The Prime Ministers of Serbia and North Macedonia inaugurated the joint integrated electronic toll payment system as part of the Open Balkan initiative, on Sunday at the Preshevo border crossing. The project is expected to facilitate the movement of vehicles and travelers between the two countries.
This allows for electronic payment at road checkpoints with a known label called TAG, reducing waiting times for vehicles. Currently, this applies to passenger vehicles, while trucks have to wait until Friday (July 28) to pass through this system. As a result, citizens of the two neighboring countries will not need to stop and waste time buying cards or making payments for road usage, but will be able to pass through Serbia and North Macedonia with a single “tag” by pre-registering on the internet portal for this service.
Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić emphasized the increase in economic and trade cooperation within the Open Balkan initiative, announcing that in 2022 Serbia and North Macedonia had conducted 1.48 billion euros in trade exchanges, with Serbia accounting for around 1 billion euros and the smaller neighbor just over 500 million euros.
Brnabić expressed her belief that Albania would not withdraw from this initiative, which she described as bold and successful.
“I don’t think Prime Minister (Edi) Rama is against the Open Balkan initiative, regardless of statements… and I believe he discussed it at the recent press conference with the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić. So, I think the future of the Open Balkan is bright and secure.”
She said she expected that all countries of the Western Balkans gradually be included in the Open Balkan initiative, and for that, according to her, more such projects are needed “to demonstrate concrete benefits of this initiative for both the economy and the citizens”.
North Macedonian Prime Minister Dimitar Kovačevski stated that the number of tourists in North Macedonia has increased by 500 percent in the past two years compared to the period before the Open Balkan.
“This is the best evidence that the Open Balkan is an initiative that yields results, functions, and is loved by people. If we look at polls, this is the only regional initiative supported by over 80 percent of the population in the countries that are part of the initiative. This is because the initiative delivers results. In just three months, Serbian and Macedonian engineers managed to find a solution for unified electronic road payment,” Kovačevski said.
Serbia and North Macedonia have also expanded the lanes at the Preshevo border crossing, specifically at Tabanovce. However, during this summer season when the flow of travelers, especially migrants returning home for holidays, increases significantly, the waiting times to enter North Macedonia from Preshevo average around 45 minutes.
