The construction of Cape Town’s first Sky Circle will commence later this month. To enable the construction work, the signalised intersection at Govan Mbeki Road (M9) and Jan Smuts Drive (M17) in Lansdowne will be converted into a temporary traffic circle on the weekend of 15 March 2025. A huge crane will be installed in the middle of the traffic circle. Road users are advised to avoid this intersection over this weekend as there will be lane closures and traffic delays.

This freestanding elevated Sky Circle in Lansdowne forms part of the roll-out of the MyCiTi bus service to connect Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha with Wynberg and Claremont, and is the first of its kind in South Africa.

The conversion of the signalised four-way intersection at Govan Mbeki Road (M9) and Jan Smuts Drive (M17) will happen on the weekend of 15 March 2025. Lane closures are planned and road users are advised to avoid this intersection as from 08:00 on Saturday, 15 March 2025, until 17:00 on Sunday, 16 March 2025.

Road users must please take note of the following:

• Lane closures are planned from 08:00 on Saturday, 15 March 2025, until 17:00 on Sunday, 16 March 2025, to allow preparations for the conversion
• It is best to avoid this intersection altogether over this weekend as there will be delays
• As from 17:00 on Sunday, 16 March 2025, road users will be entering the intersection through a traffic circle
• The traffic circle will be in place until the building work on the Sky Circle has been completed – the project is estimated to take about 18 months
• The signalised intersection will be reinstated once the overhead construction of the Sky Circle has been completed

‘The Sky Circle Project is part of the roll-out of the second phase of the MyCiTi bus service to connect commuters from Khayelitsha, Mitchells Plain, and various other communities across the metro-south east with Claremont and Wynberg. The project started in July 2022 and we are now beyond the halfway mark. The free standing elevated circle will be the first in South Africa, demonstrating civil engineering at its best, and we are so proud to see this happening right here, in Cape Town,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Councillor Rob Quintas.

How to use the traffic circle

The four-way intersection will be converted into a ground level traffic circle to accommodate vehicular traffic to and from Nyanga, Strandfontein, Wynberg and Athlone.

• Advance warning signage and flashing orange lights will be in place, informing road users that there is a traffic circle ahead
• Signage will inform road users to choose their lane well in advance
• A speed limit of 20km/h will apply while moving around the traffic circle
• Rumble strips will be installed along the four approaches to the traffic circle as a further warning sign and to bring down travelling speeds
• Given the scaffolding to enable the construction work, road users will not be able to see what is happening on the other side of the traffic circle once they have entered the roundabout
• Given the low speed limit, and the fact that it will take time for all to get used to navigating the traffic circle, some delays should be anticipated
• Traffic flow will be impacted, and road users are advised to plan accordingly
• Pedestrian crossings will be provided at a safe distance from the traffic circle
• Flag personnel will be on site to guide pedestrians

‘The metro-south east MyCiTi expansion is the biggest financial investment in public transport by any metro to date. The Sky Circle will be constructed on the traffic circle, meaning, every time road users and residents go around the traffic circle they will witness the progress of this engineering achievement. I urge all road users to approach this intersection with caution, to slow down and adhere to the warning signs, and to always follow the flag personnel’s instructions.

‘Again, road users will need time to adapt to using the temporary traffic circle and as a result, there will be traffic delays. The inconvenience is unfortunate, and I want to thank the public for their ongoing support and patience. Road construction projects always bring some level of disruption as we need to accommodate traffic while we are busy improving the infrastructure to keep Captonians moving,’ said Councillor Quintas.