Today in Sweden: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday
Hot air balloon crash-lands in Swedish garden, e-scooter accidents on the rise, and busy railway set to shut for a week this summer. Here's the latest news.
No injuries in hot air balloon crash
A hot air balloon crash-landed in a garden in Staffanstorp, a town in southern Sweden, after a controlled landing went wrong.
The balloon was landing when it got swept up by the wind and instead ended up partly on the roof of a house.
Police and emergency services were called to the scene, but there were no injures, reports Expressen.
Swedish vocabulary: a hot air balloon – en luftballong
Replacement buses as busy railway shuts for one week
Travelling by train through Sweden this summer? Make sure you’re prepared for altered routes and replacement buses as several parts of the rail network will be upgraded.
Several construction works (around 10 major ones and 50 smaller ones, according to Swedish newswire TT) will take place on the 350-kilometre line between Norrköping and Hässleholm, a line trafficked by trains travelling between the big cities of Stockholm and Malmö.
The week starting June 12th, no trains will be running on the route, but they will be replaced by buses and some trains will take a slightly different route to their destination.
Swedish vocabulary: a train – ett tåg
E-scooter accidents on the rise in Sweden
Last year, 3,334 people were injured in accidents involving electric scooters, a 35-percent increase in one year, according to the Swedish Transport Agency. Four of the accidents were fatal.
Most of the accidents involve young people and happen in cities. Around three quarters involve one person losing control of the electric scooter – for example because they lose their balance or due to slippery roads – rather than crashes with other road users.
Swedish vocabulary: an electric scooter – en elsparkcykel
Shortage of 8,100 bus drivers in Sweden
The bus industry is struggling to recruit bus drivers, needing to fill a shortage of 8,100 drivers in the next three years, according to a new report by industry organisation Transportföretagen. There’s also a shortage of 500 bus mechanics.
The need to recruit more drivers is a knock-on effect of the Covid pandemic, which had a negative impact on the transport industry and led to many drivers leaving their job.
If the recruitment drive is unsuccessful, bus routes may be cancelled in the future.
Swedish vocabulary: a bus driver – en bussförare
Sweden defies gloomy forecasts as economy beats expectations
Despite still fighting high inflation and interest rates, the Swedish economy grew more than expected in the first quarter of the year.
The top Nordic economy expanded by 0.6 percent in the first three months of the year, avoiding a technical recession following a 0.2 percent contraction in the fourth quarter of 2022.
"The upturn is mainly explained by an increase in inventories and by a strong growth in the export of goods," Statistics Sweden said in a statement.
Swedish vocabulary: a quarter – ett kvartal
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No injuries in hot air balloon crash
A hot air balloon crash-landed in a garden in Staffanstorp, a town in southern Sweden, after a controlled landing went wrong.
The balloon was landing when it got swept up by the wind and instead ended up partly on the roof of a house.
Police and emergency services were called to the scene, but there were no injures, reports Expressen.
Swedish vocabulary: a hot air balloon – en luftballong
Replacement buses as busy railway shuts for one week
Travelling by train through Sweden this summer? Make sure you’re prepared for altered routes and replacement buses as several parts of the rail network will be upgraded.
Several construction works (around 10 major ones and 50 smaller ones, according to Swedish newswire TT) will take place on the 350-kilometre line between Norrköping and Hässleholm, a line trafficked by trains travelling between the big cities of Stockholm and Malmö.
The week starting June 12th, no trains will be running on the route, but they will be replaced by buses and some trains will take a slightly different route to their destination.
Swedish vocabulary: a train – ett tåg
E-scooter accidents on the rise in Sweden
Last year, 3,334 people were injured in accidents involving electric scooters, a 35-percent increase in one year, according to the Swedish Transport Agency. Four of the accidents were fatal.
Most of the accidents involve young people and happen in cities. Around three quarters involve one person losing control of the electric scooter – for example because they lose their balance or due to slippery roads – rather than crashes with other road users.
Swedish vocabulary: an electric scooter – en elsparkcykel
Shortage of 8,100 bus drivers in Sweden
The bus industry is struggling to recruit bus drivers, needing to fill a shortage of 8,100 drivers in the next three years, according to a new report by industry organisation Transportföretagen. There’s also a shortage of 500 bus mechanics.
The need to recruit more drivers is a knock-on effect of the Covid pandemic, which had a negative impact on the transport industry and led to many drivers leaving their job.
If the recruitment drive is unsuccessful, bus routes may be cancelled in the future.
Swedish vocabulary: a bus driver – en bussförare
Sweden defies gloomy forecasts as economy beats expectations
Despite still fighting high inflation and interest rates, the Swedish economy grew more than expected in the first quarter of the year.
The top Nordic economy expanded by 0.6 percent in the first three months of the year, avoiding a technical recession following a 0.2 percent contraction in the fourth quarter of 2022.
"The upturn is mainly explained by an increase in inventories and by a strong growth in the export of goods," Statistics Sweden said in a statement.
Swedish vocabulary: a quarter – ett kvartal
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