Transport in Kosovo consists of transport by land and air. After the Kosovo's independence, improvements to the road infrastructure, urban transport, rail transport and air travel have all led to a vast improvement in transportation. These upgrades have played a key role in supporting Kosovo's economy.
Air transport in Kosovo started as early as 1936 when Yugoslav flag carrier Aeroput opened scheduled flights from Belgrade to Skopje through Podujevo airfield as mid stop. [1]
There are three Airports situated in Kosovo, the Gjakova Airport in the city of Gjakova, Dumosh-Batllava Airfield in the village of Dumosh and the only international Airport of Pristina in the capital of Kosovo, Pristina. Gjakova's Airport was built by the Kosovo Force (KFOR) following the Kosovo War, next to an existing airfield used for agricultural purposes, and was used mainly for military and humanitarian flights. The local and national government plans to offer Gjakova Airport for operation under a public-private partnership with the aim of turning it into a civilian and commercial airport. [2]
Pristina International Airport is located southwest of Pristina. It is Kosovo's only international airport, the only port of entry for air travelers to Kosovo. Handling over 2.99 million (2021 2.86 million) passengers per year on 22,000 flights. [3]
The first railway line was built under Turkish guidance for the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer Orientaux (CO), led by Maurice de Hirsch. It started in Thessaloniki, went on north to Skopje and reached Mitrovica in 1873. Before the First World War it was used by the Serbian Railways which operated as Yugoslav Railways between 1918 and 1992, and stopped their operations in Kosovo after the NATO intervention in 1999. Trainkos operates 430 km (267 mi) of railway in Kosovo, of which 333 km (207 mi) serve both freight and passenger and 97 km (60 mi) only serve freight traffic. The non-electrified network originally consisted of two lines crossing at Kosovo Polje railway station in Kosovo Polje: A main line going from Kraljevo in western Serbia via Mitrovica and Kosovo Polje to Skopje in North Macedonia, and a branch line in east-west direction from Niš in southern Serbia via Pristina railway station in the capital Pristina and Kosovo Polje with one branch leading to Peja and the other one to Prizren. Of these lines, the one from Pristina to Peja and the one from Kosovo Polje to Macedonia are still served by passenger trains. Some more parts of the network are occasionally served by freight trains, like Kosovo Polje - Obiliq; the other parts of the network are currently unused.
For years, there have been plans to extend the branch to Prizren across the border to Albania, to create a link to the network of the Hekurudha Shqiptare, with approval given by the Albanian government in 2021 to a feasibility study of a Prishtina-Durrës route to be undertaken in 2022. [4]
Around EUR 200 million has been spent between 2019 and 2023 improving the main rail connections with much of the funding coming from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB) and grants from the European Union (EU) to bring standards up to the EU's Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) quality level. [5]
The road transport in Kosovo has significantly improved following the independence of Kosovo. The government of Kosovo in recent years has focused the majority of investments on the construction of numerous motorways specifically on constructing the R6, R7 and R7.1 which connect Kosovo with its neighboring countries. [6] [7]
In recent years, two major road construction spree took place on the main state roads of Kosovo, involving the construction of new roadways, putting of contemporary signs, planting of trees, and related greening projects. Works on two highways are completed.
In 2021 there was an average of 181 cars per 1,000 people in Kosovo compared with 567 in the EU. [8]
| Motorway | District | Length | Description | Cities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Ferizaj, Pristina | 60 km (37 mi) | The R 6 (Albanian : Autostrada R 6, Serbian: Autoput R 6) is a four traffic lane motorway, spanning 60 km (37 mi). [9] The majority of the motorway is completed but still under construction. It connect the city of Pristina with the city of Skopje in North Macedonia at the border in Hani i Elezit. [10] | Ferizaj, Kosovo Polje, Lipjan, Pristina |
 | Pristina, Prizren | 129.8 km (80.7 mi) | The R 7 (Albanian : Autostrada R 7, Serbian: Autoput R 9) is a four traffic lane motorway, spanning 129.8 km (80.7 mi). The majority of the motorway is completed but still under construction. It connect the city of Pristina with the city of Durrës in Albania at the border in Vërmica. [11] | Pristina, Prizren, Suva Reka |
 | Gjilan, Pristina | 47.1 km (29.3 mi) | The R 7.1 (Albanian : Autostrada R 7.1, Serbian: Autoput R 7.1) is a four traffic lane motorway, spanning 47.1 km (29.3 mi). The motorway is currently under construction and still under planning process and will connect the east with the west from Kosovo through the cities of Gjilan, Pristina and Kamenica. | Gjilan, Kamenica, Lipjan, Pristina, |
The following is a summary of the transport system of the Republic of North Macedonia.
Kosovo Polje or Fushë Kosova, is a town and municipality located in the District of Pristina in central Kosovo. According to the 2011 census, the town of Kosovo Polje has 12,919 inhabitants, while the municipality has 33,977 inhabitants.
The Adem Jashari Prishtina International Airport , also referred to as Pristina International Airport, is an international airport in Pristina, Kosovo. The airport is located 15 km (9.3 mi) southwest of the city of Pristina, Kosovo. The airport has flights to numerous European destinations.
