Cape Town: The Urban Mobility Directorate in collaboration with the Water and Sanitation Directorate is busy in replacing 100-year-old bulk water mains in the Philippi and Browns Farm areas. The replacement is done with a brand-new bulk water main and reticulation main as part of the City’s infrastructure roll-out for the MyCiTi bus service in the metro south-east.
The two new water mains will serve residents in a large part of Cape Town and the reticulation main will secure water provision for at least the next 60 years and beyond to the communities of Philippi East, Philippi, Gugulethu and other communities, adjacent to Govan Mbeki Road.
City of Cape Town is using the opportunity to replace the aged water services infrastructure along Govan Mbeki Road while major works are under way to upgrade this route for the MyCiTi bus service. The existing bulk water main is over a century old and is being replaced with a 4.6km new bulk water main. The bulk water main will serve the residents living in the southern peninsula.
The new reticulation mains that are being installed, cover a section of 4.6km along both the northern and southern verge of Govan Mbeki Road between the intersections with NY72 and Klipfontein Road. The reticulation mains will serve the communities of Philippi, Philippi East, Gugulethu and surrounding communities.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Urban Mobility – Councillor Rob Quintas stated that the investment in the roll-out of the MyCiTi bus service to the metro south-east goes far beyond the delivery of buses. They are using every opportunity to replace, relocate and repair existing underground services such as:
- water and sewer mains
- high voltage electricity cables, and
- stormwater infrastructure as part of this project
Most of these services are located under existing roads, and thus, it only makes sense to do the necessary repairs and replacements while they are working on the roads.
Cllr Rob Quintas said that this investment in keeping Capetonians moving also ensures that the surrounding communities and all of Cape Town benefit from new services infrastructure that will last them another six to ten decades. In doing so, they are securing services provision to the growing population and strengthening the water infrastructure.
Once the water mains are fully installed, they become the property of the Water and Sanitation Directorate who will be responsible for the management and maintenance of these assets. The second phase of the MyCiTi bus service will provide communities from the metro south-east with a scheduled, affordable and dignified bus service to Wynberg and Claremont. If all goes as planned, the first buses will start operating in the latter half of 2027.