Imizamo Yethu road infrastructure facelift
FOURTEEN roads in Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay, that serve as important access routes for emergency vehicles in times of crisis, received a facelift from the City of Cape Town.
The project commenced in June 2016 and is co-ordinated by the city council’s transport and urban development authority. With a budget of about R38 million spent on the realignment and construction of the roads, installation of stormwater infrastructure, new pavements and walkways where the road reserves were wide enough, and street lights.
Mayoral committee member for transport and urban development Brett Herron, said he has always regarded the roads project in Imizamo Yethu as one of the most important on his to-do-list.
He said it would fundamentally change how the residents live and move around in this section. Herron said one of the complexities of the project was the realignment of some of the roads and walkways to accommodate informal structures.
“We had to come up with innovative redesigns to accommodate the informal conditions in Imizamo Yethu, and the steep topography of the area,” said Herron.
A hundred informal settlement structures were moved slightly to make way for the roads and walkways, and to make narrower walkways and roads to accommodate the structures.
Mayco member for Area North, Suzette Little said they distributed questionnaires to residents living along the roads to get their views and input.
The streets that were reconstructed are A Boesak, J Naidoo, A Mlangeni, Bambata, C Hani, Hlintsa, M Goniwe, M Kotane, M Mabinda, N Aggett, S Biko, Molefe, H Joseph, and B February.