Cape Town prepares for festive season

"Citizens and visitors can be reassured by the ongoing security capacity of the CCID. Public safety officers (PSOs) will be on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week," says Tasso Evangelinos, chief operations officer of CCID.

He stressed that the crime prevention initiatives put in place by the CCID meant that visitors to Cape Town's CBD can enjoy South Africa's finest, including its range of cultural attractions, entertainment and retail experience, with ease and peace of mind.

Increase in retailers

"Visitors that do not regularly frequent the central city will notice many increased opportunities to enjoy the area both on foot and via the new MyCiTi bus routes, as the CBD becomes more user-friendly. This has resulted in an increase of retailers choosing to be based in the central city, as well as more and more coffee shops and restaurants which are opening up and spilling onto the street, creating a vibrant buzz in the Mother City's 'downtown'," says Evangelinos.

However, as with any metropolis, it is always wise to be vigilant and aware of your surroundings to ensure your safety when out and about. "If you see something suspicious, don't ignore it; report it to a CCID PSO via our 24/7 hotline number, 082 415 7127. This will assist us in addressing an issue right away," says Evangelinos.

"Increased safety awareness will be in place the central city, especially over the festive season in anticipation of the popularity of this area during the holidays. We are focusing on existing and new tourist spots as well as the residential and business areas of the CBD," says Muneeb Hendricks, safety and security manager for the CCID.

Cyclops plays integral role

The City of Cape Town's Strategic Surveillance Unit (known as Cyclops), which controls the security cameras dotted around the central city, plays an integral part in the CCID's security and crime prevention. "Not only does Cyclops provide information to the security situation on the ground, but also assists with fire prevention and detection, traffic management, responses to medical incidents and detecting infringement of by-laws, to name but a few," says Hendricks. "It even passes on information such as when a traffic light is out of order or a street light has been broken."

With the role of a City Improvement District being to provide top-up services in addition to those provided by other primary agencies, the CCID provides support to the South African Police Service and the city's own law enforcement team. In instances where crime has occurred, the CCID officer's role is to stabilise and secure the scene before other law enforcement agents arrive, and as a result its PSOs have now become in most cases the first responders on the scene in the central city, with a response time of under five minutes.

The CCID's PSOs operate on foot patrols, via a bicycle squad and in CCID-branded vehicles and can be identified by their black uniforms, green bibs and caps and distinctive CCID logos.