The Podgorica–Shkodër railway is a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

connecting

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

and

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

, used for freight-purposes only. It is Albania's only international rail link. Although initially built between 1984–1985, it fell into disuse in 1991 and later fully reopened in 2003. The rail infrastructure is operated by Montenegrin ŽICG on Montenegrin territory and Hekurudha Shqiptare ''(Albanian Railways)'' on Albanian territory. Nevertheless train services are usually operated by Montenegrin operator ŽPCG between

Podgorica Podgorica (Cyrillic: Подгорица, ; lit. 'under the hill') is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. The city was formerly known as Titograd (Cyrillic: Титоград, ) between 1946 and 1992—in the period that Montenegro form ...

and the Albanian Bajzë station and by Hekurudha Shqiptare between Bajzë and Shkodër only. The line connects to

Belgrade–Bar railway The Belgrade–Bar railway ( sr, Пруга Београд–Бар, Pruga Beograd–Bar) is a railway connecting the Serbian capital of Belgrade with the town of Bar, a major seaport in Montenegro. Overview The Belgrade–Bar railway is a stan ...

and Nikšić–Podgorica railway in Podgorica and Shkodër–Vorë railway in Shkodër.

Overview

Podgorica–Shkodër is a long standard gauge railway, of which runs through Albania and the remaining through Montenegro. Like other railways throughout Albania, the railway is not electrified. The line's last station in Albania is the Bajzë Rail Station.

History

Built between 1984 and 1985, the Podgorica–Shkodër freight line was the first international railway of Albania. It began operations on 11 January 1985 with regular traffic beginning 6 August 1986. The line fell into disuse in 1991 due to trade sanctions in

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

. The Bajzë-Shkodër line (with the exception of Hani i Hotit) was reopened for use in February 1996. A reopening of the Hani i Hotit- Bajzë line was scheduled for 15 November 1996 but was cancelled. The track was later badly damaged due to civil unrest in 1997. In April 2002, reconstruction of the line between the Montenegrin

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

at Hani i Hotit and Bajzë were completed. By March 2003, the line between Bajzë and Shkodër was completed with 365 million lek funded by the

Albanian government Albania is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic, where the President of Albania is the head of state and the Prime Minister of Albania the head of government in a multi-party system. The executive power is exercised by the Government a ...

. A ceremony held on 6 March 2003 officially marked the opening of the Bajzë–Shkodër. As a sign of mutual cooperation, then-Albanian

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Fatos Nano Fatos Nano (; born 16 September 1952) is an Albanian socialist politician who served as Prime Minister of Albania in 1991, from 1997 to 1998 and from 2002 to 2005. He was the first leader and founder of the Socialist Party of Albania and a member ...

and a then-Montenegrin Deputy Prime Minister travelled to

Tuzi Tuzi ( cnr, Tuzi/Тузи, ; sq, Tuz or ''Tuzi'') is a small town in Montenegro and the seat of Tuzi Municipality, Montenegro. It is located along a main road between the city of Podgorica and the Albanian border crossing, just a few kilometers ...

in Montenegro on a special train operating on this line.

Future Plans

Long-term plans currently exist for the establishment and operation of passenger service on this railway. There are other plans involving the construction of a new high-speed rail line between Podgorica and Shkodër.

Overview

History

Future Plans

References

See also