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The City of Cape Town (CoCT) has invited the public to comment on its 2040 local spatial development framework (LSDF) for the CBD.

According to CoCT, by 2040 the CBD would need to accommodate an extra 40,000–50,000 residential units, and this demand will need to be controlled by land-use and spatial policies and regulations.

Decisions on land use, development, density, transit, and urban planning will be guided by the LSDF in order to “ensure that the CBD transitions into a more sustainable, equitable, inclusive, liveable, and resilient space,” it will also guide public infrastructure investment.

“The LSDF intends to transform the CBD into an environment that is more people-centred with urban design interventions to improve mobility and access for pedestrians, efforts to optimise heritage areas, a public land programme to inform land release in support of affordable housing opportunities, and an appropriately scaled urban form and interface to encourage mixed-use intensification,” explains deputy mayor Eddie Andrews.

“There is no doubt that the CBD is key to Cape Town’s future resilience and economic health and that there is an opportunity to fully optimise the CBD’s existing characteristics, such as its unique sense of place with the Atlantic ocean and Table Mountain, its diverse cultural heritage and vibrancy.”

The LSDF study area is the core economic area of the CBD, bounded by Helen Suzman Drive/FW de Klerk Boulevard to the north; Nelson Mandela Drive and Sir Lowry Road to the east; Mill Street/Orange Street to the south; and Buitengracht street to the west.

The area is divided into eight precincts, namely De Waterkant; Convention District, Mid-City, Company Gardens, East Foreshore, Cape Town Station, East City and Lower Gardens.

A suggested implementation framework designating ‘priority precincts’ and a plan of action are included in the draft LSDF paper. This comprises, among other things, planned initiatives to guarantee the CBD’s attractiveness as a travel and investment destination, improvements to public squares and streetscapes, and public investment priority on roads, non-motorised transportation, and public transportation to increase mobility.

The LSDF also notes that there is not enough transportation to and from the city for commuters from beyond the CBD, necessitating the revival of passenger rail as the cornerstone of the city’s public transport system. In the CBD, cars continue to be the primary mode of transportation in the absence of alternatives and according to data that was accessible in 2022, 513 536 Capetonians made daily trips to the CBD.

An estimated 155,410 commuters used public transit to get to the Cape Town CBD, compared to 358,126 private drivers (with an average of 1.4 people per car).

The draft LSDF also goes into detail on other public transport options, such as commuter ferries, bicycles, and trams.