary – had been collected against the expansion. The referendum is supported by the Green Party and the Social Democratic Party. The opponents of the projects stress the need to promote sustainable mobility and expand public transport services, rather than extending the motorways. They fear that bigger roads will spawn even more traffic.

If the vote is close, the opinion of the Swiss farmers could be key. A traditionally conservative electorate, they would likely support the expansion. However here they are facing a dilemma, as widening of the roads would inevitably lead to loss of agricultural land.

A land of tenants

Swiss voters will also be deciding on two amendments to tenancy law. As most people in Switzerland do not own their own home, the reforms would affect much of the population. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the majority of households live in rented or cooperative housing. At the end of 2022, this stood at 61%, or 2.2 million households. This is significantly higher than the European average.

The two reforms being put to a vote would place landlords in a better position. The tenants’ association therefore launched referendums against them.

Under the new provisions, landlords would have greater leeway to prevent tenants from subletting their property. They would thus be able to refuse “abusive” subletting, for instance, if an apartment is sublet at too high a price. The proliferation of online platforms has led to a surge in such cases, the parliament and government argue.

The lawmakers also want to ease the conditions under which owners can terminate a lease early if they want to occupy a property themselves.

Yet another vote on health insurance

The fourth issue being put to voters once more concerns health insurance. This was already the subject of a vote in June 2024, when two popular initiatives aimed at reducing premiums were rejected, despite the ever-heavier burden of compulsory health insurance on Swiss households.

Now the focus is on funding of the services provided. Voters will decide on a reform aimed at reducing premiums for insured persons by increasing the volume of outpatient treatment. This is to be achieved by standardising the financing of outpatient and inpatient (that is, with at least one overnight stay in hospital) care.

Under the new provisions, the cantons will have to pay a fixed share of 26.9% of the costs to the insurers. At present, the cantons contribute only to inpatient and not to outpatient treatment. The reform should therefore remove false incentives. Today, for instance, an inpatient surgical procedure must be followed by an overnight stay in hospital, which does not always make sense.

This proposed amendment of the Health Insurance Act is no quick-fix solution. It was approved by parliament in December 2023 after 14 years of work. It is one of the most comprehensive reforms to the 30-year-old act, and could generate cost savings of CHF440 million per year, according to the Federal Office of Public Health.

The bill is being put to a vote because the trade unions requested a referendum on it. They believe that the new financing formula jeopardises the quality of care for older people and puts further pressure on staff in nursing homes, as the cantons will have less say – and private companies more – in determining the services provided.

A minority decides

Not everyone living in Switzerland can vote on November 24. Only Swiss citizens who are over the age of 18 and not under guardianship are eligible to vote on national issues. Those living abroad must register. A total of around 5.5 million people can therefore vote. This is just under two-thirds of the country’s population of around 9 million.

People living in Switzerland who do not have Swiss nationality cannot vote, although they make up about a quarter of the population.

Around half of eligible voters usually turn out to the polls. Over the past ten years, the annual average voter turnout has been between 41% and 57%, according to the statistical office. This means that around 1.5 million votes are usually enough to win a referendum. For votes on constitutional matters and certain international treaties, the majority of cantons must also agree. This is, however, not the case on November 24.

Edited by Samuel Jaberg. Adapted from German by Julia Bassam/gw.