ANC calls for halt to Cape Town's N2 Safety Project amid community concerns

The ANC in the Western Cape has called for the City of Cape Town’s N2 Safety Project to be halted pending a transparent, independent social impact assessment and what it describes as genuine community consultation that includes all affected stakeholders.

The call follows the release of a video by Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, in which he claims unanimous community support for the proposed safety wall along sections of the N2.

ANC provincial spokesperson Akhona Jonginamba said the party disputed the mayor’s claim, arguing that the project lacked meaningful and inclusive engagement, particularly with poorer and historically marginalised communities living alongside the highway.

“The ANC’s position is that the wall does not enjoy unanimous support,” Jonginamba said. “There are deep concerns from residents, community organisations and civic structures about the project’s real intent, its social impact and its effectiveness.”

He said many residents viewed the proposed wall as a divisive measure that risked reinforcing spatial apartheid by separating affluent areas from working-class communities, rather than addressing the root causes of crime.

According to Jonginamba, sustainable safety required integrated interventions, including investment in youth programmes, job creation, improved street lighting, community policing and social cohesion.

“Physical barriers merely displace crime,” he said, adding that there was no clear evidence that such walls reduced overall crime and that they could create a false sense of security while further isolating neighbouring communities.

The ANC has urged the City to redirect resources towards programmes aimed at reducing inequality and promoting long-term safety, rather than proceeding with what it described as a superficial intervention.

In the video, Hill-Lewis argues that the N2 Safety Project is intended to improve safety for motorists, pedestrians and nearby communities. The video opens with a series of news headlines referencing hijackings and violent attacks along the N2, while the mayor delivers his introduction.

Hill-Lewis has said the project includes repairing and reinforcing a deteriorated security barrier, improving lighting and introducing new pedestrian crossings. He has also criticised national authorities, saying the South African National Roads Agency and the South African Police Service had failed to keep communities along the corridor safe.

During the video, Hill-Lewis claims that after speaking to residents in the area for about 45 minutes, he could not find “a single person” who opposed the project.

The debate comes amid the City’s decision to allocate R114 million in its adjustment budget for the N2 Edge safety project, which targets a 9km stretch of the highway. Budget documents show that R7 million has been set aside in the current financial year for design work, with the bulk of construction funding planned for the 2027 financial year.

The project has also drawn criticism from the GOOD Party. Secretary-general Brett Herron has argued that communities living along the N2 need dignified housing and integrated development rather than a security wall, which he says does not address the underlying causes of crime.

Get your news on the go, click here to join the Cape Argus News WhatsApp channel.

Cape Argus