Wädenswil

Wädenswil
Country Switzerland Canton Zurich District Horgen 47°14′N 8°40′E / 47.233°N 8.667°E / 47.233; 8.667Coordinates: 47°14′N 8°40′E / 47.233°N 8.667°E / 47.233; 8.667
Population	20,907 (Dec 2012)[1]
- Density	1,204 /km2 (3,117 /sq mi)
Area	17.39 km2 (6.71 sq mi)[2]
Elevation	407 m (1,335 ft)
Postal code	8820
SFOS number	0142
Surrounded by	Au, Zurich, Hirzel, Horgen, Männedorf, Meilen, Richterswil, Schönenberg, Stäfa, Uetikon am See
Website	www.waedenswil.ch SFSO statistics
Wädenswil
Location of Wädenswil

Wädenswil, locally often called Wädi or Wädischwil, is a municipality in the district of Horgen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. The population (as of 2007) was about 19,500.^[3]

Geography

Wädenswil as seen from Lake Zürich (June 2009)

Wädenswil and Lake Zurich (1794)

Wädenswil has an area of 17.4 km² (6.7 sq mi). Of this area, 59.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 9.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 29.8% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (1.3%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).^[4] In 1996 housing and buildings made up 20.8% of the total area, while transportation infrastructure made up the rest (9%).^[5] Of the total unproductive area, water (streams and lakes) made up 0.4% of the area. As of 2007 24.5% of the total municipal area was undergoing some type of construction.^[5]

Demographics

Wädenswil has a population (as of 31 December 2012) of 20,907.^[1] As of 2007, 20.5% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. As of 2008 the gender distribution of the population was 48.6% male and 51.4% female. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 2.1%. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (85.0%), with Italian being second most common ( 3.9%) and Serbo-Croatian being third ( 1.9%).

In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 35.2% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (17.6%), the FDP (13%) and the CSP (11.3%).

The age distribution of the population (as of 2000) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 22% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 64.2% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 13.9%. In Wädenswil about 76.7% of the population (between age 25–64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule). There are 8796 households in Wädenswil.^[5]

Wädenswil has an unemployment rate of 2.94%. As of 2005, there were 268 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 84 businesses involved in this sector. 2020 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 195 businesses in this sector. 5169 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 725 businesses in this sector.^[4] As of 2007 44.8% of the working population were employed full-time, and 55.2% were employed part-time.^[5]

As of 2008 there were 6128 Catholics and 7507 Protestants in Wädenswil. In the 2000 census, religion was broken down into several smaller categories. From the census, 43.5% were some type of Protestant, with 40.5% belonging to the Swiss Reformed Church and 3% belonging to other Protestant churches. 32.2% of the population were Catholic. Of the rest of the population, 5% were Muslim, 7.5% belonged to another religion (not listed), 4% did not give a religion, and 11.9% were atheist or agnostic.^[5]

World heritage site

The prehistoric settlement at Vorder Au is part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps a UNESCO World Heritage Site.^[6]

Transportation

Motor ship Glärnisch serving as Restaurant at Wädenswil harbour

The municipality is located on the A3 motorway.

Wädenswil railway station is served by Zurich S-Bahn services S2 and S8 on the lakeside line to Zurich, and is the terminus of the S13 service to Einsiedeln. It is also served by an hourly long distance service, generally an InterRegio service between Basel and Chur, but sometimes a EuroCity between Hamburg or Brussels and Chur. It is a 29-minute ride from Zürich Hauptbahnhof by the S8.^[7]

The Zimmerberg bus line (Zimmerbergbus), provided by the Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn (SZU), connects the Zimmerberg region and parts of the Sihl valley.

Wädenswil is a stop of the Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft. That company's motor ship Wädenswil is named after the town.

Weather

Between 1961 and 1990 Wädenswil had an average of 141.6 days of rain per year and on average received 1,353 mm (53.3 in) of precipitation. The wettest month was August during which time Wädenswil received an average of 157 mm (6.2 in) of precipitation. During the wettest month, there was precipitation for an average of 13.3 days. The month with the most precipitation days was May, with an average of 13.7 days.^[8]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wädenswil.

• Official website (German)

References

v t e Municipalities in the district of Horgen, Switzerland Adliswil Au, Zurich Hirzel Horgen Hütten Kilchberg Langnau am Albis Oberrieden Richterswil Rüschlikon Sihlbrugg Dorf Schönenberg Thalwil Wädenswil Canton of Zürich Districts of Canton Zürich Municipalities of the canton of Zurich

v t e Lake Zurich (Zürichsee) Switzerland Canton of Zürich Horgen Meilen Zürich Canton of St. Gallen See-Gaster Canton of Schwyz Höfe March Settlements Altendorf Au Bäch Bollingen Erlenbach Feldbach Feldmeilen Freienbach Herrliberg Horgen Hurden Jona Kehlhof Kempraten Kilchberg Küsnacht Lachen Männedorf Meilen Nuolen Oberrieden Pfäffikon Rapperswil Richterswil Rüschlikon Schmerikon Stäfa Thalwil Uerikon Uetikon am See Wädenswil Zollikon Zürich Islands Au peninsula Lützelau Ufenau Rivers Jona Limmat Linth Valleys Limmattal Sihltal Mountains Adlisberg Etzel Pfannenstiel Uetliberg Zimmerberg Zürichberg Landmarks Albis Felsenegg Seedamm Transportation Horgen–Meilen ferry Lake Zurich left-bank railway Lake Zurich right-bank railway Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft (ZSG)