The Vilayet of Kosovo was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkan Peninsula which included the current territory of Kosovo and the north-western part of the Republic of North Macedonia. The areas today comprising Sandžak (Raška) region of Serbia and Montenegro, although de jure under Ottoman control, were in fact under Austro-Hungarian occupation from 1878 until 1909, as provided under Article 25 of the Treaty of Berlin. Üsküb (Skopje) functioned as the capital of the province and the midway point between Istanbul and its European provinces. Üsküb's population of 32,000 made it the largest city in the province, followed by Prizren, also numbering at 30,000.
The Albanians of Kosovo, also commonly called Kosovo Albanians, Kosovan Albanians or Kosovars, constitute the largest ethnic group in Kosovo.
Gjakova Airport AMIKO is an airport in the village Lugbunar, near Gjakova in western Kosovo. The airport is currently in military use by the Kosovo Security Force. The possibility for the airport to serve a dual civilian-military use has also been mentioned. In that scenario, the airport would host low-cost commercial airlines and cargo flights. However, such plans by the Kosovo government are difficult to implement due to the contract with “Limak & Aeroport de Lyon,” which does not allow for competition to the Pristina International Airport until 2030.
Dumosh-Batllava Airfield or Batllava Airport is a former military airport in the village of Dumosh, near Lake Batllava and the village of Batllavë and the city of Podujevo in Kosovo. This airfield is located 25 km (16 mi) from the city of Pristina and 32 km (20 mi) air distance from Pristina International Airport Adem Jashari.
Trainkos, is the national railway company of Kosovo. It was originally formed as the Kosovo Railways J.S.C UNMIK Railways from the lines of the former Yugoslav Railways that lie on Kosovar territory. In 2011, the company was split into two public companies called Trainkos and Infrakos, the latter responsible for rail maintenance.
Pristina is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and district.
Idriz Seferi was an Albanian leader and guerrilla fighter (rebel). During his 56 year military career, he fought in 35 battles. A member of the League of Prizren and League of Peja, he was the right-hand man of Isa Boletini, with whom he organized the 1910 Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in the Kosovo Vilayet. After the suppression of the uprising, Seferi continued warfare, in the 1912 Uprising. In the First Balkan War, Boletini and Seferi rose up against Serbia, with whom they had previously been allies to during the 1910 and 1912 Uprisings, and continued to attack Serbian posts in the subsequent occupation and initial phase of World War I (1913-1915). In the second phase of the war (1916-1918), he led troops against Bulgarian forces.
Tourism in Kosovo is characterized by archaeological heritage from Illyrian, Dardanian, Roman, Byzantine, Serbian and Ottoman times, traditional Albanian and Serbian cuisine, architecture, religious heritage, traditions, and natural landscapes. Kosovo is situated in south-eastern Europe. With its central position in the Balkans, it serves as a link in the connection between central and south Europe, the Adriatic Sea, and Black Sea.
Classical music in Kosovo refers to the art music cultivated in Kosovo. The roots of classical music in Kosovo are found in the 1940s and include the time period from the times when Kosovo was part of Yugoslavia to this day. It can be said that there is a tradition of classical music in Kosovo, however, compared to other Balkan countries and especially European countries this tradition is younger. Classical music in Kosovo reaches back about 70 years. Even though in a short period of time, this music has evolved, passing through generations of composers and artists. In his book Albanian: Zhvillimi i stileve në veprat e kompozitorëve shqiptarë të Kosovës, Engjëll Berisha comments:
"The diversity of styles in Albanian music [of Kosovo], its national patterns with sound idea-aesthetic foundations are a characteristic of the European musical reality, so many many works are of interest abroad, too, because during this relatively short period Albanian classical music in Kosovo has compensated for the delay in its development."
Music composition and composers in Pristina refers to music composition and composers who have left their mark in Pristina. The importance of Kosovan Folklore on the different genres, their development and their popularity. As referring to genres as a categorization would not cover all compositions and composers in a fair way, a highlight of every composers work and different genres is provided because of the different genres a composers work has included throughout the years.
Pristina's transport forms the hub of road, rail and air networks in Kosovo. The city's buses, trains and planes together all serve to maintain a high level of connectivity between Pristina many different districts and beyond. An analysis by the Traffic Police has shown that from 240,000 cars registered in Kosovo, around 100,000 cars are from the District of Pristina.
The railway network in Kosovo consist of 333.9 km (207.5 mi) of railway line, 103.4 km (64 mi) of which are freight-only. The railway infrastructure is operated by Kosovo Railways, a property of the public sector where the state has access to ruling all administrative actions in the Ministry of Economic Development.
The R 6 Motorway, also commonly Autostrada Prishtinë-Han i Elezit and Autostrada Prishtinë-Shkup or Autostrada Arbën Xhaferi, is a motorway in Kosovo running 60 kilometres (37 mi) in the districts of Ferizaj and Pristina. The motorway connects Pristina with Skopje in North Macedonia.
Dumosh is a village located in northeastern Kosovo, in the municipality of Podujevo.
This is gallery of coats or arms, seals and emblems used by the institutions of Kosovo since 10 June 1999.
However, due to the commitment of MI, and related structures, we have achieved significant results. Proof of this are the construction of new highways, linking the Republic of Kosovo with neighbouring countries
On the other hand, the Government successfully organized and handled the State Visit of Zoran Zaev, Prime Minister of Macedonia, in which a number of mutually important questions were discussed, such as bilateral trade and the new highway between Prishtina and Skopje.
