The Formula E circuit isn't welcome back on Zurich's lakeshore after a landmark race three months ago. The move means Swiss banks will miss out on a top-notch perk for potential clients.
Zurich's city council said this week that it isn't inclined to grant a permit to the Formula E racing circuit for 2019, as reported by Swiss daily «Neue Zuercher Zeitung» (in German, behind paywall).
City officials didn't care for unusually high crowds and congestion in residential neighborhoods near to Zurich's lakeshore, where roughly 100,000 onlookers gathered in June to watch Lucas di Grassi win the city's inaugural Formula E race – the first motor race held in Switzerland in 63 years.
Sniffy Welcome
Sponsors like Julius Baer and Liechtenstein's LGT viewed the event as a huge success, mainly for the rare opportunity for publicity and to entertain prospective clients in VIP hospitality areas pit-side.
Zurich's sniffy response to Formula E doesn't boot the racing circuit, led by Spanish businessman Alejandro Agag, out of Switzerland altogether. The Formula E, which is positioning itself as the more environmentally-friendly alternative to Formula 1's gas-guzzling combustion engines, holds a license for racing in Switzerland, not for a specific city.
Back in 2020?
Thus, Agag is looking at alternatives, including Bern, the alpine nation's sleepy (and hilly as well as cobble-stoned) capital; Geneva, which rivals Zurich in finance; or Lugano, which pushed for the 2018 race, but lost out to Zurich.
The city, Switzerland's financial capital and home to UBS and Credit Suisse, said that it would consider hosting the event again in 2020, but wouldn't allow cars to race around the cramped lakeside. The reasons appear political in nature: residents complained of congestion and noise from setting up the event, and a public green space suffered, the newspaper reported.
