Pinetown
Pinetown is a city that forms part of the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, based just inland from Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The city is situated 16 km north-west of Durban and 64 km south-east of Pietermaritzburg.
Until December 2023, Pinetown maintained a distinct vehicular identity through its "NPN” registration plate prefix, representing Natal Pinetown.
History
Pinetown was named after the governor of Natal, Sir Benjamin Pine. The town was established in 1850 around the Wayside Hotel, itself built in 1849 along the main wagon route between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. In the Victorian era Pinetown was known as health resort.During the Second Boer War, the British built a concentration camp in Pinetown to house Boer women and children.
A number of German settlers made Pinetown their base and this accounts for the neighbourhood known as New Germany and the German Lutheran Church. Indeed, to this day imported German cakes and goodies pack the shelves at Christmas time in the Knowles Spar, the largest grocery store of Pinetown. One of the largest monasteries was located south of Pinetown in Mariannhill, home to the Mariannhill monastery founded by Abbot Pfanner. The establishment of this monastery had huge influence in the expansion of the Catholic Church in KwaZulu Natal.
The neighbouring area of Clermont was a solely black residential zone during the apartheid era, with land tenure being on a freehold basis unlike the state-owned townships elsewhere in Greater Durban metropolis. This meant residents enjoyed an atmosphere of freedom and this led to Clermont being a base for some well-known political activists during the apartheid era such as the lawyer Archie Gumede. Other personalities associated with Clermont are relatives of the leader of the world-renowned Ladysmith Black Mambazo musical group.
Geography
Location
Pinetown lies at the base of Field's Hill on the banks of the uMbilo River, surrounded by Westville to the east, Queensburgh to the south-east and Kloof to the north-west. It is also centrally located to many predominantly Indian and Black townships including KwaDabeka and Clermont to the north-east, Chatsworth to the south-east, Klaarwater to the south and Luganda, Sgubudwini, Mpola, Tshelimnyama and KwaNdengezi to the south-west.Topography
Pinetown is mostly hilly, apart from the relatively flat central business district. The eastern areas, including Cowie's Hill and the New Germany Nature Reserve, rise to about 400 m above sea level. In the north, Berkshire Downs in New Germany reaches around 393 m. The lowest elevations, ranging between 170 m and 300 m, are found in the southern parts of Pinetown.Boundaries
Pinetown is part of the larger eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality and for voting purposes, falls within the IEC electoral . Pinetown covers a large area of 86.15 km2 extending from the New Germany area in the north to Regency Park and Savannah Park in the south and from Paradise Valley and Moseley in the east to the industrial areas of Westmead and Mahogany Ridge that lie on the foot of Field's Hill in the west.Economy
Major companies
Corporations based in Pinetown include Educor, Beier Group, Manolis Munchies, Masscash and Powasol.Industries
Pinetown is one of four key industrial hubs in the Durban-Pinetown core industrial region, supported by various industrial suburbs. The western area includes Westmead, Mahogany Ridge, Alexander Park and Surprise Farm, while the northern area in New Germany includes Falcon Industrial Park, Mountain Ridge, New Germany Industrial Park, and Pineside. To the south, notable locations include Hagart Road Industrial, Southmead, and Mariann Industrial Park. The Pinetown region, particularly around Mahogany Ridge, hosts major distribution centres for companies like Clicks, PicknPay and Woolworths.Transport
Public Transport
Bus
The first phase of a rapid bus system, GO!Durban, was due for implementation in September 2019, but was postponed because the municipality is scared of the Taxi bosses. The first phase envisages a link between Pinetown CBD and KwaMashu’s Bridge City Mall.Rail
operates commuter trains between Pinetown and Durban via Queensburgh along the Old Main Line, the historic railway connecting Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Key stations on this line in Pinetown include Pinetown railway station, which serves as the western terminus, as well as Sarnia, Glen Park, and Moseley. Additionally, Metrorail provides service from Durban to Cato Ridge via Queensburgh, Mariannhill, and Mpumalanga on the New Main Line, the newer railway line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.Roads
Pinetown is well-connected to four major freeways. The N3 connects the town with Durban to the south-east and Pietermaritzburg to the north-west. The M13, named King Cetshwayo Highway, connects the town with Durban to the south-east via Westville and Hillcrest to the north-west via Kloof and Gillitts. Running south-east, the M7, named Solomon Mahlangu Drive, connects the town with Queensburgh. Running east, the M19 connects the town with Westville and Durban.The town is also intersected by a number of metropolitan routes, namely; the M1 to Chatsworth in the south-east, M5 to KwaDabeka and KwaMashu in the north and Queensburgh in the south-east, M32 to Westville in the east, M31 which runs as the main street of the town towards Cowie's Hill and the M34 to Shallcross in the south.
Tolling
The N3 is the main route forming the Mariannhill Toll Route and involves payment of toll: Traffic arriving in Pinetown from the west and traffic heading west on the N3 must pass through the Mariannhill Toll Plaza, just west of Pinetown. The M13 between Paradise Valley and Key Ridge serves as an untolled alternative route to the N3 to avoid the Mariannhill Toll Plaza.Retail
Pine Crest Centre, situated at 17 Kings Road, is the biggest retail center in town. It opened around 1988 as the Sanlam Centre. In 2017 it was acquired by the JSE-listed company Vukile, and was upgraded to offer over 100 stores.Education
One of five campuses of the University of KwaZulu-Natal is in Pinetown, on the corner of Richmond and Mariannhill Roads. The Edgewood campus was originally established in the 1970s as a college to train students as teachers for the apartheid government's schools serving the white community. The purpose-built facilities were superior to other colleges of education where students of other races were trained as teachers. The specialised facilities enabled the training of art, music, drama, science and physical education teachers, and included rooms with overhead viewing platforms for unobtrusive classroom lesson demonstrations.In 2001, as part of the central government's rationalisation of the higher education landscape, the Edgewood College of Education was incorporated into the University of Natal. Then in 2004, with the merger of the Universities of Natal and Durban-Westville to form the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood became the new University's 5th campus. Edgewood campus is wholly dedicated to the education of teachers and education professionals and is one of the largest producers of new teachers in South Africa. On this campus the University's School of Education offers a four-year full-time Bachelor of Education degree and one-year full-time Post Graduate Certificate in Education for those wanting a teaching qualification. Various other certificates are also offered as in-service training for teachers, as well as Honours, Masters and Doctoral degrees. The library collection is specially equipped to enable those studying education from undergraduate through to doctoral levels.
Schools
Schools in Pinetown include:- Pinetown Boys' High School
- Pinetown Girls' High School
- Savannah Park Secondary School
- St Benedict School Pinetown
Pre-Schools
- Kokkewiet Pre Pimêre Skool - Afrikaans
Healthcare
- St Mary's, a government hospital in Mariannhill
- Life Crompton Hospital, a private hospital
- Medicross, a private medical centre
Safety