The online survey “On Snowbound Travellers in Vojvodina” (1 February 2014) with 293 participants shows that respondents see responsibility for the dramatic situations on the roads primarily as an issue of crisis management, not merely a consequence of severe weather. When asked who is responsible, the largest share point to the authorities in Serbia as being “unable to ensure effective action” (31.06%), while the weather ranks second (29.01%). 15.70% attribute responsibility to the authorities in Vojvodina, and 13.65% to municipal winter services. 10.58% believe the travellers themselves are to blame for setting out during the storm.
Evaluations of how institutions responded further reinforce this picture. The Serbian Armed Forces receive the best ratings: 82.93% of respondents give a positive assessment (48.46% “very positive” and 34.47% “positive”), with a negligible share of negative ratings (around 3%). The Gendarmerie is also rated highly, with a total of 66.55% positive assessments. Winter services fare significantly worse: 45.05% positive, but also 26.28% negative in total (15.36% negative and 10.92% very negative), alongside a large share of neutral responses (26.28%). When it comes to politics, the Government of Serbia receives divided ratings: 29.01% positive versus 38.23% negative, with 26.96% neutral. The Executive Council/Government of Vojvodina receives an even more reserved balance—19.45% positive and 34.82% negative, with 36.18% neutral and 9.56% with no opinion.
The sample is gender-balanced (roughly 50:50), the median age is 36, and by place of residence the largest shares come from Belgrade (centre: 22.60%), as well as Bačka (16.78%) and Banat (13.36%).
Methodological note: this was an online survey, so the results reflect participants’ views and are not representative of the entire population. Still, they clearly indicate that in crisis situations citizens place the highest value on the system’s operational response (Army/Gendarmerie), while judging political crisis management much more strictly.