Catch-up project ramps up trench reinstatements city-wide
24 October 2025
The City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Directorate continues to make solid progress in addressing the backlog of trench reinstatements across the metro. Through a combination of ongoing operational improvements and a dedicated ring-fenced project, the City is steadily moving towards its goal of ensuring that no reinstatement is older than 90 days by June 2026.
Since January 2025, 2 886 reinstatements have been completed city-wide, in addition to those tackled through the Catch-up Project.
In September 2025, the directorate completed 395 trench reinstatements city-wide. This is a 15% increase on the previous month’s output. This consistent performance reflects the positive impact of the directorate’s upscaling strategy, which enables multiple work packages to be rolled out in parallel, improving turnaround times and reducing the backlog.
Under the Catch-up Project, the City’s appointed professional services provider has reviewed 3 096 reinstatement notifications in Region 4, which has the highest backlog. Of these, 2 532 have been repaired, identified as duplicates or found to be erroneously created, while 564 have been assigned for completion. This leaves 4 468 of the original 7 000 reinstatements still to be processed under the project.
‘The progress we’re seeing is the result of deliberate planning, stronger partnerships and better coordination between teams on the ground. We’re on track to get ahead of the backlog and reach our 90-day turnaround target by next winter,’ said Councillor Zahid Badroodien, Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation.
Residents are encouraged to contact their councillor to report any reinstatement that needs to be made safe. The councillor will assist with the escalation of these through internal notification processes.
The City thanks residents for their patience as teams work to restore pavements, driveways and roads safely and efficiently.
Reinstatements are currently under way with work on site in these areas: Fish Hoek, Diep River, Gordon’s Bay, Somerset West, Strand, Macassar, Belhar, Delft, Kuils River, Eerste River, Bluedowns, Blackheath, Brentwood Park, Wesbank, Boston, Blomvlei, Labiance, Kempenville , Oakdale, Shirley Park, Triangle Farm, Elsies River, Ravensmead, Parow Valley, Goodwood, Parow North, De Tyger, Parow, Churchill Estate, Glenlilly, Bothasig, Edgemead, Panorama and Plattekloof.
Reinstatements are planned to take place in these areas over the coming weeks: Grassy Park, Simons Town, Wetton, Zeekovlei, Fish Hoek, Froggy Farm, Glencairn, Hout Bay, Kalk Bay, Kommetjie, Noordhoek, Ocean View, Scarborough, St James, Bergvliet, Constantia, Bishpscourt, Diep River, Oterry, Elfindale, Heathfield, Lakeside, Plumstead, Wynberg, Tokai, Retreat, Steenberg, Gordon’s Bay, Somerset West, Strand, Macassar, Belhar, Delft, Kuils River, Eerste River, Blue Downs, Blackheath, Brentwood Park, Wesbank, Blomvlei, Kempenville, Oakdale, Melkbosstrand, Duynefontein, Mamre, Big Bay, Richwood, Bloubergstrand, Montague Gardens, Sunningdale, Sunridge, Royal Ascot, Sandown, Flamingo Vlei, Rugby, Phoenix, Brooklyn, Century City, Milnerton, Parklands, Table View, Paarden Eiland, Lagoon Beach, Summer Greens, Tijgerhof, West Riding/Beach, Montague Gardens and Flamingo Vlei.Captions: 1 and 2 (Dropbox 3 and 4): Before and after: Recently completed reinstatements in Bo-Oakdale and Oakdale in the Bellville area.
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Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
