Today in Sweden: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday
Swedish rail company fined millions over sorry state of sleeper trains, authorities battle to contain swine fever outbreak, and how much do municipalities spend on cleaning up litter? Here's the latest news.
Swedish rail company fined millions over sleeper trains
Train operators SJ and Norwegian-owned Vy have been fined over 3 million kronor by the Swedish Transport Administration since December 2020 for delays or lack of comfort on their sleeper trains to northern Scandinavia, including the Gothenburg-Åre and Stockholm-Narvik lines.
SJ was recently fined over half a million for the first quarter of 2023, reports Dagens Nyheter, of which a 390,000 kronor fine was handed out for toilets and showers not working on the trains.
The lack of maintenance is due to SJ’s subcontractor experiencing a staffing shortage, according to SJ press spokesperson Tobbe Lundell, who also told DN that they are recruiting more staff.
Swedish vocabulary: a train – ett tåg
Swedish krona plummets to record low against the euro
Sweden’s currency fell to a new historic low on Monday, with one euro costing 12 kronor during early-afternoon trading.
That’s a new low, breaking the previous record of 11.96 kronor on August 21st.
The krona has lost around seven percent of its value against the euro so far this year – or 40 percent in the past decade – giving new fuel to the debate on whether or not Sweden should join the euro.
The krona recovered slightly over the course of the day. At around 6pm one euro cost 11.93 kronor.
Swedish vocabulary: a new historic low – en ny historisk lägstanivå
34 wild boars confirmed dead in swine fever in Sweden
A total of 34 wild boars have now been confirmed dead in swine fever, after another 14 cases were registered over the weekend, according to Sweden’s National Veterinary Institute (SVA).
Around 400 hunters joined a massive search for dead wild boar in the woods around Fagersta, central Sweden, where authorities blocked access to forest and wildlife areas in a 1,000-kilometre zone after the virus was discovered earlier this month. All new infections have so far been found in that area.
Swine fever, which is not the same as classical swine flu and is not harmful to humans, causes high mortality to pigs – including domestic pigs, although no cases in domestic pigs have yet been discovered in Sweden, with farmers in the infected zone being ordered to put their pigs to mass slaughter – and can take years to eradicate. It can spread from pig to pig, but also via ticks.
Swedish vocabulary: dead – död
Swedish authorities pick up hefty littering bill
Swedish municipalities spent almost 430 million kronor last year cleaning up littering, according to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvårdsverket).
This is the first time it produces a report of local authorities’ cleaning bills, based on 227 out of 290 councils submitting reports.
The report will form the basis of a new law, which orders producers of single-use products such as tobacco products, balloons and wet wipes, to pay littering fees. The fees are meant to cover the municipalities’ costs for cleaning up the most common sources of litter.
Swedish vocabulary: littering – nedskräpning
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Swedish rail company fined millions over sleeper trains
Train operators SJ and Norwegian-owned Vy have been fined over 3 million kronor by the Swedish Transport Administration since December 2020 for delays or lack of comfort on their sleeper trains to northern Scandinavia, including the Gothenburg-Åre and Stockholm-Narvik lines.
SJ was recently fined over half a million for the first quarter of 2023, reports Dagens Nyheter, of which a 390,000 kronor fine was handed out for toilets and showers not working on the trains.
The lack of maintenance is due to SJ’s subcontractor experiencing a staffing shortage, according to SJ press spokesperson Tobbe Lundell, who also told DN that they are recruiting more staff.
Swedish vocabulary: a train – ett tåg
Swedish krona plummets to record low against the euro
Sweden’s currency fell to a new historic low on Monday, with one euro costing 12 kronor during early-afternoon trading.
That’s a new low, breaking the previous record of 11.96 kronor on August 21st.
The krona has lost around seven percent of its value against the euro so far this year – or 40 percent in the past decade – giving new fuel to the debate on whether or not Sweden should join the euro.
The krona recovered slightly over the course of the day. At around 6pm one euro cost 11.93 kronor.
Swedish vocabulary: a new historic low – en ny historisk lägstanivå
34 wild boars confirmed dead in swine fever in Sweden
A total of 34 wild boars have now been confirmed dead in swine fever, after another 14 cases were registered over the weekend, according to Sweden’s National Veterinary Institute (SVA).
Around 400 hunters joined a massive search for dead wild boar in the woods around Fagersta, central Sweden, where authorities blocked access to forest and wildlife areas in a 1,000-kilometre zone after the virus was discovered earlier this month. All new infections have so far been found in that area.
Swine fever, which is not the same as classical swine flu and is not harmful to humans, causes high mortality to pigs – including domestic pigs, although no cases in domestic pigs have yet been discovered in Sweden, with farmers in the infected zone being ordered to put their pigs to mass slaughter – and can take years to eradicate. It can spread from pig to pig, but also via ticks.
Swedish vocabulary: dead – död
Swedish authorities pick up hefty littering bill
Swedish municipalities spent almost 430 million kronor last year cleaning up littering, according to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvårdsverket).
This is the first time it produces a report of local authorities’ cleaning bills, based on 227 out of 290 councils submitting reports.
The report will form the basis of a new law, which orders producers of single-use products such as tobacco products, balloons and wet wipes, to pay littering fees. The fees are meant to cover the municipalities’ costs for cleaning up the most common sources of litter.
Swedish vocabulary: littering – nedskräpning
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