The City of Cape Town is rolling out an expanded free park and ride service on Saturday, 7 September 2024, as the Mother City hosts four-time Rugby World Cup champions, the Springboks, for their Castle Lager Rugby Championship game against New Zealand at the DHL Stadium.

A sold-out crowd is expected at the DHL Stadium for the 5pm kick-off as the Springboks return to play in Cape Town for the first time since their victory against Wales in front of a 52 000 strong crowd in 2022.

It is also the first time the Springboks go head-to-head with the All Blacks in the Mother City since 2017.

‘Cape Town is a city united in pride and excitement as we prepare to host our world champion Bokke for this historic clash against our greatest rivals. To support this major event, the city is pleased to announce an expanded and free MyCiTi shuttle service for spectators,’ said Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.

This will cover fans from Century City, the University of Cape Town (UCT), Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC
), Thibault Square and Civic Centre stations.

Stadium gates are expected to open at 12:30pm ahead of the curtain raiser between the Springbok Women against the Barbarian Women at 1:30pm.

The first shuttle from all pick-up points will depart at 12pm.

At the Civic Centre, the city will open its 475 parking bays for ticketed rugby fans on a first-come, first-served basis from 11am.

The free parking areas are accessible from Hertzog Boulevard and Civic Road.

The shuttle service from UCT’s Upper Campus and Century City Steelbridge E-parking will operate until 4:45pm to ensure that all spectators get to the event before the kick-off of the Springbok game at 5pm.

At UCT, spectators can park on the Upper Campus and catch the shuttle at the UCT Shuttle North Stop (beside the dam).

Century City Steelbridge E-Parking will have 500 free parking bays for match ticket holders on a first-come, first-served basis. The parking area on Century Boulevard will be monitored by security but is at the owner’s risk.

On-stree
t parking in the CBD is available for free from 1pm.

The last return bus from the stadium to the pick-up points leaves at 9:30pm.

‘With the game sold out, we anticipate our roads will be congested on match day. But working with the event organiser, we have provided alternatives to single-occupancy vehicles to ensure people avoid being stuck in traffic.

‘We would like to encourage spectators to make use of the park and ride system to alleviate the pressure on the roads,’ said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith.

However, according to Smith, parking around the stadium is limited and people are discouraged from parking illegally in the residential areas.

‘Illegally parked vehicles will be fined and/or towed away. We are deploying our safety and security personnel to work with SAPS in taking care of safety at this event. This is a wonderful occasion that a lot of people have been anticipating for some time. Let’s work together to make it a seamless and memorable experience for
all,’ Smith added.

Meanwhile, a dedicated e-hailing area will be established on P13 on Greenpoint Main Road between York Road and Wigtown Road.

Residents and motorists are advised that several roads will be closed and restricted on Saturday.

Source: South African Government News Agency