Vehicles in North Macedonia are the oldest in the Balkans, with an average age of 19.4 years. The data were published by Al Jazeera Balkans and reported by InfoShqip.
An analysis published on October 23 shows that nearly 700,000 vehicles were registered in the country in 2024. In 2012, the number was around 350,000.
With a population of approximately 1.83 million, this amounts to around 383 registered vehicles per 1,000 residents.
Another concerning indicator is that 87.9 percent of vehicles in the country are more than seven years old.
The average age of 19.4 years is significantly higher than that of the European Union, which, according to the data presented in the analysis, is 12.7 years. In other words, vehicles in North Macedonia are, on average, almost seven years older than those in the EU.
North Macedonia has the oldest vehicles among the Balkan countries included in the analysis.
The average vehicle age is 18 years in Kosovo, 17.3 years in Greece, and 17.06 years in Montenegro.
Registered vehicles in Croatia are an average of 14.63 years old, while in Slovenia the figure is 11.2 years.
Between 2004 and 2008, the situation in North Macedonia was better: the average vehicle age stood at 15.4 years. After that, instead of the vehicle fleet being renewed, the average age rose and remained high over the past decade. In the following years, too, the number of newer vehicles did not increase; on the contrary, the average age rose and continued to remain high over the past decade.
One of the main factors contributing to this situation is the large-scale import of used cars from Western Europe, primarily from Germany and Italy.
Vehicles gradually phased out of Western markets are often sent to Balkan countries. Here, citizens’ purchasing power does not readily allow them to afford new cars.
The phenomenon is not limited to North Macedonia. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, almost 80 percent of vehicles are more than ten years old. In Bulgaria, data from mid-2024 show that 75.6 percent of registered road vehicles were more than 15 years old.
While the European Union is tightening environmental requirements and drafting new rules for vehicles that have reached the end of their useful lives, Balkan countries still have a deteriorated vehicle fleet.
The European Commission estimates that around six million vehicles in Europe reach the end of their useful lives every year.
Some countries in the region have begun restricting imports of older cars. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro have banned the entry of some categories of older diesel vehicles. Serbia, on the other hand, according to the analysis, still allows the import of cars more than two decades old.
Although the number of vehicles on the road has increased, their age remains a serious concern in North Macedonia. This particularly affects road safety and air pollution, while citizens’ financial ability to buy newer cars remains limited.
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