The R27 is a

provincial route A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a state or ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

that consists of two disjoint segments. The first segment, also known as the West Coast Highway, connects

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

with

Velddrif Velddrif (the name of the town) or Velddrift (the name of the farm on which the town was established), is a coastal fishing town in the Bergrivier Local Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa. The town had a population 12507 in 2015 and is locat ...

along the West Coast. The second runs from

Vredendal Vredendal () is a town in the northern Olifants River Valley in the Western Cape province of South Africa, with a population (according to the 2001 census) of 16,164 people. It lies north of Cape Town on the banks of the Olifants River at the so ...

via

Vanrhynsdorp Vanrhynsdorp (also written Van Rhynsdorp; ) is a town located in the West Coast District Municipality of the Western Cape province in South Africa. Considered the oldest and most southern European-settled town in Namaqualand, Vanrhynsdorp serves ...

Calvinia Calvinia is a regional town in the Northern Cape province of South Africa named after the French people, French religious reformer Jean Calvin. The town falls under the Hantam Local Municipality which forms part of the Namakwa District Municipalit ...

Brandvlei Brandvlei is a small town in the Karoo region of the Northern Cape, South Africa. This is where a 19th-century trekboer called ''Ou Brand'' settled. Brand camped at this spot at the Sakrivier, a dry river bed, which only occasionally had water ...

and

Kenhardt Kenhardt (founded 1868) is a small town in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. This little town is about 120 km from Upington, the largest town in the area. History On 27 December 1868, special magistrate Maximillian Jackson and a pol ...

Keimoes Keimoes (Khoekhoe: ''Kai mãs'') is a town in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It lies on the Orange River and is about halfway between Upington and Kakamas. History It attained municipal status in 1949. The name of the town translates ...

on the N14 near

Upington Upington () is a town founded in 1873 and located in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, on the banks of the Orange River. The town was originally called Olijvenhoutsdrift ('Olive wood drift'), due to the abundance of olive wood trees i ...

. The connection between Velddrif and Vredendal has never been built, although it can be driven on various

gravel road A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. Gravel roads are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and ...

s. Originally the R27 designation continued beyond

all the way to

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

, but this section became part of the N14 and various other roads. In Cape Town, the highway connects with Table Bay Boulevard ( N1) near the Table Bay Harbor and then runs north along the coast as a stretch that is known as Marine Drive through the coastal town of

Milnerton Milnerton is a seaside town on Table Bay and is located north of Cape Town in South Africa. It is located 11 kilometres to the north of the city's centre. Geography Milnerton lies on the Western Seaboard of Cape Town, also known as the Blaau ...

. This stretch contains many industrial warehouses. As it leaves Milnerton to enter Blouberg, the road moves further inland and the M14 becomes the main coastal road, continuing towards

Melkbosstrand Melkbosstrand (Afrikaans for " Milkbush beach") is a coastal town located on the South West Coast of South Africa, 30 km north of Cape Town. It forms part of the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality, the municipality governing Cape ...

(where it bypasses to the east). Further north the road passes through

West Coast National Park The West Coast National Park lies north of Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The park is found inside of the Cape West Coast Biosphere Reserve, part of the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme. It is bordered by the Atl ...

before reaching Velddrif. The northern segment of the road is exceptionally desolate; it is a distance of from

, and the only towns along the way are

and

Route

First Section

The R27 begins in

(east of the city centre; adjacent to

Table Bay Table Bay (Afrikaans: ''Tafelbaai'') is a natural bay on the Atlantic Ocean overlooked by Cape Town and is at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which stretches south to the Cape of Good Hope. It was named because it is dominated by the fl ...

), at an interchange with the N1 highway. It begins by going northwards as Marine Drive for 13 kilometres, through

, to reach a junction with the M14 road. It then separates

Table View Table View is a West Coast suburb of Cape Town, South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded ...

in the east from

Bloubergstrand Bloubergstrand is a seaside suburb of the City of Cape Town, South Africa, along the shores of Table Bay, due north of the city centre of Cape Town. The name Bloubergstrand literally means "blue mountain beach" in Afrikaans, and is derived ...

in the west and reaches a junction with the M12 road. The R27 heads northwards for 10 kilometres as West Coast Road, through the

Blouberg Nature Reserve Blouberg Nature Reserve is a protected area situated close to Vivo, west of Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province, of South Africa. It covers an area of from the eastern portion of the Blouberg mountain range to the savanna near the Brak ...

, to reach a junction in

, where it meets the M14 road again and the M19 road. It continues northwards for 49 kilometres to leave the

City of Cape Town The City of Cape Town (; ) is a Metropolitan municipality (South Africa), metropolitan municipality that forms the metropolitan municipality (South Africa), local government of Cape Town and surrounding areas. As of 2022 it has a population of ...

and reach a junction with the R315 road east of

Yzerfontein Yzerfontein, or Ysterfontein, is a small harbour town with about 1200 inhabitants on the west coast of South Africa about 90 km north of Cape Town. The name in Afrikaans means "Iron Fountain".The town started out when the farm 'Yzerfontein' ...

. The R27 continues northwards for 49 kilometres, through the

, bypassing

Langebaan Langebaan is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa on the eastern shore of Langebaan Lagoon. Langebaan is situated 120 km north of Cape Town, just off the R27 (Western Cape), R27, about 28 km from Vredenburg and 20 ...

, to reach a junction with the R45 road east of

Vredenburg Vredenburg (; ) is a town of the Cape West Coast in the Western Cape province of South Africa. "Vrede" is Afrikaans for peace. It is the transportation and commercial hub of the West Coast area and administrative centre of the Saldanha Bay Local ...

and west of

Langebaanweg Langebaanweg is a town on the southwest coast of South Africa, in Western Cape Province. It is the location of the air force base AFB Langebaanweg. Langebaanweg has been an important mining center, with its main minerals consisting of phosphor ...

. The R27 heads northwards for 19 kilometres to cross the

Berg River The Berg River (also called Great Berg River or in Afrikaans: Bergrivier) is a river located just north of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. It is approximately 294 km (183 mi) long with a catchment area of and ...

and reach the end of its first stint at a junction with the R399 road in

Second Section

The second section of the R27 begins in

, at a junction with the R363 road. It begins by crossing the Olifants River and meeting the R362 road in Vredendal before heading eastwards for 22 kilometres to cross the N7 national route and enter the town of

. It continues north-east for 50 kilometres to the town of

Nieuwoudtville Nieuwoudtville is a town in Namakwa District Municipality in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The town lies on the Bokkeveld Group, Bokkeveld Escarpment, and was established in 1897. The Nieuwoudtville Falls on the Doring River are lo ...

, where it meets the south-western terminus of the R357 road. It then heads east for 69 kilometres to the town of

, where it meets the R355 road. From Calvinia, the R27 heads eastwards for 26 kilometres to meet the western terminus of the R63 road. Here, it turns to the north-east and heads for 127 kilometres to the town of

, where it meets the R357 road again. It continues north-east for 143 kilometres to the town of

. It continues northwards for 75 kilometres to cross the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/Dutch language, Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibi ...

and reach its end at a junction with the N14 national route in the town of

(39 kilometres south-west of

References

External links

Routes Travel Info
{{DEFAULTSORT:R27 Road (South Africa) 27 27 Provincial routes in South Africa Roads in Cape Town