Quote:
Originally Posted by yuriandrade
They (and Durban) might have been in the past. Today their central areas are face extreme urban decay and are quite dangerous. That's why I wouldn't say there are walkable.
I'd say, in South Africa, only Cape Town CBD is walkable. Some of their southern suburbs are not very hostile to pedestrian either.
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Most South African cities have a fairly walkable core and occasionally outer suburban district high streets, just Cape Town is the best known as the core never really fell into decay (and the scenery, of course). They also tend to be perceived as quite dangerous and many will tell you to avoid at all costs.
The whole of Johannesburg CBD is quite walkable over an extensive area, though has quite a bad reputation. Sometimes deservedly so, and you do want to know the area well enough to avoid certain parts. Despite this there are still safe, more upscale walkable areas such as Maboneng, most of Braamfontein, Newtown and the area around Gandhi square and the corporate bank offices. More recently developments like Jewel City and the ABSA bank precinct are injecting more affordable middle-class housing into the core. I do know people who live in the CBD and do most of their trips by walking (one lives in the former boardroom of an old bank building!).
https://goo.gl/maps/6CJPxdE65KNc4UYN7
https://goo.gl/maps/vcwHiukLya8A8Zhg7
https://goo.gl/maps/9LB5bmZwnarbYokn9
https://goo.gl/maps/LGjHAKkWpEU7PiWXA
You also have a number of suburban high streets with lots of bars/restaurants:
https://goo.gl/maps/5tjioXrkz1KPR9HC9
https://goo.gl/maps/FEAFaXMHAkBLS6Y7A
https://goo.gl/maps/2Neb1uLA2qG6zPqJA
In terms of new stuff outside the core you have upscale Rosebank as an increasingly walkable area centred around an underground commuter rail station and half outdoor/indoor mall:
https://goo.gl/maps/jp5vvgkCtmzsbBup8
https://goo.gl/maps/PpJfTFLUpauurFgv7
Melrose Arch which is more of a new-urbanist styled mixed use development:
https://goo.gl/maps/9Ds8EDbKKmhLV75S8
I've also walked around the area of Pretoria posted above - Hatfield. It's mostly University students and in close proximity to embassies. Fairly safe as far as SA goes. As I'm sure I've relayed before the only place I've almost been robbed in SA was on Long st in Cape Town (the main tourist street).