The public could one day experience their morning commute above the streets through an ambitious plan to create a brand-new elevated commuter railway that runs through the heart of the Cape Town.
The project has received a major boost, following the announcement that the Foreshore Freeway will finally be completed.
Bridge project
Last week, Cape Town Executive Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis unveiled a massive plan to finish construction on the city’s famous 50-year-old unfinished bridges.
The Foreshore Precinct Project aims to reclaim 15 hectares of underutilised land, transforming the area into a vibrant new neighbourhood featuring a seaside promenade while drastically improving central urban traffic flow.
This redevelopment has been welcomed by the team behind the Capetrain Express, a viral transit proposal designed to link Woodstock, the Cape Town CBD, Green Point, and Sea Point via an elevated “sky train.”
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In a public statement, the project’s developers hailed the city’s initiative as a “generational investment in the lower CBD.”
The project’s minds are encouraged by Mayor Hill-Lewis’s public remarks expressing in-principle, conditional support for the Capetrain Express, subject to it proving its long-term financial viability.
Railway line
Crucially, the Mayor confirmed that the new Foreshore precinct has been planned with sufficient spatial allocation to accommodate a future railway line.
Envisioned by South African development engineer Gareth Ramsay, the proposed route intends to build a high-capacity rail corridor utilising existing road infrastructure.
The network would include crucial transit hubs near the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) and the Cape Town Stadium, seamlessly integrating with the existing MyCiTi bus service to provide a vital last-mile transport solution.
According to Ramsay, the system would accommodate the rapid densification of the Atlantic Seaboard and the Waterfront’s Granger Bay expansion without exacerbating gridlock.
The proposed corridor directly aligns with the City of Cape Town’s Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Strategic Framework and its 2050 Long-Term Plan, which sets a strict benchmark for over 75% of all commuter trips to be made via public transport by 2050.
While the City previously stated in 2024 that the plan was not under viable consideration due to budgetary constraints and existing MyCiTi infrastructure, the latest Foreshore layout changes offer a fresh runway for structural collaboration.
The Capetrain Express team has expressed readiness to engage in upcoming public consultation processes to demonstrate how the financially viable rail link can successfully expand access to jobs and economic opportunity as the metropolitan population approaches an estimated 10 million residents by the middle of the century.
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