The City of Cape Town has announced that the Sea Point Promenade will remain open for all recreational activities, including cycling.
Earlier this year, the City asked residents for feedback on a proposal to make the promenade, which runs from Mouille Point to the pavilion swimming pool, a pedestrian-only zone, and received nearly 2000 responses.
The Atlantic Sun has been following the story since the plan to reserve the Promenade for pedestrians was first proposed earlier this year (“Plan to ban wheels from promenade”, March 17; and “Cycling on the promenade gets green light”, May 12).
The City’s Recreation and Parks Department is now responsible for managing the promenade.
“Our residents spoke loud and clear: they want the promenade to be open to all, be it for walking or jogging, or cycling, and we have heard them,” said the City’s mayoral committee member for urban mobility, Rob Quintas.
“The majority of submissions did not agree with the proposal to ban cyclists and motorised devices from the promenade. Thus, the proposal that the promenade be reserved for the exclusive use of pedestrians only, is off the table. I want to thank all who have participated in this process, for attending the open days, and submitting comments.”
The Urban Mobility Directorate recommended the following:
- That bicycles, skateboards and rollerblades are permitted on the promenade
- The use of e-bikes and e-scooters is also permitted, subject to the approval by the City’s Recreation and Parks Department who manages public open spaces – including the promenade – in the Cape Town metro
- The sidewalk along Beach Road, adjacent to the promenade, is for the exclusive use of pedestrians
The report on the results of the public involvement process and the suggestions for managing the promenade are as follows:
- Determine the requirements and conditions for the use of e-bikes, scooters and e-scooters
- That the department undertakes an awareness campaign to inform users that the promenade is a shared space
- To install new updated signage to inform the public of the permitted uses and restrictions on the promenade
“We note these recommendations and will give the public feedback on our progress. The Sea Point Promenade is close to Capetonians’ hearts. We will work with our residents to ensure everybody feels welcome here, and safe, regardless of the physical activity they may do,” said the City’s mayoral committee member for community services and health, Patricia van der Ross.
According to Nicola Jowell, the councillor for Ward 54, the City’s Recreation and Parks department still has plenty of work to do.
“The challenge remains to look at ways to increase safety for all promenade users and to minimise the possibilities for conflict and injury. The report from Urban Mobility does make a number of recommendations to the Recreation and Parks Department and this will be assessed by the department for implementation,” Ms Jowell said.
“The Safety and Security Directorate has done operations in the area and fines have been issued previously, not on the Promenade walkway itself but on the pavement. This is a renewed reminder that the pavement is a space for the exclusive use of pedestrians and we appeal to all users of bicycles, scooters etc to remain off the pavement area,” she said.
