Bus with 1.6 tonnes of snow on roof pulled over in Switzerland
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Police in the Swiss canton of Solothurn stopped the bus after it was seen travelling with a layer of snow more than 40cm thick on the roof.
PHOTO: TWITTER/@KAPOSOLOTHURN
Follow topic:
GENEVA (AFP) - Swiss police said Sunday (Feb 4) they had stopped a Swedish coach due to safety concerns after it was spotted driving on a major highway with 1.6 tonnes of snow piled on the roof.
Police in the north-western canton of Solothurn said they had stopped the bus on Saturday afternoon near Oensingen, as it travelled on the main A1 highway towards Zurich.
"A control of the Swedish coach revealed that the layer of snow (on the roof) was more than 40 centimetres thick and weighed over 1,600 kilos," the regional police said in a statement.
Driving with so much snow on the roof poses a "significant risk", police warned, pointing out that blocks of snow and ice can easily detach while driving and hit other motorists.
The coach driver was reported for recklessness and was required to remove the snow before continuing the journey, the statement said.
Other parts of Europe also reported heavy snowfall.
In Moscow, one person was killed on Sunday after the city experienced its heaviest day of snowfall since records began, with more than half its average monthly snowfall falling in the space of 24 hours.
