BUS TRAFFIC IN VARDAR BANOVINA

Abstract

In the early 1930s, the Vardar banovina had the least developed bus traffic in the country, but during the following years it was the banovina that made the most progress in this type of traffic. This paper shows exactly the process of organizing bus traffic in this district. Special attention was given to the most important factors that influenced that process. The government of banovina tried to establish bus traffic, but also to ensure the continuation of work for the owners of auto-taxis. Bus lines could only be maintained in areas where there were no railways. Bad roads, especially in winter, hampered progress. There were not enough bus connections of Vardar Banovina with neighboring territories. In the sources, we found only three lines that were maintained: Kuršumlija–Priština, Uroševac–Peć and Bitolj–Korča, while the others were discontinued or not established, primarily due to the existence of railways on the same routes. In our work, special attention was given to bus companies, primarily the Popović brothers, the relationship between bus and other types of traffic, the effects of bus traffic on the transmission of mail, tourism, population and safety. The basis of the work is archival material from several archives. We also used published sources, press and literature.