City kickstarts pipe replacements with 28 kilometres completed in three months

20 October 2025

Since the start of the 2025/26 financial year in July, the City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Directorate has replaced more than 10 407 m of water pipes and 18 168 m of sewer pipes in communities throughout Cape Town.

This ongoing investment is strengthening Cape Town’s infrastructure to ensure reliable water services and sustainable sewer operations.

The City has again set out to replace 50 000 m of water pipes and 100 000 m of sewer pipes in the current financial year. To achieve this, R589,5 million of the Water and Sanitation budget has been allocated towards this ambitious target.

‘By rehabilitating old infrastructure and swiftly addressing leaks, we can save water and improve the reliability of services. As rapid population densification continues across the metro, network upgrades are essential for reducing pipe bursts and sewer overflows,’ said the City's Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation, Councillor Zahid Badroodien.

Areas where pipe replacement projects are earmarked undergo a comprehensive assessment, which includes: a conditional assessment, determining the current capacity of the system, analysing structural failures logged by depots, and reviewing the frequency of service requests reported by the public.

Progress highlights:

July 2025

• 4 168 m of water pipes were replaced in Wynberg, Macassar, Somerset West, Brackenfell, Robinvale and Saxonsea (Atlantis), Scottsdene, Schoongesig, Boston (Bellville), Claremont and Nooitgedacht.

• 835 m of sewer pipes were replaced in Plumstead.

August 2025:

• 3 788 m of water pipes were replaced in Kuils River, Somerset West, Robinvale and Saxonsea (Atlantis), Scottsdene and Schoongesig.

• 11 585 m of sewer pipes were replaced in Lotus River, Plumstead, Kasselsvlei, Boston (Bellville), Morgenster Heights (Brackenfell), Century City, Kewtown (Athlone) and Parow Industria.

September 2025:

• 2 451 m of water pipes were replaced in Wynberg, Kuils River, Somerset West, Rylands and Boston (Belville).

• 5 748 m of sewer pipes were replaced in Plumstead, Kasselsvlei, Bellville, Morgenster Heights (Brackenfell), Bellville South, Century City, Tygerdal, Kewtown (Athlone) and Parow Industria.

These proactive measures are part of the commitments made in the City’s Water Strategy, which also aims to use water resources more wisely, through effective reticulation network management and improvements in operational efficiencies.

Caption 1: A water pipe replacement project under way in Wynberg, which will see a total of 1 580 m of water pipes replaced.

Caption 2: City teams replace ageing water pipes to reduce water disruptions.

Caption 3: (Dropbox) Water and Sanitation teams install new pipe sections in Wynberg: (From left) Gareth Jansen (City Project Manager), Shameeg Gabriels, Alister Arnolds, Jeremiah Petulo, Robert Lazarp, Ignicious Chaiswei and Taurai Chaiswei.

Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office