Email timIan McMahon, C.O.C.T.
Subject; Recent cyclist death, Foreshore, Cape Town.
Hello Ian
I commute fairly regularly from Hout Bay to Paarden Eiland, and have done for a number of years, using the cycle lane that runs roughly along the N1, before cutting through Paarden Eiland, where my business is located.
When the trouble/robberies on the Salt River/Woodstock portion started, largely as a result of homeless people living adjacent to the route, I ceased cycling that ‘portion’, and instead cut through the working harbour, since I have a valid permit, for business purposes.
This option - cutting through the harbour - is not available to 99% of cyclists, and there is a LARGE cohort of cyclists living in the Western Suburbs (Table View, etc), that previously made REGULAR use of this brilliant path, but no longer.
In the court of public opinion, cyclists have been MORE than patient in awaiting resolution, and yes, processes have to be followed.
This gentleman’s death should serve as an urgent catalyst to give effect to - once and for all - URGENTLY clearing out the squatters, repairing the destroyed fencing, AND now looking at possible foot patrols in the area(s) on the Foreshore where opportunistic crime is occurring.
As a side note; the following; when I cycle past Clifton in the dark, there are multiple (private?) security officers keeping an eye on walkers - an excellent initiative.
In closing, Metro police are often, often ‘gathered’, in GROUPS, in cars, chatting away, in many areas that i cycle past. For years, I have thought of the need to ‘divide & rule’, by spreading their resources wider, and NOT concentrating in a few, convenient-to-them spots.
Kind regards
Christopher Grinton
Hout Bay / Paarden Eiland
