Swiss city takes tougher measures in fight against littering

Bus stops are often misused as waste disposal sites. Campaigns have failed to solve the problem. It is a daily nuisance at bus stops in the Swiss city of Winterthur: rubbish bins overflow again and again. Most of the litter comes from private households. According to the city, private household rubbish accounts for more than half of the waste volume at individual bus stops. Therefore in October the city of Winterthur launched a campaign against illegal waste disposal. With the slogan "Household rubbish is a private matter", those responsible hoped that the situation would improve. It has indeed become a little cleaner around the bins, says Simon Amann from the cleanliness working group at the city of Winterthur. But Amann doesn't want to talk about a "game changer". "We have to be honest about that." Instead of providing information and raising awareness, the city of Winterthur now wants to take further measures to combat illegal waste disposal. The environmental police will carry ...