Brackenfell is a railway town in the Western Cape province of South Africa and a northern suburb of Cape Town. It lies at the gateway to the Cape Winelands approximately halfway between Cape Town – 30 km (18.6 mi) and Paarl – 35 km (21.7 mi).

History

The earliest activity on what today is known as Brackenfell was when the "de Clapmuts" was a refreshment post. Brackenfell specifically form part of Klapmutsberg, better known as de Bottelarij. In 1712 the area known as "Kruispad" was transferred to Selie, J. Kruispad was owned by Brink, A. and in 1901 he sold it to a Scottish Immigrant Walton, G.H. The flora on this farm reminded him of the same in Scotland. He called it Brackenfell (Bracken means fern; Fell means hill). The richness of granite in the area let to the farm being sold to a Brick company in 1903 and a granite quarry was established. Activity here stopped in 1948. In 1904 a railway station was established.

Brackenfell used to be a rural area centred on a major road crossing during the earlier days of Cape Town, but today it is a well-known suburb located behind the 'boerewors gordyn' which translates to sausage curtain, meaning; people living in this area, braai (barbecue) boerewors very often. "Gordyn" curtain is just by figure of speech.  It's all said tongue-in-the-cheek.

In 1976, a large investment was made by retail giant, PicknPay when it opened a Hypermarket opened in Brackenfell which still stands till today. At the time, the Hypermarket was regarded as an ultra-modern decentralised shopping centre which had a crucial role in the development of then small town of Brackenfell, lying just outside Cape Town.

In 1996, Brackenfell lost its municipal status and was dissolved into the Oostenberg Municipality along with Kraaifontein, Kuilsrivier and Blue Downs/Eersterivier as part of the transition in local government. As of 2000, Brackenfell was integrated into the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality, or the Greater Cape Town area and is effectively a suburb of the City of Cape Town. 

Due to the rising numbers of COVID-19 cases in the Western Cape, the Western Cape Health Department constructed a field hospital in the Brackengate industrial area. It opened on 20 July 2020 with 10 patients. The field hospital has capacity 300 beds for COVID-19 patients from hospitals struggling with capacity.

The field hospital became the central COVID-19 dedicated hospital for the Western Cape in September as the Cape Town International Convention Centre's field hospital which was the central COVID-19 dedicated hospital was decommissioned in September due to declining COVID-19 cases in the City of Cape Town.

Brackenfell today 
Brackenfell has today developed into a suburban area predominantly made up of middle-class residential areas, widely known for its affordable properties by comparison to its sister suburb of Durbanville. The suburb functions as a commuter town, with much of its working population travelling to Cape Town and Bellville as well as the Winelands towns of Paarl and Stellenbosch to work or study.    

Despite the steady encroach of the urban sprawl of the Cape Metropole in recent times which has eroded the sense of being outside the city, Brackenfell for the most part still remains a quiet town with close-knit neighbourhoods.

Geography

Brackenfell is located at the rural-urban fringe where the eastern boundary of the City of Cape Town abuts the Stellenbosch Local Municipality and as a result it is often referred to as "the gateway to the Cape Winelands". It lies at the start of the Bottelary Hills Wine Route, one of the many wine routes of Stellenbosch, leading along the scenic Bottelary Road from the Hazendal Wine Estate on the outskirts of Brackenfell towards Stellenbosch, just 22 km (13.7 mi) to the south-east. 

The rapid suburban growth experienced in the northern suburbs of Cape Town has led to Brackenfell slowly integrating with the neighbouring towns of Kraaifontein to the north-east, Durbanville to the north-west, Kuilsrivier to the south and Bellville to the west.

Topography
Brackenfell is generally flat with the central business district and a large part of the residential areas occupying flat land sloping gently northwards at Morgenster Heights, Vredekloof and Cape Gate and southwards at Protea Heights and Ruwari on Kanonkop (“Canon Hill”). Kanonkop, not to be confused with another hill with the same name near Durbanville, is a hill that forms part of the western flanks of the Bottelary Hills and is the highest point of Brackenfell at approximately 580 feet (177 m) above sea level.

