The "new phase" of the Republic Square reconstruction in Belgrade has begun. The blocks are paved, there is no contract, and there is no traffic on this section. What is happening with the works in the center of the capital of Serbia
Do you remember that on Republic Square once leafed trees and blooming flowers? It was like that until the summer of 2018, when the reconstruction of this central one began of Belgrade square.
Announcements about the reconstruction were heard during the city's election campaign in 2016, when the then mayor Sinish Mali announced that after the renovation, the citizens of Belgrade, as well as all tourists who visit Belgrade, will finally feel as if they are in the "central square of the capital of Serbia". They got a concreted space without any content.
Nine years later, in July 2025, passing through the central square is difficult for transport, but also for pedestrians, since the Square is being reconstructed again, for the umpteenth time.
Traffic changes
As announced by the Secretariat for Public Transport, during regular maintenance work on Republic Square, in the section between the intersections with Kolarcevo, Braća Jugovića, Francuska and Vasa Čarapića, from July 16 to August 10, there will be changes in the operation of public transport lines.
The Secretariat is previously announced that from July 11 to 16, the wider area of Republic Square will be closed to traffic.
The granite blocks have mostly been removed (since they were rearranged on four occasions), and according to the official announcement of the competent authorities, the fourth phase of regular works on the reconstruction of Republic Square is underway. It was previously announced that a roundabout would be installed.
Ivan Banković from the GSP centar trade union told N1 that "no one can say whether the works will be completed in the new deadline".
"From eight o'clock this morning, the fourth phase began, it will last until August 10, and then the fifth phase is planned until August 20. A third of the roundabout is completed, the famous clock is missing, which will probably be the new gathering place for the citizens of Belgrade in the city center, and all this greatly affects the development of transportation in the city center, there are numerous changes, users of transportation on a daily basis should follow the website of the Secretariat," he said on Wednesday, July 16.
He added that "if you were to treat this properly, you would have to have a project", and apparently there is no project, everything is done spontaneously.
This was recently pointed out by Nikola Jovanović from the Center for Local Self-Government.
"The 'repairs' of the Square are being done without any plan or project, and a roundabout with a clock is also being inserted, which is completely inadequate and makes it difficult for articulated trolleybuses and buses to pass. It is more than clear that the vast majority of works and reconstructions in Belgrade are just a mechanism to get money out of the budget and 'work' for companies close to the authorities," Jovanović said in June of this year for "Danas".
The reconstruction of this square caused numerous controversies from the beginning - starting from the very appearance to the price and (infinite) duration of the works.
A short chronology of long-term works on Republic Square
In August 2018, the renovation of Republic Square, which was announced two years earlier, began. It was said then that the works will last 420 days, that they will be carried out in two phases, and that the first phase will last until March 1, 2019.
"I expect the Štrabag company, which won the job, to do everything on time. They have a lot of experience, and everything here is under protection," said Goran Vesić, the deputy mayor at the time.
The second phase included works in the surrounding streets, and the total value was estimated at 922 million dinars.
At the beginning of the reconstruction, the archaeological remains of the Württemberg Gate were discovered, so it was announced that they will be conserved and buried, and the archaeological research "will continue in the second phase of the reconstruction of this location, when the existing road between the National Museum, the National Theater and 'Staklenac' will be excavated".
In the months that followed, representatives of the government expressed their satisfaction with the work done.
The widely famous cubes
The pavement on the Square was replaced by asphalt with granite blocks.
"These are cubes, each one weighs 25 kilograms and, as master Stojan, who waited for us there and has been laying cubes for 60 years, said, they are eternal, because he has never seen such cubes, at least not in Serbia. So I am satisfied and I think that we have really done a great job, that we have done a historic job for Belgrade, because Belgrade is finally getting its own square," Goran Vesić said in August 2019.
Before the completion of the works on September 1, which, as it was emphasized, was "55 days ahead of schedule", Vesić was ready to reveal "one secret" to the public.
Built "to last for centuries"
"We had several options, first they were supposed to be ordinary cubes, concrete, that would be a bit cheaper, and then I spoke with the President of the Republic, Mr. Vučić, who said: 'No, build a central city square, put everything that is best for Belgrade. Because that square is built once in a few centuries'. And he was absolutely right. And we put the best granite, what is best for Belgrade," Vesić said at the time, appearing on Pink Television.
In the first days after the completion of the works, there were reactions from citizens who pointed out the difficult traffic over the uneven blocks.
Mayor's assistant Andreja Mladenović expressed the opinion that it is necessary to "smooth out some bumps", but Goran Vesić was convinced that "there is no need" for this, because everything "has already been checked several times", writes Istinomer.
Already in September 2019, the deputy mayor "ordered the contractor to replace all the blocks on the road around the Square within 35 to 40 days at his own expense and without stopping traffic." He noted that the renovated Square has a three-year warranty.
"The work on the Square began in August 2018. The work was completed in August 2019, but nothing worked, so the dice were rolled until October of that year," Nikola Jovanović from the Center for Local Self-Government notes for "Vreme".
After that upheaval, on November 1, 2019, the reconstruction of the Square was officially completed again. Vesić said that the contract for this project will be announced on the same day, stressing that its value is "about 768 million dinars without VAT", or "about 6,3 million euros", reports Istinomer.
At the beginning of next year 2020, Vesić presented the final calculation for the works on Trg Republike, totaling 744.427.624 dinars. "That is 24 million dinars less than the basic contract that was signed," he said in January 2020 when visiting Studio B. However, Istinomer estimated that the value of the works is higher than 960 million dinars.
Jovanović notes, the dice were turned once again that year.
Four years later
Four years later and after a fourfold roll of the dice, a new reconstruction of Republic Square is underway.
"The new reconstruction, i.e. the removal of the blocks, started in 2024. Today, in July 2025, work is still ongoing on the Square. It is a great embarrassment and shame for both this and the previous city authorities," Nikola Jovanović told Vreme.
The blocks have been re-asphalted, and the construction of the roundabout is underway.
Judging by the announcement of the Secretariat for Public Transport of the City of Belgrade, the works should be completed by August 10, when the current traffic change is valid.
Source: Vreme/N1/Istinomer
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