I've noticed a number of people merrily wheeling shopping trolleys from e.g. Co-op, Migros, etc. along the streets - clearly as a means of getting their purchases home. Is this just some kind of weird local thing (I'm in a very multinational neighbourhood of Basel) or is it common & acceptable behaviour in Switzerland? I'm scared to try to do this, in case it's not really allowed and I get arrested. I'm also reluctant to ask in a shop since (a) I don't speak enough German and (b) it might be something that isn't allowed but to which a blind eye is turned.

In the UK, I'm sure the supermarkets 'fix' their trolleys so they'll not wheel if they leave the car park. That's entirely sensible since the trolleys would otherwise be chucked in a canal.

I've been perservering with my 'granny-style' shopping trolley and a bungee cord but mostly I just half-break my arm by getting ambitious with large boxed items.

Well I don't know exactly what the rules and regulations are here. I have on many occasions wheeled my trolley home simply because it makes sense. I have neither been ridiculed to my face or arrested on bringing the trolley back.

In my opinion I'd rather have a back thats pain free than break it in order to escape ridicule from the locals.

I suppose it's all down to personal choice.

^^Sounds sensible to me. I'm going to be brave and bring one home when I get around to my picking up my last few 'big' items. They're the ones where you pay a deposit so I guess I could argue I'd 'rented' it?

Coming from the UK, my impression is that it a generally selfish thing do, since most people who do it just leave the used trolleys at the end of their street.

But it is no surprise it happens... what with carrier bags getting smaller. I had to use about 10 of the tiny things the other day, in some local coop. And that was only for a single basket!

I think they're making the (free) bags smaller and flimsier to encourage you to use your own or buy a paper bag which you can reuse. I've read today in 20 Minutes that Migros are trialling in Geneva handing out those flimsy plastic bags upon request only.

If I lived close enough to shops to push a trolley home, I'd get one of those old lady shopping carts on wheels that you can now put funky covers on. In fact, every city needs a shop that sells funky shopping cart covers.

Darren, why don't you buy a sturdy hessian bag or two to put all your shopping in, and save the bags for emergency shopping visits? Actually, you can now buy pocket-sized bags like these:

It's only selfish if you dump the trolley. You only have to manage umpteen hand cutting plastic bags if you don't use your noodle and equip yourself with an easy carry recyclable bag.

oldhand? if you wanted to advertise yerself, just say so!

I've also seen lots of people doing this and boy what a good idea than trying to look cool red-faced with 9 toilet rolls under your arm and four migros bags attached to various positions on your body to balance.. In future it will be me pushing the trolley home with the bag on my head....

Hehe, not enough nostril hair to be entirely convincing.

But good show.







Sorry forgot to quote Swissotters post.

Unfortunately I'm not that organised to pre-plan my random stumbles into coops. Just found the big one today, in sincity.... still no hummus there. At least the carries bags are of a decent size (which I checked first, before stocking up on an array of Swiss chocolates). I do reuse carrier bags though, to put my waste in. Although, I understand I need to by *special* ones in order to get the waste men to collect them.

Darren if you read the appropriate threads you'll be as sound as a pound finding out all the nitty gritty.

Sound as a pound

It's not okay to take them out of the shop. Imagine how many additional carts the shops would have to buy if a bigger fraction of them is missing for a day or two.

True, nobody is stopped if he takes a cart out of the shop, but there are some more subtle tries to stop customers from doing this. The coin-operated lock. And shopping malls with underground parking have revolving doors, you can't comfortably roll a cart through them.

Migros states (PDF) that per year, 4500 of their shopping carts get stolen or vandalised. That's about 3% of their carts. A replacement costs 170-280 Francs, so depending on the calculation, they could lose more than a million Francs per year because of the shopping carts.

I'm not advocating that people take the carts miles away. I only live across the road from my nearest Migros so never use a car for shopping. For that spontaneous bag of earth and plants or numerous 6 packs of one and a half liter mineral I'll cross the road with it. Happens maybe twice a year.

You have just reminded of something that happened when I was buying some books in waterstones on Oxford St in London at the weekend:

Right on treehugger guy behind counter:
"Would you like a bag with that Sir ?"
"Errr, yeah, please."
"We have these canvas bags thta you can reuse for 2.99 or we have these petrochemical bags that are destroying the planet..?"
"...me thinks... I will have a petrochemical bag please, or even two."
"Well make sure you reuse it or recycle it as it destroying the world."
"Just sell me the ****ing books or I am walking out."

I don't know whether he took the don't-preach-to-customers hint or not. Probably not.

dave

i live about 5 minutes away from my local, coop denner migros.
What ive started doing is on the way from work, grab a trolly, buy all the large/ heavy awkward items (beer, water, wine) and then trolly on home, pick up my reusable bag, return with trolly and buy smaller items.

Ive only adopted this method after trying to carry 2 bags, and a crate of beer home on a really hot day...
So.
Take the trolly as long as you return it.


(what we need now, i s a foldable trolly that fits in a pocket now thats an invention someone can make millions with!)

The bags: they're not free...

You are so right Uncle Max. Imagine if you will two adults and a child with 300 chf of food shopping going through the till and nobody packing it into free carrier bags! That described our first adventure in Zugerland, apart from being very disappointed that Migros seemed to sell only M brand products, nobody packed our shopping. Too long living in Thailand. We were extremely embarressed by our pile of purchases piling up, we only caught on when the woman putting the stuff through the till out started tutting very loudly.I am now the proud owner of a trolly bag. Sadly it isn't tartan.

And you're proud of this?

Very much so. I have no intention on entertaining patronising , smart arse shop assistants who feel that because they are serving the public, they have the right to preach their brand of green politics while taking their money.

The right and wrongs of reuseable carrier bags are irrelevant in this case. Some people of blinded by the need to (and to be seen to be) right-on and environmental evangelists.

Be under no illusion. The shop was endeavouring to increase its profits from sales of overpriced shopping bags by adopting this stance.

dave