Hungarians launch project of new joint border crossing near Kelebija – Operations planned to start in mid-2034
The Ministry of Environmental Protection of Serbia has notified the public that the Ministry of Energy of Hungary, in line with the obligations based on the ESPOO convention, has submitted a notification regarding the planned project of the construction of an expressway (2×2 lanes), a new border crossing and a rest complex in the settlement of Tompa, near the state border with Serbia and Highway M9 (the planned south bypass route which connects the western parts of Hungary with Szeged).
This is the planned new border crossing with Hungary, in the Hungarian territory, a little farther from the existing Kelebija border crossing.
The expected date of the beginning of the construction, according to the document, is the first quarter of 2032, and the construction is expected to last for nearly two years, with the expected completion date in the first quarter of 2034.
The expected date of the beginning of the operations of the new border crossing is the second half of 2034.
The notification says that the area of the new border crossing with the rest complex will be around 90 hectares in the Hungarian territory alone.
In addition to passenger traffic, the border crossing must be suitable for unlimited cargo traffic, ADR and transport of live animals.
As for the road connections, at the border crossing, areas for a well-separated handling of passenger and cargo traffic, as well as parking spaces for cars, buses, trucks and vehicles transporting hazardous matters will be established within the rest complex.
The aim of the project, as said, is to expand the capacities of the existing border crossing on the border part with Serbia for cargo and passenger traffic and to create an alternative cargo route in order to unburden the existing connections, save the time and milage of cargo transport, but also to improve the economic potential of the region and create a direct highway connection from Serbia between the Hungarian Highway M6 and the state border.
It is reminded that there are already operating border crossings in Tompa (Hungarian side) and Kelebija (Serbian side), but it is pointed out that their capacity is no longer adequate and that their infrastructure is obsolete.
It is also specified that the new border crossing and expressway will bypass the settlements of Tompa and Kelebija.
The Ministry of Environmental Protection announced that the full documentation regarding the environmental impact assessment of the project could be viewed on the website and at the premises of the ministry.
Let us remind that, in May 2023, the then Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, Goran Vesic, stated that Hungary was planning the construction of a new Kelebija crossing, a little farther from the existing one, toward which a leg of the Y junction on the Serbian side would lead.
– Therefore, one border crossing near Kelebija will be meant only for passenger traffic, and the other for cargo traffic. When all this is done, we will have five fully equal crossings, in terms of the number of passengers – said Vesic. In April last year, the Government of Serbia adopted the decision on the forming of a work group for the negotiations and the realization of the project of the new Kelebija-Tompa 2 border crossing.
The task of the work group is to run the negotiations between the governments of Serbia and Hungary and to implement the project of the new border line and the establishment of the Kelebija-Tompa 2 border crossing.