Suburban areas
Brackenfell mainly encompasses a mixture of suburban areas, industrial areas and commercial areas while some semi-rural acreage lie on the northern and southern peripheries of the town. These areas are located within the three main clusters of Brackenfell namely Brackenfell Central, Brackenfell North and Brackenfell South.

Brackenfell Central is the oldest part of the town which has retained much of its original character evident in its rustic houses and wide tree-lined streets. This area occupies the flat land between the N1 and the Old Paarl Road. 
Arauna (residential)
Brackenfell Industria (industrial)
Eden Park (residential)
Ferndale (residential)
Hoogstede (residential)
Morgenster (residential)
Morgenster Heights (residential)
Okavango Park (industrial)
Springbokpark (residential)
St Michaels (residential)

Brackenfell North includes modern neighbourhoods spreading north of the N1 highway.
Brackenfell North (agricultural holdings)
Cape Gate (retail)
Chamonix (residential)
De Tuin (residential)
Kleinbron Estate (residential)
Kleinbron Park (residential)
Marlborough Park (residential)
Vredekloof (residential)
Vredekloof Glen (residential)
Vredekloof Heights (residential)
Vredekloof Rand (residential)
Welgeleë (residential)
Brackenfell South has the most recently developed and fastest-growing residential suburbs of Brackenfell, occupying the area between the Old Paarl Road and Bottelary Road. 
Birgundy (residential)
Brackenfell South (residential)
De Oude Spruit (residential)
Kaapsig (residential)
Klaradyn Retirement Village (residential)
Protea Heights (residential)
Protea Village (residential)
Ruwari (residential)
Sonkring (residential)

Schools

 Bastion Primary School
 Brackenfell High School
 Brackenfell Primary School
 Brooklands Primary School 
 Curro Brackenfell (private primary school)
 Curro Castle (private nursery / pre-primary school)
 Destinatus Private School
 Northpine Primary School 
 Northpine Technical High School 
 Southpine Primary School 
 Southpine Technical High School 
 Eastpine Primary School 
 Eastpine Technical High School 
 Westpine Primary School 
 Westpine Technical High School 
 Paarl School
 Protea Heights Academy (high school)
 Vredekloof Primary School

Economy

Major companies
A number of major retail and food corporations in South Africa have their headquarters in Brackenfell, most notably Shoprite-Checkers which is Africa’s largest supermarket retail chain. Food Lover's Market, OK Foods (a subsidiary of Shoprite-Checkers) and Montagu Snacks have their headquarters too in Brackenfell. Shoprite-Checkers had also recently completed a new distribution centre, named Cilmor in 2019 at the new Brackengate 2 Business Park in Brackenfell South.

Industries 
Brackenfell is a fast-growing industrial centre in Greater Cape Town with most of its industrial areas mainly occupied by light industries such as logistics and warehousing. The established industrial areas of Brackenfell Industria and Okavango Park are located in the east of Brackenfell whilst the newer industrial area of Brackengate is located in the west of Brackenfell.

Real estate
Brackenfell has increasingly become a sought-after area to live in Cape Town’s northern suburbs resulting in the town significantly expanding with new gated communities to the north and south. The significant population growth in Brackenfell can be largely attributed to its self-sufficiency, ideal commuting location as well as its close proximity to the wine farms of Stellenbosch.  

In recent years most of the older residences along Brackenfell Boulevard have been renovated and converted into service-related businesses such as dentists, lawyers and real estate agents.

Retailing
Brackenfell is largely served by the Cape Gate Regional Shopping Centre, one of the largest malls in Greater Cape Town forming part of the Cape Gate retail complex in Brackenfell North. The development of the retail complex which also comprises the Cape Gate Lifestyle Centre and a number of retail businesses has positioned Brackenfell as one of the main retail nodes in the Northern Suburbs of Cape Town.

Regardless of the development of Cape Gate, Brackenfell’s Central Business District (CBD) still retains its status as the traditional centre of commerce with a number of local shops and retail outlets lined from one end of the town to the other along the major main street, Old Paarl Road. 

