Cape Town’s plan to fix its most dangerous road

The City of Cape Town plans to build a new wall on the N2 highway to combat violent attacks on motorists.

The N2 is one of the city’s most important routes, serving as the main road connecting the CBD to Cape Town International Airport and surrounding towns like Somerset West and Stellenbosch.

Over the years, the N2 has garnered an infamous reputation over the frequency of attacks committed on motorists by criminals in the surrounding townships, earning it the nickname “the hell run.”

Opportunistic thieves often take advantage of heavy congestion to rob motorists when traffic is slow moving.

Others have adopted more extreme tactics, throwing stones from the side of the road to smash windscreens, blocking off-ramps, putting makeshift spikes in the road to puncture tyres, and even hurling bricks and concrete slabs from the overhead pedestrian bridges to damage cars and injure occupants.

The goal is typically to force drivers to pull over, allowing criminals to rob the car. Accomplices will sometimes pull up in another car and attempt to box in the victim, claiming the person needs to stop because they hit a pedestrian.

These actions have led to deaths and severe injuries for motorists travelling to and from the airport.

Vergelegen managing director Wayne Coetzer stated that many of his staff have been victims of rock throwing and smash-and-grab attacks on the N2.

He highlighted that the road is particularly dangerous for tourists who are unaware of the risks they face when leaving the airport.

While locals are familiar with the “hell run” and are generally vigilant when driving through the area, international visitors are far more likely to be duped by criminals using violent and manipulative tactics.

“My biggest concern is not only our people who drive that road daily, but the tourists,” Coetzer told Biznews.

“Every international buyer, every wine lover, has to use that road. If something happens to them, it turns off the taps for every hospitality business in this valley.”

“Tourists have died, South Africans have been shot after stopping on the roadside, and countless unreported attacks make the official statistics meaningless.”

Plans for a new barrier along the N2

In December 2025, Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis announced plans for a new security project to curb violence against motorists on the N2.

The project’s aim is to construct a new high-security wall between the highway and the surrounding areas, making it much harder for criminals to attack road users before quickly disappearing into the surrounding townships.

For years, the City of Cape Town has argued that the N2 highway falls under the domain of the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) and the provincial government.

Sanral is responsible for maintaining the national road’s footbridges, fences, and road mediums.

However, Hill-Lewis stated that the persistent violence on the N2 has forced the city to intervene.

The mayor confirmed that the city will construct a new security wall along the section of the N2 near the airport.

The project has an estimated cost of R180 million, with funding to be earmarked as part of the city’s upcoming medium-term revenue and expenditure framework.

The announcement has been met with mixed reception by various organisations and political parties.

The Freedom Front Plus welcomed the decision, stating it would help to improve traveller safety.

Local community leaders and the South African Human Rights Commission, on the other hand, have condemned the wall, arguing that it will entrench apartheid-era spatial planning and that the R180 million should be spent on community upliftment projects to alleviate poverty and reduce crime.