Column of 50 caravans Police close highway in Valais and prevent onward journey
No way forward: The Valais cantonal police blocked a convoy of caravans on the A9 highway.
Image: Keystone
Blocked caravans on the A9 highway in Lower Valais.
Image: Keystone
No way forward: The Valais cantonal police blocked a convoy of caravans on the A9 highway.
Image: Keystone
Blocked caravans on the A9 highway in Lower Valais.
Image: Keystone
A highway is closed in Switzerland. The reason is dozens of caravans. What's behind it?
15.04.2025, 17:20
15.04.2025, 20:10
dpa
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- On Tuesday, the police prevented the presence of around fifty caravans of travelers from France in the canton of Valais.
- The canton's only official transit site in Martigny is currently fully occupied.
- The A9 highway was blocked for hours.
The Swiss police closed an entire highway in both directions to prevent a convoy of around 50 caravans from continuing their journey. The A9 highway, the most important link across the vacation canton of Valais, was blocked for hours. Detour were set up for other traffic.
The group settles down with their caravans in different countries and regions, without a fixed place of residence. In Switzerland, they are referred to as "travelers".
Negotiations were still underway in the afternoon. There was only one solution for the police, said a spokesperson: the group would have to turn around and drive back. They had previously been parked in the canton of Neuchâtel. The caravans have French license plates.
Unannounced convoy
The A9 runs from the French border west of Geneva via Lausanne, into Valais and there via Sion and Brig as well as the Simplon Pass to Gondo on the Italian border. It is an important link for vacation resorts such as Saas-Fee, Zermatt, Crans-Montana and Leukerbad. The highway was closed at Saint-Maurice before Martigny, south-east of Lake Geneva.
According to the police, the convoy had not announced its arrival as planned. The group had an agreement with the owner of a field in Upper Valais, but the local municipality had refused to rent it. The only designated site for temporary caravan settlements in Valais was already occupied.