Belgrade-Skopje-Thessaloniki train line to be discontinued?

According to an announcement, the international passenger train line Belgrade-Skopje-Thessaloniki will be discontinued on October 1, 2018, as confirmed by Macedonian Minister of Transport and Communications Goran Sugareski, who announced that he would try to have the problem solved together with Serbian Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic.

– This line is of great importance for the Republic of Macedonia, We will do everything in our power to somehow overcome this problem. However, it’s not up to us. The line is not cost-effective – Sugareski stated.

He announced that he would discuss the issue again with Zorana Mihajlovic after having talked about the problem several months before, during his visit to Belgrade.

– In the next ten or so days, by the end of the month, I will do everything in my power for this not to happen, if need be, through a new visit and talks. The Macedonian government will do everything it can, but it’s not just up to us – Sugareski specified and added that they aimed for the line to be kept.

MZ Transport was informed in January 2018 by Srbija Voz that they had reached the decision, in agreement with Greece’s TRAINOSE, to discontinue the said line due to not being cost-effective. As a transit rail body, MZ Transport can only file a complaint to this decision.

Ministarstvo građevinarstva, saobraćaja i infrastrukture Republike Srbije

MINISTARSTVO TRANSPORTA I VEZA MAKEDONIJA

Srbijavoz a.d. Beograd

Ministry of Transport of Serbia

Ministry of Transport and Communications of Macedonia

Srbija Voz

Belgrade Skopje Thessaloniki train line

Goran Sugareski

Zorana Mihajlovic

MZ Transport

TRAINOSE