Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis visited communities along the N2 airport precinct over the weekend, amid criticism over the City’s plan to construct a security barrier along the highway.
The City in January confirmed plans to allocate R114 million in its adjustment budget for the “N2 Edge Project”, aimed at improving safety for commuters, pedestrians and residents along a 9km stretch of the busy route.
The road has become notorious for frequent smash-and-grab incidents and has been dubbed the “Hell Run”.
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“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,” said Hill-Lewis during a council meeting on 29 January 2026.
According to the City, the project will include safety barrier repairs and reinforcements, new pedestrian crossings, improved lighting and access control, safety barriers for recreational spaces, safer grazing practices and measures to reduce illegal dumping.
Hill-Lewis, who said he had not encountered residents opposed to the project during his visit, maintains the barrier is necessary to protect the hundreds of thousands of motorists who use the N2 daily.
The ANC’s Ndithini Tyhido told SmileFM that the party is completely opposed to the erection of the wall.
He suggests that violence in Cape Town needs to be addressed by a “whole society mobilisation” and not by building a wall.
“What is clear is that the mayor of Cape Town is not familiar with working with cross-section of stakeholders in society in dealing with societal issues. You can’t just wall violent crime away,” said Tyhido
He added that he suspects there’s another agenda at play with the proposal of the wall.
“It is our belief that what has been walled away is not crime, actually it’s the poverty. People feel embarrassed, the mayor feels embarrassed.”
Tyhido added that the mayor interviewed people about the wall but failed to ask questions about what the communities need.
“He did not interview them about whether they needed toilets so that they can stop relieving themselves along the N2, which is a real reason for the City of Cape Town wanting to put the wall across along the N2. So the ANC is opposed to the wall.”
Tyhido said the City’s plans are a “misappropriation of residents’ monies”, which he notes could instead be used for social housing.
“The money that is put for the wall, it can be put to knock down the ever-growing housing waiting list for the city of Cape Town,” said Tyhido.
