Lyss
Encyclopedia
Lyss is a municipality
in the Seeland administrative district
in the canton
of Bern in Switzerland
. On 1 January 2011, the former municipality of Busswil bei Büren
was merged with Lyss.
. West of this valley lie Lake Neuchâtel
and Lake Biel
, and beyond that the Jura mountains
.
The valley is flat and was subject to flooding until 1878, when a major hydraulic engineering project changed the courses of the Aare and the Zihl and lowered the level of the three lakes by 2.5 meters. In addition, water from the Aare, the Broye
, the Zihl, and the Schüss
was diverted into the Nidau-Büren Canal and the Hagneck Canal.
Lyss has an area, , of 11.78 km² (4.5 sq mi). Of this area, 3.56 km² (1.4 sq mi) or 30.2% is used for agricultural purposes, while 3.98 km² (1.5 sq mi) or 33.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 4.19 km² (1.6 sq mi) or 35.6% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.05 km² (12.4 acre) or 0.4% is either rivers or lakes.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 6.4% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 14.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 9.6%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.5% of the area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 3.1%. 32.9% of the total land area is heavily forested. Of the agricultural land, 21.5% is used for growing crops and 7.2% is pastures, while 1.5% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.
to Solothurn
was built through Lyss. This made the town a rail hub.
The historic population of Lyss is given in the following table:
In the 2007 election the most popular party was SVP
which received 28.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS
(23.1%), the FDP
(20.5%) and the CSP
(9.2%).
The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.8% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 63.9% and the seniors (over 64 years old) make up 12.3%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Lyss about 71.2% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule
).
Lyss has an unemployment rate of 1.65%. , there were 173 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 23 businesses involved in this agricultural sector. 2717 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 126 businesses in this manufacturing sector. 3145 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 451 businesses in the services sector.
Municipalities of Switzerland
Communes , also known as municipalities, are the smallest government division in Switzerland, numbering 2,596 . While many have a population of a few hundred citizens, the largest cities such as Zürich or Geneva also have the legal status of municipalities...
in the Seeland administrative district
Seeland (administrative district)
Seeland District in the Canton of Bern was created on 1 January 2010. It is part of the Seeland administrative region. It contains 46 municipalities with an area of and a population of 67,209....
in the canton
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
of Bern in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. On 1 January 2011, the former municipality of Busswil bei Büren
Busswil bei Büren
Busswil bei Büren is a former municipality in the Seeland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. On 1 January 2011 it was merged with the municipality of Lyss.- Geography :...
was merged with Lyss.
Geography
Lyss lies on the eastern edge of a wide valley that extends southwest to Lake MurtenLake Murten
Lake Morat is a lake located in the cantons of Fribourg and Vaud in the west of Switzerland. It is named after the small town of Murten/Morat on its southern shore...
. West of this valley lie Lake Neuchâtel
Lake Neuchâtel
Lake Neuchâtel is a lake in Romandy, Switzerland . The lake lies mainly in the canton of Neuchâtel, but is also shared by the cantons of Vaud, of Fribourg, and of Bern....
and Lake Biel
Lake Biel
Lake Biel or Lake Bienne is a lake in the west of Switzerland. Together with Lake Morat and Lake Neuchâtel, it is one of the three large lakes in the Jura region of Switzerland. It lies approximately at , at the language boundary between German & French speaking areas.The lake is 15 km long and up...
, and beyond that the Jura mountains
Jura mountains
The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...
.
The valley is flat and was subject to flooding until 1878, when a major hydraulic engineering project changed the courses of the Aare and the Zihl and lowered the level of the three lakes by 2.5 meters. In addition, water from the Aare, the Broye
Broye
The Broye is a 68 km long river, in the cantons of Fribourg and Vaud, in Switzerland. It has a watershed area of 850 km².-Presentation:...
, the Zihl, and the Schüss
Schuss
In alpine skiing, a schuss or schussboom is a straight downhill run at high speed, contrasting with a slalom, mogul, or ski jumping.Schuss was also the unofficial mascot of the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France, featuring a cartoon character wearing skis. Ever since then, every Olympic Games...
was diverted into the Nidau-Büren Canal and the Hagneck Canal.
Lyss has an area, , of 11.78 km² (4.5 sq mi). Of this area, 3.56 km² (1.4 sq mi) or 30.2% is used for agricultural purposes, while 3.98 km² (1.5 sq mi) or 33.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 4.19 km² (1.6 sq mi) or 35.6% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.05 km² (12.4 acre) or 0.4% is either rivers or lakes.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 6.4% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 14.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 9.6%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.5% of the area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 3.1%. 32.9% of the total land area is heavily forested. Of the agricultural land, 21.5% is used for growing crops and 7.2% is pastures, while 1.5% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.
History
Lyss was a sleepy agricultural village until the late 19th century, when the arrival of the railroad from Bern to Biel in 1864 and the restructuring of the watershed led to extensive population growth. In 1876, another railway line from LausanneLausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
to Solothurn
Solothurn
The city of Solothurn is the capital of the Canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. The city also comprises the only municipality of the district of the same name.-Pre-roman settlement:...
was built through Lyss. This made the town a rail hub.
Demographics
Lyss has a population (as of ) of . , 15.1% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 9.4%. Most of the population speaks German (85.1%), with Italian being second most common ( 3.3%) and Spanish being third ( 2.5%).The historic population of Lyss is given in the following table:
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1850 | |
| 1900 | |
| 1920 | |
| 1946 | |
| 2004 |
In the 2007 election the most popular party was SVP
Swiss People's Party
The Swiss People's Party , also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre , is a conservative political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Toni Brunner, but spearheaded by Christoph Blocher, the party is the largest party in the Federal Assembly, with 58 members of the National Council and 6 of...
which received 28.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(23.1%), the FDP
Free Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Free Democratic Party was a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It was one of the major parties in Switzerland until its merger with the smaller classical liberal Liberal Party, to form FDP.The Liberals on 1 January 2009....
(20.5%) and the CSP
Christian Social Party (Switzerland)
The Christian Social Party is a political party in Switzerland. The CSP is more social democratic than the CVP. With the moderate Christian left as its background, the CSP commits itself to social democratic and environmentalist political solutions...
(9.2%).
The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.8% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 63.9% and the seniors (over 64 years old) make up 12.3%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Lyss about 71.2% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule
Fachhochschule
A Fachhochschule or University of Applied Sciences is a German type of tertiary education institution, sometimes specialized in certain topical areas . Fachhochschulen were founded in Germany and later adopted by Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Greece...
).
Lyss has an unemployment rate of 1.65%. , there were 173 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 23 businesses involved in this agricultural sector. 2717 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 126 businesses in this manufacturing sector. 3145 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 451 businesses in the services sector.