Obersee agglomeration
The association "Agglo Obersee" (short for agglomeration Obersee) consists of 16 communities around the upper Lake Zurich as well as the three cantons of St. Gallen , Schwyz and Zurich . The communities of Agglo Obersee are located in the metropolitan area of Zurich . The area of the Agglo Obersee covers around 240 square kilometers with 150,000 inhabitants and 70,000 employees.
The Agglo Obersee association
Origin and members
The origin of the Agglo Obersee association was a model project with four communities. The project sponsors were made up of representatives from the lead cantons of St. Gallen and the cantons of Schwyz and Zurich, as well as the participating municipalities of Freienbach , Rapperswil SG , Jona SG and Rüti ZH . The focus of the model project was the traffic and settlement axis across the sea dam from Rapperswil SG to Pfäffikon ZH. The project was completed in August 2004 and the first generation agglomeration program was subsequently developed.
In spring 2007, seven more municipalities were included in the planning. In September 2007, the “Obersee agglomeration program” was presented to the responsible government councils of the cantons of Zurich ( Rita Fuhrer ), St. Gallen ( Willi Haag ) and Schwyz ( Lorenz Bösch ). The proposal by the Canton of Zurich to found an association to sponsor the agglomeration program - analogous to the “Schaffhausen Plus” agglomeration program in the canton of Schaffhausen - was well received.
On July 2, 2009, the Agglo Obersee association was founded. Founding members were four St. Gallen municipalities ( Eschenbach , Rapperswil-Jona , Schmerikon , Uznach ), eight Schwyz municipalities ( Altendorf , Feusisberg , Freienbach , Lachen , Wollerau ) and four Zurich municipalities ( Bubikon , Dürnten , Richterswil , Rüti ) and the cantons of St Gallen , Schwyz and Zurich . In 2017, the three Schwyz communities Wangen , Tuggen and Schübelbach were added. The office of Agglo Obersee is located in the premises of the Rapperswil University of Applied Sciences (HSR).
Goals of the association
The purpose of the association is increased cooperation, the joint development of future prospects and their implementation for the agglomeration as well as the efficient fulfillment of public tasks. In addition, the association is responsible for the agglomeration programs 1st to 3rd generation: It develops agglomeration programs, prepares their implementation and promotes constant further development.
Obersee agglomeration programs
Federal agglomeration policy
In December 2001, the Federal Council announced in its report on “Federal Agglomeration Policy” the prospect of co-financing transport infrastructures in cities and agglomerations in the future. This was linked to the imperative to combine the areas of traffic and settlement during planning, in particular so as not to further intensify the increasing urban sprawl in the Central Plateau. In June 2004 the Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE) published the test criteria according to which the agglomeration programs are to be assessed.
With the Infrastructure Fund Act (IFG), which came into force on January 1st, 2008, the financing of the agglomeration programs was regulated. The first agglomeration programs were submitted in 2007, the second generation followed in 2012 and the third generation in 2016. On February 12, 2017, the Swiss voters accepted the proposal to create a National Road and Agglomeration Fund (NAF). This secures the long-term financing of the agglomeration programs.
1st generation agglomeration program
The Obersee agglomeration program was submitted to the federal government in 2007 by the canton of St. Gallen. The focus was on settlement development in coordination with traffic. With the first agglomeration program, key ideas for the future development of the entire region were formulated for the first time. The image of the «pearl necklace» postulated a development along the public transport spine and an upgrading of these axes. The center relief and the regional rail public transport strategy were identified as key infrastructural projects.
An important goal of the Agglo Obersee is to set up a light rail system as soon as it already exists in Zug ( Stadtbahn Zug ) or in the Glatttal ( Glattalbahn ). With the Obersee urban railway , the two public transport offices of the cantons of St. Gallen and Schwyz have developed a concept that creates a direct connection between the northern and southern banks of the Obersee . The S-Bahn in the canton of St. Gallen and the public transport offer in the canton of Schwyz thus become a coherent overall system on the Obersee.
2nd generation agglomeration program
In the 2nd generation agglomeration program, Agglo Obersee further developed the statements from the first agglomeration program in 2012. In four sub-projects, the analyzes were supplemented, the main ideas sharpened, clear sub-strategies formulated and new measures defined. The topic of bicycle traffic was dealt with in a targeted manner and, in addition to settlement and traffic, the landscape was also considered. The key infrastructural projects were the traffic optimizations Höfe, Lachen, Rapperswil-Jona, Uznach-Schmerikon and Saturdayern (Richterswil) as well as the measures for the Obersee tram.
3rd generation agglomeration program
The Agglomeration Obersee submitted the 3rd generation agglomeration program to the federal government for review at the end of 2016. It is planned that the programs will be evaluated by the federal government in 2017 and that federal funds will be released from 2019.
The Agglo Obersee has specifically deepened the following topics in the third program: Obersee tram, traffic safety, pedestrian traffic and settlement. Key projects are the upgrading of the through-roads and street space designs in Freienbach, Schmerikon, Rapperswil-Jona, Rüti and Lachen. These are intended to make staying in the town centers more attractive and to optimize pedestrian and bicycle traffic in the settlement area.
Individual evidence
- ^ Association Agglo Obersee founded - linth24.ch. Retrieved November 24, 2017 .
- ^ The agglomeration program transport and settlement: Priorities of the federal government | The national economy. Accessed November 24, 2017 (German).
- ^ Federal Department for the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communication DETEC: DETEC - coordination with NAF. Retrieved November 24, 2017 .
- ↑ 3rd generation agglomeration program by bike courier to Bern - linth24.ch. Retrieved November 24, 2017 .
- ↑ Federal Office for Spatial Development ARE: Agglomeration programs for traffic and settlement. Retrieved November 24, 2017 .