Legal Weed Pilot Concludes; Lights Out In Basel Land; New Tram Construction Planned For Steinenberg

News For 26 March 2024

Starting in January 2023, Basel Stadt started a pilot program for legal marijuana consumption. Participants needed to apply through cantonal authorities, and once accepted into the study, 375 people were able to go to a pharmacy to purchase their drugs.  Marc Walter, the head of the study, officially called "weed care", said that the first year of the study found no increase in consumption or maladjusted behavior in those participating relative to those that continued to buy their marijuana illegally.  94% of participants indicated that they were very satisfied with having a licensed pharmacy as the source of their weed.

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On Saturday night at 7:00pm, residents of Basel Land found themselves in the dark when a power outage hit the canton.  It seems a power substation in Therwil was the culprit in the outage which affected over 17,000 customers in the communities of Biel Benken, Bottmingen, Oberwil, Therwil, and parts of France bordering Switzerland.  Primeo Energy, operator of the substation apologized after restoring the power nearly an hour after the outage began. 

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The BVB, operator of Basel's tram system, announced that construction will begin at Steinenberg on the number 6 tram line between Barfusserplatz and the Tinguely fountain.  It seems the rails along the curve in the tracks are worn out and need replacement.  Construction will begin April 2 and last until April 28th, during which extensive tram diversions and time-table adjustments will be in effect.