Winterthur named the safest large city in Switzerland by new report

A new report released by officials in Winterthur has found that it is the safest large city in Switzerland. Officials noted that despite rising compared to 2022, rates of crime in the second city of Canton Zurich in 2023 remained much lower than in other major centres.

Winterthur remains the safest of the six major Swiss cities

“Winterthur can still call itself the safest city in Switzerland” was the conclusion of the latest Safety Report, released to the public by the local council on July 8. According to their findings, both the number of road accidents and overall rates of crime in Winterthur “remain low compared to other cities.”

According to their data, Swiss police reported 12,8 thefts, violent crimes and property damage per 1.000 people in Winterthur last year. This is far less than in the five other major cities with over 100.000 residents like Basel (30,8), Geneva (24) and Zurich (19,5), and even less than in smaller cities like Biel / Bienne (21,9).

“The goal of the Winterthur city police and the city’s security concept remains to maintain the high level of subjective and objective security in Winterthur,” officials concluded.

Cities in Switzerland continue to grapple with rising crime

Nevertheless, while officials in Winterthur may be toasting their success, the report also noted that rates of various crimes increased in the city last year, though less than in other places in Switzerland - crime rates nationwide rose by 14 percent last year compared to 2022. Rates of serious injury, accidents, property damage, theft (mainly shop and e-bike theft) and bodily harm committed by minors have all risen.

The city police wrote in the report that young people, “marginalised people and addicts in public places” are some of the main groups they wish to target to help address rising crime. "Both the violence protection service and the youth police are taking extensive preventive and repressive measures to counteract this trend," they confirmed.

Finally, with FC Winterthur now a regular in the Super League, having returned to the top flight for the first time in 37 years back in 2022, the emergency services noted they would also be focusing on combating altercations with ultras at football matches and between groups at other public events and demonstrations. For more information about the report, check the official press release.