New concerns over Cape Town’s plan to fix its most dangerous road

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04-03-2026
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The City of Cape Town has been criticised by road agencies and political parties over its plans to construct a new wall along the notoriously dangerous N2 highway.

Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis recently announced that the city will spend R114 million to build a wall on the N2 towards Cape Town International Airport.

Over the years, this stretch of road has developed an infamous reputation as a crime hotspot, as motorists traveling to and from the airport have been attacked in numerous ways.

Criminals from the surrounding areas often throw rocks at cars in an attempt to smash windows. While this is sometimes just petty vandalism, others damage passing cars to make the motorists stop, allowing them to be robbed.

In slow-moving rush hour traffic, individuals will often walk between cars performing smash-and-grabs before retreating into the surrounding townships.

Spikes and debris have been used to pop tyres, and criminals have even resorted to dropping bricks and concrete slabs from the overhead pedestrian bridges onto passing cars to smash hoods and windscreens.

Several motorists have been injured and killed on the N2 as a result of these attacks, and the road has unofficially been dubbed “the hell run” by locals.

In response, the City of Cape Town plans to erect a 9km-long “security barrier” to separate the road from the surrounding area, making it much more difficult for criminals to reach passing vehicles.

“It is not fair that a small number of criminal elements are impacting the safety of hundreds of thousands of daily users of the N2,” said Hill-Lewis. 

In addition to the wall, the R114-million project will add new pedestrian crossings, improved lighting, access control, safety barriers for recreation spaces, safer grazing practices, and measures to limit illegal dumping.

The mayor said the project will coincide with the city’s plans to further increase security on the N2, adding 40 new metro police, additional CCTV cameras, automated number plate recognition, and digital coordination for rapid response.

“South Africa’s Berlin Wall”

Cape Town’s wall plans have been slated by the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) and multiple political parties.

Sanral criticised the move, stating that it had not been consulted by the city regarding the new wall.

“The N2 still falls under three different road authority jurisdictions. Although this can be confusing, road authority jurisdictions are crucial for establishing clear responsibility for the planning, construction, maintenance and safety of road users and infrastructure.”

The ANC’s provincial spokesperson, Akhona Jonginamba, told the Cape Argus that the party is calling for the city to put the plan on ice until an independent social impact assessment is conducted. 

It rejected Hill-Lewis’s assertion that communities along the N2 are supportive of the plan.

The party further argued that the voices of marginalized communities bordering the freeway have not been considered.

The ANC also warned that physical barriers typically shift criminal activity elsewhere rather than eliminating it, and that the wall will only provide a false sense of security.

It even went so far as to label the project “South Africa’s Berlin Wall.”

Similarly, the GOOD Party weighed in the issue, claiming that the wall to separate the highway from townships is a “continuation of racist spatial logic” that was “designed under apartheid.”

GOOD Cape Town Councillor Siyabulela Mamkeli stated it is “a physical barrier intended to hide poverty from tourists travelling between the Cape Town CBD and Cape Town International Airport” while township residents are left in unsafe conditions with inadequate services.

The party said that a better use of resources would be to deploy additional law enforcement in the area to benefit residents and motorists.

Support for the project

Not all groups have been critical of Cape Town’s wall proposal.

The Freedom Front Plus welcomed the development, saying it was unfortunate that it had taken this long to address an issue that has cost motorists their lives.

“The situation is reminiscent of the current foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, where decisive action was only taken after it had turned into a crisis,” it said.

Geordin Hill-Lewis addressed the criticisms during a council speech in January, stating that he had “already seen some of the predictable responses and charges on this.”

“So let me be clear about a few things: firstly, the N2 already has a security barrier, it is just completely dilapidated, and there is nearly nothing left of it. It needs to be replaced,” he said.

The mayor went a step further, saying that Cape Town is prepared to do anything to protect its residents, even if this means butting heads with other government entities.

“It matters not to me that it is actually someone else’s job. Just as in energy, and in policing, and in public transport, our approach is always the same: if there is a state institution that is failing our people, we must try to do what we can to help,” he said. 

He shared social media posts of a recent visit to the communities living along the N2, showing residents who were supportive of the project.

Parents expressed support for the wall, saying that children have been killed running into the road to retrieve balls.