Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning
With regard to his responsibility to review policies and processes to improve safety through urban and rural planning, design and spatial planning as part of the Western Cape Safety Plan:
Whether he can provide an update regarding progress made; if so, (a) which (i) policies and (ii) processes have been reviewed and (b) what have been the (i) findings and (ii) recommendations of this process?
The responsibility referred to in the question was not intended as a specific target but rather a more general responsibility associated with Minister for Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning in contributing to the challenge of improving safety in the Province in line with the objectives of the WCG Safety Plan.
The underlying question is what can be done at provincial level to improve safety through urban planning and design, and through the mandates and levers that Province have full or partial control over.
Much of the work in the safety domain has been taken forward through the Safety Steering Committee which reports to the Safety Recovery Plan Management Committee (Manco). The approach being followed is a transversal area-based approach and six areas in the City of Cape Town (CoCT) have been identified as pilot areas. Efforts are ongoing to engage officials of the CoCT effectively and efficiently in terms of this process. In terms of pilot areas, a number of non-metro municipalities have also been identified.
The work done in this domain by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning (DEA&DP) is coordinated by the Regional Socio-Economic Projects (RSEP) Programme Office. Through this programme municipalities are assisted with funding, as well as skills and capacity support to design and implement projects aimed at spatial upliftment and urban upgrading in marginalised areas. Many of the projects focus on the interface areas between the poorer neighbourhoods and the central business districts of towns, where residents are moving as pedestrians as part of their journeys between their homes and job opportunities.
The projects seek to restore dignity, create convenience and improve safety by providing well-lit, well-drained and surfaced pathways on these routes. Along the route, other facilities are also provided, such as local economic development units (trader stalls) and “activity safety boxes”. The latter typically entail three storey buildings providing surveillance, and potentially refuge, at key points along high-intensity pedestrian routes. Examples of these projects developed through the RSEP Programme have been developed in Vredenburg, Piketberg, Ceres, Velddrif, Porterville, Malmesbury and Darling.
In terms of lessons learnt it should firstly be recognised that crime and personal harm to our citizens can happen in any location, and often occurs on private property, in people’s homes. The fight against crime therefore requires measures to deter criminal activity, on one hand, and developing a respect for human life and dignity, on the other. This, however, represents a big challenge extending to all departments and all sectors of society.
One of the main practical lessons DEA&DP has learnt through the RSEP Programme is that municipalities often neglect to observe and study where people are walking, what routes and shortcuts they prefer taking, and to identity the dangers and challenges they face along the route. Often there are “hotspots” along the way that can be addressed through relatively cost-effective measures, where safety and convenience benefits will be high relative to the required investment cost. Beyond municipalities benefitting from the RSEP Programme, there is little evidence of approaches focusing on the needs of citizens of poor communities in terms of pedestrian desire lines being implemented by municipalities in the Western Cape. Part of the RSEP Programme work is to employ ‘on-the-ground’ and in-person pedestrian counting and surveys to ensure that design strategies and interventions are informed by local realities and actual experience.
The RSEP Programme is a hub of learning and sharing. Lessons and best practice are shared with all municipalities even those that are not direct Programme beneficiaries, due to budget limitations. Lessons are also shared with (and by) other Provincial Departments in respect of the design of roads, schools, clinics, hospitals and even housing developments.
