Don’t be a creep, resist the urge, and stay behind the line
27 October 2025
The City’s Urban Mobility Directorate is kicking off its ‘Don’t be a Creep’ campaign today, 27 October 2025, which will continue into the upcoming festive season when Cape Town’s roads are extremely busy. Creeping impedes traffic flow through intersections, causes congestion, and is a contravention of the Traffic Rules.
Motorists are often tempted to creep over the line and block intersections when there is not enough time to move through the intersection or fully clear the intersection before the traffic signal turns red. This often happens during peak periods, when roads are already busy and most of us become impatient to get to our destinations.
‘Creeping makes congestion worse and tempers flare. We often see that motorists creep over the line into the area that should always be clear for turning vehicles, pedestrians, and other motorists to pass through the signalised intersection when it’s their turn to go. When this happens, they effectively block the intersection for all traffic and then everybody is trapped in a gridlock situation. I often see this in the Cape Town central business district at key intersections on exit routes, and along other arterial routes such as the M3. This type of behaviour is unacceptable and illegal, and worst of all makes our roads unsafe for everybody. Most seriously, this can be the difference between life and death, when emergency vehicles are unable to reach crisis scenes in time. That’s why we are saying: Don’t be a creep, and help keep Cape Town moving,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Councillor Rob Quintas.
The ‘Don’t be a Creep’ campaign is intended to educate motorists about the dangers of creeping and the associated impact on road users; remind them to wait behind the intersection line until it is safe and their turn to go; and to keep intersections and crosswalks clear.
Signage alerting motorists to refrain from blocking intersections has also been installed at various points along arterials where creeping is often observed.
The City also wants to remind road users to help us keep Cape Town moving by reporting faulty traffic signals:
On the City of Cape Town APP
Call the customer call centre on 0860 103 089
Provide the street address and the area; and if possible, the identification number on the control box at the intersection
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