There are also three major shopping centres in and around the CBD serving Brackenfell including Fairbridge Mall (a Shoprite-Checkers development), Brackenfell Centre (Hypermarket Centre), Brackenfell Corner (previously Paradys Park) and Brackenfell Shopping Centre. Furthermore, the suburbs of Vredekloof and Protea Heights are served by their own local shopping centres including Glengarry Village and Boulevard Square respectively.

Transportation

Bus and taxi transit 
Brackenfell is served two kinds of taxis: metered taxis and minibus taxis. Unlike many cities and towns in South Africa, metered taxis are not allowed to drive around the town to solicit fares and instead must be called to a specific location. Metered taxi companies operating around Brackenfell include Uber, Bolt and InDriver.

Minibus taxi services to Brackenfell are relatively limited with minibus taxis terminating at the Brackenfell railway station. There are however, a few taxi routes to the neighbouring towns of Bellville and Kraaifontein.

Rail 
Brackenfell is situated on the main commuter line between Cape Town and Wellington, known as the Northern Line operated by Metrorail.  Metrorail currently operates commuter railway services in the town from the Brackenfell railway station towards Bellville and Cape Town to the south-west and towards Kraaifontein, Paarl and Wellington to the north-east.

Road 
The N1 is the major freeway that runs through Brackenfell, routing traffic heading north-west from Cape Town towards Paarl. It enters the town at the Stellenberg Interchange where it meets the R300 before passing through the town. As it bisects Brackenfell to the north, it passes Brackenfell Boulevard and Okavango Road before heading through Kraaifontein.     

The R101 is the original N1, and served the same function before the construction of the freeway. It runs through the  CBD of Brackenfell rather than towards its northern suburbs, connecting the town with Bellville and Kraaifontein as Old Paarl Road.      

The R300 starts from the N1 at the Stellenberg Interchange, heading south as the Kuils River Freeway. It straddles the western edge of Brackenfell where it passes Old Paarl Road and Bottelary Road before continuing towards the Cape Town International Airport (via the N2) and Mitchells Plain.     

Brackenfell is also served by a number of metropolitan routes linking it to surrounding towns. The M23 (Bottelary Road) connects to Bellville and Stellenbosch, and by-passes Brackenfell to the south. The M25 (Frans Conradie Drive) connects to Bellville and Kraaifontein. The M73 (De Bron Road) connects to Durbanville and Kraaifontein. The M100 (Brackenfell Boulevard) connects to Durbanville and Kuilsrivier. The M137 (Okavango Road) connects to Durbanville and Kraaifontein.

Nature 
 
The Bracken Nature Reserve, situated in the Ruwari suburban area, was once a quarry site and was later declared a nature reserve after some negotiations between the Cape Town City Council and the Stellenbosch Divisional Council.

Coat of arms

Brackenfell was a municipality from 1970 to 1996.  In November 1971, the council registered a coat of arms at the Bureau of Heraldry.

The arms, designed by Cornelis Pama, were Per chevron embowed Or and Vert, three shot balls counterchanged, i.e. a shield divided by a curved chevron-shaped line into gold and green, with two green balls at the top and a golden ball at the bottom.  The crest was three ferns with the motto Tenax in fide.

Trivia

 Currently, Brackenfell (together with Kuilsrivier) uses the prefix "CFR-" in their registered motor vehicles (since approximately 2000 the prefix "CF-" which had formerly been allocated to Grahamstown has also been allocated to these suburbs).
 Kanonkop (directly translated to cannon head) Brackenfell's highest point in Ruwari, was used as a signal point with its signal cannons in the 1700s. Cannons can be seen at Brackenfell High School and Bastion Primary School.
 In Vredekloof Street in Vredekloof (a residential area of Brackenfell) the bird, the Cape Robin nest and is commonly known as Jan Frederik.
 The popular cooking and grill sauce Jimmy's Sauces CC is produced in Brackenfell and is sold not only in South Africa but also all over the world.

External links
 Brackenfell Directory

References

Suburbs of Cape Town