There are no fewer than 57 major roads in Cape Town with at least one fixed speed camera placed somewhere along the route, and many actually have more than one.
This is according to the Speed Camera Data Base (SCBD), a website that catalogues the location and speed requirement for every camera in more than 111 countries around the world.
What to be aware of
There are three different types of speed cameras in use across South Africa, but the one that most road users will be most familiar with is fixed cameras.
These devices are typically painted bright yellow for visibility and are placed at strategic locations along popular roads.
Fixed traps typically employ one of two methods to capture a vehicle’s speed, the first of which is piezoelectric strips that are laid out across the road surface.
The strips are able to read mechanical or thermal inputs from cars passing overhead, which are converted to electrical signals that are communicated to the camera nearby.
If a person is speeding when they drive over the strip, it will trigger the device to take a photo of the car and its plates.
Alternatively, there are radar-based systems which transmit radio waves at passing vehicles, which are then bounced back to the camera.
This allows the device to map a change in frequency as a car travels over a monitored distance, letting it determine whether the individual is speeding.
To issue a fine, fixed cameras must record the following data points:
- Date of offence
- Time of offence
- Location code
- Speed measured
- No obstructions apparent
- At least two photographs indicating the vehicle’s position with a clear image of the number plate
If this information is not provided, a fine may be considered invalid.
It is also important to note that fixed cameras are not required to have sign placements warning of an upcoming speed trap.
Cape Town is evidently rather fond of using fixed cameras as a deterrent to prevent motorists from exceeding the legal speed limit with traffic fines, as there are a considerable 57 different roads that have at least one of these devices.
The vast majority are placed along the route to record vehicles driving too fast, though a few of them are situated at intersections for monitoring cars skipping red lights.
You can see a list of every road with a fixed speed trap below. Note that longer roads may have several cameras with different speed requirements, which is denoted by the entries with multiple speed listings:
| Location | Speed limit |
|---|---|
| A Z Berman Drive | 60km/h |
| Beach Road | 50km/h | 60km/h |
| Bosmansdam Road | 60km/h | Red light |
| Bottelary Road | Red light |
| Boyes Drive | 60km/h |
| Brighton Road | 80km/h |
| Buitengracht Street | 60km/h |
| Buttskop Road | Red light |
| De La Rey Road | 60km/h |
| Durbanville Road | 80km/h |
| Frans Conradie Drive | 60km/h |
| Govan Mbeki Road | 60km/h |
| Helen Suzman Boulevard | 50km/h |
| Jakes Gerwel Drive | 60km/h |
| Jan Smuts Drive | 60km/h |
| Kasselsvlei Road | 60km/h |
| Klipfontein Road | 60km/h |
| Kloof Nek Road | 60km/h |
| Kromboom Road | Red light |
| M12 | 60km/h |
| M16 | 60km/h |
| M28 | 60km/h |
| M29 Akkerboom Avenue | 60km/h |
| M31 | 60km/h |
| M5 | 60km/h |
| M57 | 60km/h |
| M65 Kommetjie Road | 60km/h |
| M7 | 60km/h |
| M9 | 60km/h |
| Modderdam East Road | 70km/h |
| Morgenster Road | 60km/h |
| Main Road | 60km/h |
| N2 | 70km/h | 80km/h | 120km/h |
| Okavango Road | 60km/h |
| Old Oak Road | 60km/h |
| Old Paarl Road | 60km/h |
| Old Sir Lowry’s Pass Road | 60km/h |
| Ottery Road | 60km/h |
| Otto du Plessis Drive | 60km/h | 70km/h |
| Philadelphia Road | 70km/h |
| Philip Kgosana Drive | 60km/h |
| Prince George Drive | 70km/h |
| R102 | 80km/h |
| R27 | 120km/h |
| R44 | 60km/h |
| R44 Gordon’s Bay Drive | 60km/h |
| Race Course Road | 60km/h |
| Ratanga Road | 60km/h |
| Retreat Road | 60km/h |
| Robert Sobukwe Road | 60km/h | 70km/h |
| Rooivalk Close | 60km/h |
| Spine Road | 60km/h |
| Stellenbosch Road | 80km/h |
| Tygerberg Valley Road | 60km/h |
| Union Avenue | 60km/h |
| Van Riebeeck Road | 60km/h |
| Victoria Street | 60km/h |
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