Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis announced the N2 Edge Safety Project following the December 2025 murder of Karin van Aardt on the highway stretch known as the hell run.
The R114-million project includes construction of an 8km concrete wall along the N2 between Cape Town International Airport and the city centre.
City data from July 2025 to January 2026 showed that crime accounted for just 1% of highway emergency calls. The nearby Nyanga police station recorded more than 200 murders annually.
Wits University professor Nicky Falkof described the wall as a symbol of class and race in post-apartheid South Africa. GOOD Party Secretary-General Brett Herron linked the project to apartheid-era spatial planning and underinvestment in townships.
A 2020 study found that urban upgrades such as improved lighting in Khayelitsha reduced interpersonal violence by 34%. Local government elections are approaching.