Skopje is dreaming of a city train again. Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski announced that the "City Train" project will be built in three phases, with a total value of 360 million denars, electric locomotives and trains, and a promise to "drastically reduce the use of private vehicles" in the city.

The first phase has already begun and connects the Zelenikovo - Dračevo - Lisiče - Kisela Voda - Aerodrom - centre line, with reconstruction of the track and electrification. The second phase will run via Miladinovci and Ilinden to the main station, and the third toward Skopje North, Đorče and Volkovo. On paper - a modern network that could change daily life in the suburbs.

For now, though, the reality is more modest: due to repairs on the Skopje-Zelenikovo line, existing traffic is temporarily changed, and passengers will have to adjust to an altered schedule. From a future with an electric train - to a present with disruptions. That's how every infrastructure project looks in the promise stage.

The idea of fast, comfortable city transport that takes cars off the streets isn't new - Skopje has heard it for years, in different versions, from different governments. The question isn't whether the project sounds good, but whether this time the three phases will reach the end, or remain, like so many others, stuck somewhere between the first and second phase.