Skopje's public transport company has brought back route 37, but on a new alignment. The bus links Radišani and Butel with Karpoš 3, and for the first time it runs along „Slovenija\" boulevard - a stretch that had never been activated in city transport before.

The route starts at the last stop of route 57 in Radišani and continues along „Radišanska\" and „Butelska\" streets, the „Bosnia and Herzegovina\" and „Slovenija\" boulevards, „Kačanik road\", „8 September\" boulevard, „Bled Agreement\" street and „Ilinden\" boulevard, ending on „Manapo\" street by City Mall.

The timetable is where the enthusiasm meets reality

From Radišani the bus leaves at 07:25, 08:55, 14:55 and 16:25. From Karpoš 3 - at 06:40, 08:10, 14:10 and 15:40. The route runs on working days only.

Four departures in each direction. That is not a city route in the usual sense - it is a school route with office hours. The two morning departures cover the start of shifts, the two afternoon ones the end. Between 08:55 and 14:55 there is nothing at all from Radišani for six hours.

Who it was built for

That becomes clear once you look at where it ends: at the secondary schools in Karpoš and at City Mall. The president of the Skopje City Council, Dame Dimitrievski, presented the route in exactly those terms - as a connection that for the first time directly links Radišani and Butel with the secondary schools in Karpoš.

A new link between two sides of the city that until now required a change of bus is a concrete improvement and should not be underrated. But a route with four departures does not solve mobility - it solves a timetable. The student who misses the 16:25 bus has no second option; they go back to the old way, with a transfer.

The test comes in September

Activating „Slovenija\" boulevard is the move worth the most here. If the route shows there is real passenger flow, the interval can be tightened and the alignment can grow into a proper city route. If the timetable stays unchanged for a whole year, it will be clear that 37 was not a solution for transport but an answer to one particular request.

The answer to that question will not come from a company statement. It will come from the people standing on „Radišanska\" at 07:25.