The Belgrade–Szabadka (Subotica) section of the Budapest–Belgrade international railway line has been finished a year ahead of the proposed schedule, President Aleksandar Vučić of Serbia announced on Thursday, 3 October in Szabadka, Serbia. Trains will start commuting on the line starting on 24 November.
A test train has already completed the journey ahead of President Vučić’s press conference. President Vučić informed that once the railway line is in service, the estimated travel time between the capital cities of Budapest, Hungary and Belgrade, Serbia will go down to two hours and 40 minutes. He also thanked his friend István Pásztor, the recently deceased former President of the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians (VMSZ) for his efforts in maintaining good relations between Serbia and Hungary.
As a testament to his goodwill towards the Hungarian people, he reportedly instructed his Minister of Transportation not to open the new, renovated railway station in Szabadka until all the signage is also available in Hungarian. He added that he believes that after long years of hatred and enmity, the Serbian and Hungarian peoples were able to build a sincere friendship.
As per the 2022 census data, there are around 185,000 ethnic Hungarians living in Serbia right now. Most of them are residing in the northern part of the country, known in Hungarian as Vajdaság (Vojvodina).
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