153 YEARS AGO BY TRAIN FROM SKOPJE TO THESSALONIKI, 138 YEARS AGO TO BELGRADE - AND IN 2026 WE DON'T HAVE A SINGLE REGULAR INTERNATIONAL PASSENGER TRAIN!

As of today, 11 October 2026, there are no confirmed regular international passenger trains from Skopje to Thessaloniki, Belgrade or Pristina, and the railway towards Bulgaria hasn't even been built. In 1873, in the time of the Ottoman Empire, Skopje got a rail link to Thessaloniki. Just a year later a rail connection to Kosovo was established, and in 1888 Macedonia was connected to the European rail network via Belgrade. Today, in 2026, more than a century and a half later, citizens have no regular international passenger rail link to any of these three destinations. 150 years ago railways were built to connect us to Europe. Today we have the railways, but no trains to reach our neighbours. The railway question is a question of state priorities, infrastructure policy and accountability for decades of decline in passenger rail services.

Route	Is there a train?	Status
Skopje - Thessaloniki	No	The international line is suspended
Skopje - Belgrade	No	The international line is suspended
Skopje - Pristina	No	Re-establishment announced for 2027, none for now

An interesting fact: Macedonia has rail infrastructure to all three destinations, but no regular international passenger service on these lines.

Rail line	Year opened	Age in 2026
Skopje - Thessaloniki	9 August 1873	153 years
Skopje - Kosovska Mitrovica (via Kosovo Polje)	1874	152 years
Belgrade - Skopje - Thessaloniki	1888	138 years

Setting up a city rail line between Zelenikovo and Gjorče Petrov can be a useful project for the people of Skopje. But city rail transport must not be developed at the expense of international rail services.