The Lanseria Smart City promised a new way of living for 350,000 to 500,000 South Africans. However, years later, it is still only open veld and informal settlements with shacks.
The new smart city gained prominence after President Cyril Ramaphosa promoted it in his 2020 State of the Nation Address. While Ramaphosa first mentioned it in 2020, the Lanseria Smart City has its origins in 2007, when it was still known as Cradle City.
Cradle City was set to be the first South African city built around an airport, which has been achieved successfully overseas. The developers said the new Cradle City will be conveniently located with excellent infrastructural and transport links.
The project gained traction, and Crosspoint and the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements planned to implement the Lanseria Airport City Mega Project over ten years.
Crosspoint has also partnered with the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) to develop the 90-hectare Lanseria Business District as part of the project. The draft master plan for the Greater Lanseria Growth Node was released for public comment in November 2020.
It highlighted that the new smart city is a joint initiative of the Presidency, the Office of the Gauteng Premier, the City of Tshwane, the City of Johannesburg, and Mogale City. The aim is to create the first post-apartheid city in South Africa based on best practices in urban sustainability and the principles underpinning the smart city.
The city would be built surrounding Lanseria International Airport, north of Johannesburg, in a project which would take around 25 years to complete. Sitting in the centre of the development, the airport will be the main economic driver for the city’s growth. Strong residential growth in the surrounding areas is expected which would be supported by improvements to existing roads.
The Lanseria Smart City is set to be an innovative, sustainable, and green environment designed to “interface with nature” to ensure minimal environmental impact. It aims to move urban sustainability beyond existing planning, engineering, and urbanisation paradigms to increasingly appropriate levels of sustainability and innovation. There is a strong focus on limiting the need to commute using cars. It wants the city’s residents to use walking, cycling, and public transport. In planning terms, people must be able to walk to work, shopping malls, or schools within 5 minutes (400 meters) and 10 minutes (800 meters).
The planning also heavily focuses on smart technologies, including the latest mobile technologies, Wi-Fi, and high-speed broadband connectivity. To further increase the appeal of the city, there are plans to expand the Lanseria International Airport. The Lanseria Business Gateway will be located on 130 hectares of prime real estate between Lanseria Airport and the upmarket Blair Atholl Golf Estate. It will be a 24-hour smart city zone that will offer retail, conference, and business facilities. It will also host the Lanseria luxury hotel.
On 28 October 2024, the Lanseria Smart City broke ground with a R320 million water treatment plant. This 18-month development will produce two megalitres daily using advanced membrane-aerated biofilm reactor technology.
However, till now, area does not show any infrastructure development. Apart from the Lanseria International airport, there are large stretches of open land and growing informal settlements.
