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The Sea Point Promenade is Cape Town’s open-air playground: part running track, part meeting place and one of the best free spots in the city to walk, cycle, exercise or simply watch the Atlantic roll in.
This popularity, however, means pedestrians increasingly share a busy public space with bicycles, e-bikes, e-scooters and larger motorised rental devices.
Now, the City of Cape Town is moving to slow things down.
A new Sea Point Promenade Management Protocol will introduce an 8km/h speed limit in shared pedestrian areas, give pedestrians the right of way, and impose stronger restrictions on reckless riding and high-powered devices.
Are the new speed limit rules enough?
The tension between different Promenade users is not new. In 2022, the City considered making the stretch between Mouille Point and the Sea Point Pavilion exclusively pedestrian. A five-month investigation found that approximately 90 percent of users were pedestrians or joggers.
That proposal was dropped after nearly 2,000 public submissions, with most respondents supporting continued access for cyclists and other recreational users. However, concerns about speeding, collisions and the safety of children, older people and people with disabilities remained unresolved. There has also been a rapid growth of electric rental devices on the promenade.
"The Sea Point Promenade is one of Cape Town’s most loved public spaces, but it has also become one of our busiest," says Councillor Francine Higham, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health.
"These measures provide clear, practical rules that protect pedestrians while allowing responsible use of electric mobility devices."
It has also renewed calls to restrict the area to pedestrians only, with concerns that enforcement of the rules won't be enough to ensure safer conditions on this popular strip.
What are the new Sea Point Promenade rules?
- The speed limit in shared pedestrian areas will be 8km/h
- Pedestrians will have right of way at all times
- Racing, reckless riding and weaving through crowds will be prohibited
- Riders will have to dismount at identified congestion points
- Only one person will be allowed on each device
- Riding on grassed areas will not be permitted
- Age, supervision and safety requirements will apply
- Identification is required for commercial rental devices
- Restrictions on oversized and high-powered devices, with operating-hour and event-specific controls.
The protocol will officially be published, and new signage will be installed along the Promenade by the end of August 2026. These signs will identify speed limits, pedestrian-priority sections, dismount points and no-riding areas.
A formal compliance process for rental operators is also expected by September, according to the city. Operators may be required to verify speed controls, carry public liability cover, report incidents and prevent devices from being stored or collected illegally on public land. Warnings, fines and impoundment may follow where authorised.
Ensuring a world-class experience for all
The new safety measures follow the completion of upgrades to the Promenade and Granger Bay area in 2025. These introduced improved and additional walkways, coastal landscaping, a revamped parking area, a new play space and infrastructure to improve drainage and coastal resilience.
The ongoing upgrades across the city's coastal spaces aim to make these areas more accessible and inviting. Yet, in the case of Sea Point, they do not directly address the issue of safety amid growing pedestrian traffic.
The latest protocol is intended to keep the Promenade open to a range of recreational users while reinforcing its primary role as a pedestrian public space.
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