| Short Title: | Road Traffic Act |
| Legislature: | Federal Assembly of Switzerland |
| Long Title: | SR 741.01 |
| Territorial Extent: | Switzerland |
| Enacted By: | Federal Assembly of Switzerland |
| Date Enacted: | 19 December 1958 |
| Date Commenced: | 1 October 1959 |
| Status: | current |
The Road Traffic Act (German: Strassenverkehrsgesetz, SVG, French: Loi fédérale sur la circulation routière, LCR, Italian: Legge federale sulla circolazione stradale, LCStr), is a Swiss federal law that governs traffic on public roads in Switzerland.
It was adopted on 19 December 1958 by the Federal Assembly and came into force on 1 October 1959.[1] Its legal basis comes from art. 82 (Road Transport) of the Federal Constitution.[2]
The law is supplemented by the Ordinance on Road Traffic Regulations (German: Verkehrsregelnverordnung, VRV, French: Ordonnance sur les règles de la circulation routière, OCR, Italian: Ordinanza sulle norme della circolazione stradale, ONC)[3]
The cantons had harmonised motor vehicle and bicycle traffic in the intercantonal agreements of 13 June 1904, 7 April 1914 and 29 December 1921.[4] By 1925, all cantons except Obwalden, Nidwalden, Glarus, Zug and Graubünden had joined the agreement. In 1932, road traffic became a federal matter and the Federal Act on Motor Vehicle and Bicycle Traffic was introduced. It abolished the intercantonal agreements and contradictory cantonal provisions became ineffective.[5]
In 1959, due to the increase in traffic density and mobility, the road traffic law was comprehensively revised, resulting in the Road Traffic Act that is in force today.[6]