Infrastructure of Serbian Railways has started on September 23, 2024, the dynamic testing phase on Novi Sad – Subotica railway line, part of the future Belgrade – Budapest fast rail connection. During a visit in Dnevnik, aiming at verification of the process, the General Director of Infrastructure of Serbian Railways, Jelena Tanasković, said the train traffic along the railway line will begin at the end of November.
Dynamic testing on 108 km Novi Sad – Subotica – state border with Hungary (Kelebija), is carried out by Deutsche Bahn Systemtechnik which plans to conduct daily from two to eight train test runs in both directions. Deutsche Bahn Systemtechnik has also performed dynamic testing on the Belgrade – Novi Sad section.
The Serbian rail infrastructure manager says that the testing will last until October 10, 2024, and the test report is expected by November 8, 2024.
The testing is carried out with vehicles running from a speed of 50 km/h and progressively to 200 km/h.
Serbia’s President, Aleksandar Vučić, announced on October 3, 2024, during a visit to Subotica station, that the Novi Sad – Subotica railway will enter commercial operation on November 24, 2024. The station was opened in 1862 and currently is being rebuilt. During a test drive from Belgrade to Subotica, President Vučić said that, after the connection with Budapest, Serbia expects further connections via Niš to Thessaloniki, Greece, as well as to Istanbul, Türkiye but funding needs to be provided for the project.
“With the construction of this railway, everything changes. By connecting it with Budapest, we expect an increase in the number of tourists. For the Belgrade – Budapest rail connection, everything was done according to the highest standards and the construction works will enable the reduction of noise level while the stations will be modernised or rebuilt. Soon we will reach Subotica from Belgrade in one hour and ten minutes,” Aleksandar Vučić said.
The rail connection between Belgrade and Subotica has a length of 180 km.
The modernisation and construction of Novi Sad – Subotica railway included track doubling works, the construction of 58 new buildings and facilities, 30 overpasses, 13 underpasses, 5 galleries as well as two pedestrian and bicycle underpasses. The project foresees the reconstruction of 9 railway stations (Novi Sad, Sajlovo, Kisač, Stepanovićevo, Zmajevo, Bačka Topola, Žednik, Naumovićevo and Subotica), as well as the construction of three new stations in Rumenka, Vrbas and Lovćenac. Four bridge structures will be built over the Danube – Tisa – Danube canal on the route of the fast railway line. The project also covers the installation of the ETCS level 2.
According to estimations, the project required more than USD 1.1 billion investment of which USD 989 million representing 85% is cofinanced by the Chinese Export Import Bank and the remaining 15% (USD 174.4 million) is covered by Serbia’s state budget. Construction works started in 2021 under a contract signed with a Chinese consortium made of China Railway International (CRI) and China Communications Construction Company (CCCC). The USD 1.16 billion commercial contract was signed in July 2018 during the 16+1 Summit in Sofia, Bulgaria.
The line is part of the Xb rail corridor from Budapest, Hungary, crossing the Serbian territory from Novi Sad towards Belgrade, through Stara Pazova arriving at Subotica.
The 75 km Belgrade – Novi Sad railway connection has been inaugurated in March 2022 under a EUR 935 million contract.
Belgrade – Budapest railway project includes the modernisation and reconstruction of the existing infrastructure, as well as the construction of missing sections and doubling the entire route to increase traffic capacity and speeds. The 350 km line which will connect the two countries includes 183 km in Serbia and 167 km in Hungary. According to estimations, the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2025 or at the beginning of 2026. The new connection between the two capitals will cut journey times to 2h and 40 minutes.
Serbia is committed to invest in railway modernisation and expansion. In 2023, the government announced a EUR 12 billion country development strategy beyond 2027 and on the transport sector, railway transport is prioritised.
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