Milanovic: 60 months is currently the most realistic deadline for the subway, but no city in the world has avoided additional delays when executing such projects

On Friday, a contract was signed in Belgrade with the Chinese company Power China for the design and construction of Lot 3 of the first line (first phase) of the Belgrade Subway. The deadline for completing all work under this contract is 60 months. Traffic engineer Dusan Milanovic notes that this is the most realistic timeframe for the subway’s construction presented to the public so far, but he also warns that no city in the world has managed to avoid additional interventions that extend the construction period when carrying out such projects.

– This year has already passed. The start should most likely be expected next year, meaning completion might occur in 2032 or 2033, provided everything goes smoothly. However, there isn’t a city in the world that hasn’t faced additional investments or interventions that extended the construction time – he pointed out.

Lot 3 entails the completion of stations and shafts following the passage of tunnel-boring machines, key tunnel sections - stretching from Pozeska Street, via the Banovo Brdo Park, Ada Ciganlija, and the Belgrade Fair, to the Mostar Interchange, the Sava Square, the Republic Square, Skadarlija and the Danube, mechanical and electrical installations, escalators and elevators, landscaping around the stations and shafts, and the testing and commissioning of all stations and sections.

Milanovic points out that the first phase of the Belgrade Subway’s first line involves the construction of 11 stations located at depths ranging from 10 to over 30 meters, along with three surface-level stations in the Makisko Polje area. He specifically highlights the subway station planned for Republic Square in the city center, noting that it is one of the most complex stations in the proposed subway system.

– First of all, this station is located in the very heart of the city, Belgrade’s historic core, and the construction site itself will occupy a vast area. This encompasses not only the Staklenac building but also the entire Zoran Djindjic Plaza and, I assume, part of the Vasa Carapic Park across from the Veterans Club Building. Essentially, a massive excavation, a hole, will be opened up: a rectangle 80 meters long, up to 50 meters wide, and over 30 meters deep – Milanovic explains.

He also reminds that valuable archaeological artifacts were discovered during the construction of the garage in Vlajkoviceva Street, near the National Assembly building, a project that has been ongoing for four years, and that, consequently, it can currently only be speculated about what lies beneath the surface of Republic Square.

– There is always a huge question mark regarding how things will proceed – he notes, emphasizing that while 60 months is the engineering estimate, the actual pace of the work remains to be seen.

The value of the contract for Lot 3 has not been disclosed, but Milanovic points out that the subway systems are extremely expensive projects and that some estimates suggest the first phase of the Belgrade Subway’s first line, from Makisko Polje to the Pancevo Bridge, will cost no less than EUR 3.5 billion.

JKP Beogradski metro i voz Beograd

Power Construction Corporation of China Limited Ogranak Beograd

PUC Belgrade Metro and Train

Power China

Dušan Milanović

Belgrade Subway

construction of Belgrade Subway

first Belgrade Subway line

Lot 3 of first line of first phase of Belgrade Subway

subway station Republic Square

Mostar Interchange

Republic Square Belgrade

Belgrade Fair

Ada Ciganlija

Banovo brdo

Sava Square Belgrade