Finally. After years of stalling, the bridge on Ljubljanska Street in Skopje is entering its last phase of construction. Mayor Orce Gjorgjievski has promised major traffic relief - the bridge will connect Ljubljanska and Skupi streets.

For anyone who has followed the project, the years of waiting look like a sarcastic joke. The bridge was meant to be finished in 2022. Then 2023. Then 2024. Now in 2026 - "final phase". Whatever final phase means, in Skopje it usually means another four to six months.

Why does this bridge matter? Because the Vardar river separates Karpoš and Skupi. Only two pedestrian-vehicle bridges span it in this area. When one is closed for reconstruction - and that is often - all the traffic gets funnelled into a single narrow crossing. The result is jams that last for hours.

The Ljubljanska bridge is supposed to fix that. In theory. In practice - it depends on how long "final phase" lasts and whether there are hidden technical problems still to be discovered. The history of infrastructure projects in Skopje does not leave much room for optimism.

Mayor Gjorgjievski is in the position of having to sell a project that is his without being his. Started before his term, dragged through his term, finished (maybe) during his term. That is the traditional Balkan fate of these projects - somebody else is always to blame for the delays.

What will it mean for the average Skopje resident? Maybe less time in traffic. Maybe. It all depends on whether the bridge is genuinely ready when it opens, or whether it opens at half capacity, as happened with other projects of this type. We wait. So does everyone living between Karpoš and Skupi. And, as tradition has it, the waiting is the biggest traffic project in this city.