Kraaifontein | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 33°50′39″S18°41′55″E / 33.84417°S 18.69861°E | |
Country | South Africa |
Province | Western Cape |
Municipality | City of Cape Town |
Established | 1869-Subdividing farms, 1876- Railway station, 1877-Town development |
Area | |
• Total | 30.82 km2 (11.90 sq mi) |
Population (2011) [1] | |
• Total | 154,615 |
• Density | 5,000/km2 (13,000/sq mi) |
Racial makeup (2011) | |
• Black African | 43.3% |
• Coloured | 40.2% |
• Indian/Asian | 0.4% |
• White | 14.4% |
• Other | 1.7% |
First languages (2011) | |
• Afrikaans | 45.4% |
• Xhosa | 33.4% |
• English | 14.0% |
• Sotho | 2.5% |
• Other | 4.7% |
Time zone | UTC+2 (SAST) |
Postal code (street) | 7570 |
PO box | 7569 |
Area code | +27 (0)21 |
Kraaifontein is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa and is located on the north-eastern outskirts of the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality.
The name originated from the large number of crows (Kraai in Afrikaans) that nest in the region. [2]
In 1869 sub-division of farm land started in the area. A railway station was formed in 1876 called "Kraaifontein Junction", followed by formal town development in 1877. The first school was established on 20 January 1908. The Dutch Reformed Church was founded in 1948. In the same year Kraaifontein got its own local authority. In 1954 the "Volkskerk van Afrika (Translated- The nation's church of Africa)" was founded with BJE Appollis being the first preacher. On 16 September 1957, it became a municipality under the first mayor, JP Rossouw. [3] [4] [5]
Today, Kraaifontein has been incorporated into the Greater Cape Town metropolitan area and is located in Cape Town's northern suburbs flanking the N1 towards Paarl and Worcester to the east. Although being part of the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality, Kraaifontein is still considered a town with its own central business district.
It comprises several residential areas, namely Windsor Park, Scottsville, Peerless Park, Eikendal, Scottsdene, Bloekombos, Wallacedene, Belmont Park, Bonny Brook, and Uitzicht. Libraries are funded and owned by the City of Cape Town. These libraries are Kraaifontein Public Library, Scottsdene Public Library, and Eikendal Public Library. High Schools in the area are Monument Park, Eben Dönges, Bloekombos, Masibambane Secondary School, Simonsberg Primary School, [6] Scottsdene High School, Scottsville High School and Bernadino Heights High School.
Strategically located at the gateway to the Cape Winelands, Kraaifontein is exactly halfway between Cape Town (31 km) and Paarl (29 km) along the N1 highway and is flanked by Durbanville to the north-west and Brackenfell to the west. [7] [8]
Kraaifontein, encompassing the areas of Bernardino Heights, Scottsdene, Scottsville, Wallacedene, Eikendal and Bloekombos, was once a separate municipality before the restructuring of all South African municipalities during the late '90s. These areas, however, are listed as separate suburbs by the City of Cape Town for planning and statistical purposes. [9] Forming part of the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality, it is located in its Subcouncil 2 Area, Bergdal. [10]
Kraaifontein lies at a railway junction (historically known as "Kraaifontein Junction"), situated on the main commuter line between Cape Town and Wellington (Northern Line) and the branch line to Malmesbury, both operated by Metrorail. Metrorail currently operates commuter railway services in Kraaifontein from the Kraaifontein Railway Station (north of the town centre) to Cape Town, Bellville, Brackenfell, Paarl and Wellington on the Northern Line and to Fisantekraal, Klipheuwel and Malmesbury on the Malmesbury branch line.
The N1 is the major freeway that runs through Kraaifontein, routing traffic heading north-west from Cape Town towards Paarl. It enters the town from Brackenfell, bisecting the town and passing through the M15 and M167 before heading towards the Cape Winelands.
The R101 is the original N1, and served the same function before the construction of the freeway. It enters Kraaifontein from Brackenfell as Old Paarl Road, runs through the central business district as Voortrekker Road and leaves Kraaifontein towards Klapmuts and Paarl as Old Paarl Road again.
Kraaifontein is also served by many metropolitan routes. The M15 connects to Durbanville and Stellenbosch (via the M23). The M23 connects to Bellville and Stellenbosch, and barely by-passes Kraaifontein to the south. The M25 connects to Brackenfell and Bellville. The M73 connects to Brackenfell and Durbanville. The M137 runs north–south from Brackenfell to Durbanville and by-passes Kraaifontein to the west.
