Vucic: Road to Novi Pazar to Start by May 2027

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic toured the Raska district today and, for the first time, gave a concrete deadline for the start of physical works on the Kraljevo, Raska, Novi Pazar expressway. The visit began in the village of Polazi near Vranovina, continued in Novi Pazar, and moves on to Kraljevo in the afternoon, where the president is expected to talk with residents in Ribnica and tour the admission diagnostic center of the “Studenica” General Hospital.

Srpske vesti previously reported on the development program Vucic announced for five districts in southern Serbia. This time, unlike that broader announcement, he laid out precise deadlines for this specific part of the Raska district, covering the road, the hospital and the school.

Vranovina: A Road and a New School in Dezeva

The tour began at the Bugaric family home in the village of Polazi, part of Vranovina near Novi Pazar. The household raises livestock and farms ten hectares of land, half of it owned and half leased. Polazi itself has 32 households, while all of Vranovina counts close to 600.

Vucic announced that a brand new elementary school will be built in Dezeva, worth between 2.5 and three million euros, with construction starting in November. “You will have a nice school and a nice school hall,” the president told residents. He also announced a 3.2 kilometer road from the church toward Vranovina, with works starting in seven to ten days and lasting about two months.

When Do Works Start on the Kraljevo-Novi Pazar Road?

The president delivered the day’s main announcement in Novi Pazar, addressing the gathered crowd. “Physical works start on May 1, 2027 at the latest,” Vucic said, adding that all procedures must be completed by that date. He also pointed to how much the road will cut travel time to the capital: “Five and a half years from today, you will be two hours and fifteen minutes from Belgrade.”

For the section running through Pozega, Arilje and Ivanjica toward Duga Poljana, halfway between Novi Pazar and Sjenica, the president said the contract for the first 20 kilometers will be signed soon. Of those 20 kilometers, 11 are bridges and tunnels, specifically 7.5 kilometers of bridges and 3.5 kilometers of tunnels. The price is estimated at 40 to 45 million euros per kilometer, and Vucic said he wants to bring it down to 35 million. Physical works on that section, he said, start by the end of 2026.

The reconstruction of Sava Kovacevica Street in Novi Pazar, 2.5 kilometers long, was also announced, with works starting in seven days. Vucic thanked residents for the welcome: “No place has ever welcomed me like this!” He also briefly touched on pensions rising alongside wages: “Pensions have to follow wages, and that’s how it will be.”

Ten Operating Rooms in the New Hospital

The president also toured construction of the new surgical wing at the Novi Pazar General Hospital, which is being turned into a Clinical-Hospital Center. He spoke with Dr. Meho Mahmutovic, and Cadastre Director Dalibor Babic was also mentioned during the visit.

The health complex is worth 85 million euros in total, of which about 60 million goes toward construction and the rest toward equipment. Vucic said 60 percent of the physical works have been completed so far and that the entire complex should be finished and equipped by the end of 2027. “Everything, the whole complex, will be finished and equipped by the end of 2027,” the president said during the tour. The new hospital is planned to have ten operating rooms, compared with just one the institution had before.

The visit to the Raska district does not end there. In the afternoon, as announced, the president is set to talk with residents in Ribnica near Kraljevo and tour the admission diagnostic center of the “Studenica” General Hospital, rounding out a day devoted to infrastructure and healthcare in this part of Serbia.