The Upgrading of Chapman's Peak Drive

Chapman’s Peak Drive between Noordhoek and Hout Bay on the Atlantic Coast on the south-western tip of South Africa is one of the most spectacular marine drives in the world. The 9 km route with its 114 curves skirts Chapman Peak, the 593 m southerly extension of Constantiaberg and follows the rocky coastline to unfold stunning views in both directions.

Work on the road began in 1915 after engineers, geologists and surveyors determined the best route along the soft band of shale between the mountain’s granite base and the overlying sandstone. This stretch was blasted into the mountain side and is a masterpiece of road construction. The route was formally opened in 1922. The route starts at the picturesque fishing harbour of Hout Bay and the climb winds steeply up to Chapman's Point, revealing breathtaking views of the sandy bays down below, until the road reaches sea level again at Noordhoek.

Rock falls were a constant threat and the road often had to be closed.  A series of unfortunate events lead to the closing of Chapman’s Peak Drive in January 2000. Understandably, the authorities have been placed under tremendous pressure to open up one of the Cape's most scenic routes. Following the closure of Chapman's Peak Drive, a Project Management Team (PMT) was established to manage and oversee the process of upgrading Chapman's Peak Drive.

The reopening of Chapman’s Peak Drive is the culmination of one of the most innovative road engineering projects ever to be undertaken in South Africa. The upgrading (or rather reconstruction) of Chapman’s Peak Drive is indeed an engineering feat that will for many years be regarded as one of the top road engineering projects in the country.

In order to design rockfall protection measures, extensive rockfall modelling was required. Three-dimensional simulations of rock falls were undertaken in association with Swiss specialists at an intensity and scale never attempted before. The input required for this modelling included a very detailed DTM and the interpretation of very high-resolution aerial photography to undertake an engineering geological classification of the mountainous ground above Chapman’s Peak Drive.

The rockfall protection measures that were implemented at Chapman’s Peak Drive were selected on the basis of what is considered to be best international practice and consist of the following components:

Catch fences
Half tunnel
Slope stabilisation
Concrete canopy structures

Teams worked around the clock to ensure that the opening-to-traffic deadline was met at midnight 19 December 2003. Now the local population, international tourists, the Argus Tour cyclists, the Two Oceans runners and many others can once again experience the beauty of one of the most dramatic scenic routes in the world.

For more information visit http://www.chapmanspeakdrive.co.za

The Cape Town Partnership

The Cape Town Central City Improvement District (CID) was established in November 2000, following an extensive user research project conducted in the Cape Town Central City, which highlighted crime and grime as the two major disincentives to success and growth in the Central City. The mission of the Cape Town Partnership strives to develop, manage and promote the Cape Town Central City as a place for all and a leading centre for commercial, retail, residential, cultural, tourism, education, entertainment and leisure activities.

Some of the core functions of The Partnership are to:

- Broaden access to the benefits and opportunities in the Central City for all the people of Cape Town
- Consolidate the Central City as the productive heart of the Cape Town metropolitan region
- Mobilise the public and private sectors and other stakeholders around common development objectives

Investment and Development Facilitation

The Partnership focuses on attracting domestic and foreign investment into the Central City by networking with property owners, developers, brokers, investors and bankers, as well as statutory planning authorities.

Tourism

Cape Town is one of the world’s most beautiful cities, offering the famous Table Mountain, Robben Island, Cape Point, Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, and Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens.  Strong tourism growth is expected to see an additional 300 000 overseas tourists arrive over the next three years over and above the current 1-million overseas tourists.  The recently opened Cape Town International Convention Centre is boosting business tourism and an expansion plan for the Convention Centre is under consideration.

For more detailed information, please visit http://www.capetowncid.co.za