Kraaifontein is also served internally by the M167 which links the eastern suburbs, namely Joostenberg Vlakte, Kraaifontein Industria and Bloekombos.
The Kraaifontein municipal council assumed a coat of arms, registered it with the Cape Provincial Administration in June 1964, [11] had it granted by the provincial administrator in March 1967, [12] and registered it at the Bureau of Heraldry in September 1969. [13] The arms, designed by Schalk Pienaar, were: Argent, a chevron Gules between in chief two heraldic fountains and in base a bunch of grapes leaved proper (in layman's terms: a silver shield displaying, from top to bottom, two discs divided into wavy white and blue stripes, a red chevron, and a bunch of grapes). The crest was a parson-crow, and the motto Non auro sed virtute. Together the crow (kraai) and the fountains (fonteine) were a pun on the name of the town.
Paarl is a town with 285,574 inhabitants in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is the largest town in the Cape Winelands. Due to the growth of the Mbekweni township, it is now a de facto urban unit with Wellington. It is situated about 60 kilometres (37 mi) northeast of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province and is known for its scenic environment and viticulture and fruit-growing heritage. Paarl is a colonial town founded by Dutch colonists who seized Khoikhoi lands, many Khoi died in the colonisation process. Paarl's colonial society was dependent on enslaved people.
Bellville is a suburb of Cape Town, South Africa, and is part of the city's Northern Suburbs region. Having formerly been an independent city, it was later incorporated into the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality, which is located in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
The R45 is a provincial route in Western Cape, South Africa that connects Saldanha with Villiersdorp via Vredenburg, Malmesbury and Paarl. The route is mostly a two-lane wide-shouldered highway, however sections within Paarl and between Vredenburg and Saldanha are dual-carriageways. The R45 is co-signed with the N7 for a short segment north of Malmesbury.
.
The R302 is a Regional Route in South Africa that connects Bellville with Malmesbury. It covers a distance of 54 kilometres (34 mi) in a north-south direction.
Kuils River is a town in the Western Cape, South Africa, 25 km east of Cape Town and 20 km west of Stellenbosch at the gateway of the Cape Winelands. It is also the name of the main tributary of the Eerste River, and forms part of the Eastern Suburbs zone of the City of Cape Town.
The City of Cape Town is a metropolitan municipality that forms the local government of Cape Town and surrounding areas. As of 2022 it has a population of 4,772,846.
Brackenfell is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, situated on the N1 about 30 km north-east of Cape Town and 35 km south-west of Paarl.
Durbanville, previously called Pampoenkraal, is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, part of the greater Cape Town metropolitan area. It is a semi-rural residential suburb on the north-eastern outskirts of the metropolis surrounded by farms producing wine and wheat.
Milnerton is a seaside town on Table Bay and is located north of Cape Town in South Africa. It is located 11 kilometres to the north of the city's centre.
Malmesbury is a town of approximately 36,000 inhabitants in the Western Cape province of South Africa, about 65 km north of Cape Town.
Metrorail Western Cape is a network of commuter and suburban rail services in the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality and in the surrounding towns of Malmesbury, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Wellington in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
The Northern Line is a commuter rail service in South Africa that in the Cape Town metropolitan area and its surroundings and is operated by Metrorail Western Cape. Northern Line services operate from central Cape Town to Bellville, and then from Bellville along three different routes. The first route runs along the main Cape Town–De Aar railway line to Paarl and Wellington. The second route passes through Stellenbosch to terminate at Muldersvlei station on the main line, while the third also passes through Somerset West to terminate in Strand.
Klapmuts is the name of both a hill, and a town which formed at its foot. They are located in Cape Winelands District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
The R101 is a Regional Route in South Africa that is the designation for some of the old sections of roads that were previously the N1, prior to upgrading. It only has 2 sections, from Bellville to Worcester and from Johannesburg to Polokwane.
The Boland is a region of the Western Cape province of South Africa, situated to the northeast of Cape Town in the middle and upper courses of the Berg and Breede Rivers, around the Boland Mountains of the central Cape Fold Belt. It is sometimes also referred to as the Cape Winelands because it is the primary region for the making of Western Cape wine.
Stellenberg is a suburb in Bellville, Western Cape South Africa.
The Northern Suburbs is a major urban and rural region located in the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is the urban north-eastern part of the Greater Cape Town metropolitan area that is functionally merged with Cape Town.