The City of Cape Town’s amended Traffic By-law has officially been published in the Provincial Gazette, paving the way for stricter traffic enforcement across the metro.
The gazetting of the by-law means the City can now begin implementing the new provisions once the final administrative arrangements are in place.
The amendments give traffic officers the authority to impound vehicles in a number of cases, including illegal street racing, drunk driving, driving without a valid licence, reckless driving that poses an immediate danger to road users, and vehicles fitted with false or insufficient number plates.
Chairperson of the City’s Safety and Security Portfolio Committee, Councillor Mzwakhe Nqavashe, welcomed the milestone after what he described as a lengthy process.
“This has been a lengthy process and we are very happy to finally hit this milestone. On behalf of the Safety and Security Portfolio Committee, I want to thank each and every person involved in making these amendments a reality. Also, to the public for the very robust engagement during our public participation process – thank you. We sincerely appreciate everyone’s time and effort over the past three years,” said Nqavashe.
The City says the tougher measures are aimed at addressing persistent traffic offences and improving road safety.
Between July 2025 and June 2026, the City’s Traffic Service recorded nearly four million traffic offences and made 2,767 arrests, compared with 2,255 during the previous year. Drunk driving arrests also increased by 32%, from 1,619 to 2,138.
Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith, said these figures highlighted the need for stronger enforcement.
“The traffic enforcement statistics and the hundreds of thousands of complaints every year are key reasons why we introduced this by-law in the first place, and then spent three years working on even tougher amendments, to address the continued lawlessness on our roads,” Smith said.
He added that the City’s Traffic Management department is finalising the logistics needed to implement the new measures.
“To the motoring public, you have had sufficient warning. If you haven’t already changed your ways, please find alignment with the law before it’s too late,” Smith warned.
