Lucens () is a municipality in the Broye-Vully district in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. In 2017 the former municipalities of Brenles, Chesalles-sur-Moudon, Cremin, Forel-sur-Lucens and Sarzens merged into the municipality of Lucens.
History
Lucens is first mentioned in 964 as in villa Losingus. It was formerly known by the German name Losingen. Following the accident, the reactor was decommissioned and the cavern was then sealed. No humans were irradiated in the accident.
Geography
thumb|left|View of Lucens Castle and town along with surrounding countryside
thumb|Aerial view (1949)
After the 2017 merger Lucens had an area of .
Before the merger Lucens had an area, (as of the 2004/09 survey) of . Of this area, about 42.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 36.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 18.0% is settled (buildings or roads) and 2.3% is unproductive land. In the 2013/18 survey a total of or about 12.0% of the total area was covered with buildings, an increase of over the 1981 amount. Over the same time period, the amount of recreational space in the municipality decreased by and is now about 0.38% of the total area. Of the agricultural land, is used for orchards and vineyards, is fields and grasslands. Since 1981 the amount of agricultural land has decreased by . Over the same time period the amount of forested land has decreased by . Rivers and lakes cover in the municipality.
The municipality was part of the Moudon District until it was dissolved on 31 August 2006, and Lucens became part of the new district of Broye-Vully.
The municipality is located along the left bank of the Broye.
The municipality of Oulens-sur-Lucens will merge on 1 July 2011 into the municipality of Lucens.
Coat of arms
The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per bend Argent and Gules, overall a Sun in his splendour Or.
Demographics
thumb|Town hall of Lucens
thumb|Houses in Lucens
thumb|Main street in Lucens
Lucens has a population () of . , 31.2% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999–2009) the population has changed at a rate of 12.2%. It has changed at a rate of 10.8% due to migration and at a rate of 1.5% due to births and deaths.
Most of the population () speaks French (1,822 or 82.0%), with Italian being second most common (111 or 5.0%) and Albanian being third (77 or 3.5%). There are 44 people who speak German and 4 people who speak Romansh.
, there were 880 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 1,073 married individuals, 148 widows or widowers and 120 individuals who are divorced.
, there were 913 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.3 persons per household.
there were 1,078 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 3 rooms of which there were 328. There were 94 single room apartments and 198 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 886 apartments (82.2% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 124 apartments (11.5%) were seasonally occupied and 68 apartments (6.3%) were empty.
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Heritage sites of national significance
thumb| [[Lucens Castle]]
Lucens Castle is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance. The entire town of Lucens is part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.
Politics
In the 2015 federal election the most popular party was the SVP with 29.8% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP (25.6%), the FDP (22.4%) and the GPS (9.5%). In the federal election, a total of 542 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 34.6%.
In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 29.38% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP (26.59%), the FDP (20.05%) and the Green Party (8.56%). In the federal election, a total of 494 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 41.2%.
Economy
Lucens is an industrial community, or a municipality where manufacturing provides over a quarter of all jobs.
, there were a total of 1,176 people employed in the municipality. Of these, a total of 23 people worked in 10 businesses in the primary economic sector. The secondary sector employed 620 workers in 47 separate businesses. A minority (19.5%) of the secondary sector employees worked in very small businesses. There were 7 small businesses with a total of 185 employees and 3 mid sized businesses with a total of 314 employees. Finally, the tertiary sector provided 533 jobs in 123 businesses. There were 4 small businesses with a total of 142 employees and one mid sized business with a total of 92 employees. In 2014 a total of 10.7% of the population received social assistance.
, there were 464 workers who commuted into the municipality and 609 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 1.3 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 7.6% used public transportation to get to work, and 64.8% used a private car. During the school year, the political district provided pre-school care for a total of 155 children of which 83 children (53.5%) received subsidized pre-school care. The canton's primary school program requires students to attend for four years. There were 129 students in the municipal primary school program. The obligatory lower secondary school program lasts for six years and there were 139 students in those schools. There were also 10 students who were home schooled or attended another non-traditional school. Lucens is home to 1 museum, the Musée Sherlock Holmes. In 2009 the Musée Sherlock Holmes was visited by 1,359 visitors (the average in previous years was 1,373).
, there were 134 students in Lucens who came from another municipality, while 61 residents attended schools outside the municipality.