A nearly 500 meters bridge for hikers built as the longest hanging pedestrian bridge in the world opened near the Swiss town of Zermatt. The 494 meters long and 65 centimeters wide bridge named the Europe Bridge, hangs up to 85 meters above Grabengufer ravine. It replaces a previous bridge that had been damaged by rock falls. The Zermatt Tourist Board says it is the world’s longest, although a 405 meter bridge in Reutte in Austria hangs 110 meters higher above the ground. Built by local company swissrope/Lauber Seilbahnen during 10 weeks, the bridge completes a section of the Europaweg trail, a high-altitude walking route offering panoramas of some of Switzerland’s highest peaks, including the Dom (4,545m) and the Matterhorn. The new bridge, whose cables weigh about eight tones, is equipped with a system to prevent it from swinging, the Zermatt Tourist Board said.

In Zurich, a 120-year-old, 6200 tons, The Machine Factory Oerlikon building relocated by 60 meters, reported The Telegraph. The building, which was built in 1889, was facing demolition in 2010 due to the expansion of nearby railway lines but it was saved when the Swiss real estate company, Swiss Prime Site, decided to buy it. The physical work freeing the foundations of the old factory and putting it on rolling tracks started last summer. The operation to translocate the 6200 tonne former factory began on may 22 with two hydraulic pressers, 500 rollers and six sections of railway line being utilized to help push the building roughly 60 meters to the west at speeds of around 3-5 meters per hour. The journey is expected to take two days. According to the company paying for the operation, the project to move the 80 meter long and 12 meter wide building is the largest Switzerland and Europe has ever seen. So far SPS have spent roughly US$ 12.7 million so far on the operation in order to preserve the Zurich landmark.

Construction costs in Switzerland are more than 25 percent higher than anywhere else in the world, according to the annual International Construction Cost Comparison Report released by asset consultancy EC Harris. The annual report, which benchmarks the construction costs in 55 countries across the globe using UK prices as a baseline, found that Europe continues to be the most expensive continent in which to build, providing eight of the top 10 entrants in the final league table. According to the report, the price of construction in Switzerland is 71 percent higher than in the UK, where costs are now more than 20 percent below their peak price in mid-2008. Overall, the UK is now tied with Bahrain as the 12th most expensive place in the world to build, up four places from 2010 where it finished in 16th place. Denmark retained its position as the second most expensive place to build, closely followed by its Scandinavian neighbour Sweden. Australia and Canada were the only non-European markets to make it into the top 10 although Bahrain just missed out, finishing in 12th place overall alongside the UK. India and Sri Lanka were tied as the cheapest countries in which to build with construction costs estimated to be 72 percent cheaper than the UK baseline. Mathew Riley, head of Cost and Commercial at EC Harris, said, that it was no surprise to see that Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries are the most expensive places to build as high labour costs and the need to import materials are all combining to drive prices up. The report also underlines the need for Western economies to start planning ahead now to guarantee access to the raw materials needed for future construction projects. During the economic downturn global supply chains have shifted their focus to meeting the demands of economies like China and India and are likely to continue to prioritize them over the coming years as they offer the greatest revenue growth opportunities.