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How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

India
1 post
How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Hi,

I wil be travelling to Jo'burg for 5-6 months on a buisness trip. Company has provided me a stay in Rivonia Sandton. My office is located in Braamfontein

Could any one please tell me how far are these two areas?How much time and distance it takes to cover in between these two areas? Is is safe to travel in a car there? How about the crime rate over there? What are the places to avoid? I heard that no one should stop their vehicle when the traffic RED light is on? Is it true? Thank you very much in advance.

-Amit

Lunenburg, Canada
4,166 posts
16 helpful votes
1. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Hi Amit!

I was in Johannesburg last month, and I want to tell you that you are at least as safe in your car in South Africa as you'd be in London, say, and safer than in many parts of the United States. Motorists are friendly -- so friendly that they flash their tail lights to say thank you after passing on the freeway.

When you park your car, you'll find parking guards glad to watch your car for a modest tip. Compare that to Europe and North America, where parking garages are notorious as the hunting grounds of organized auto theft rings connected to the Russian mafia.

They'll tell you, once you get to South Africa, about bad neighborhoods. Having visited both New York and Johannesburg, I can tell you that the ones in Johannesburg seem both less extensive and less scary than what I found in big American cities.

And I always stop for red lights. In India, have you ever heard the expression "California stop"? It comes from the fact that in California, so the legend goes, drivers don't like to actually stop on red lights. Failing to stop on red is a "California stop," not a "Johannesburg stop."

We stayed in Johannesburg (in Parkview, a leafy, friendly neighborhood of ordinary people) where we saw no trouble at all. Lots of people were out and about, not cowering in fear. We felt safe everywhere we went, even at night. (Naturally, we took the car at night.)

Once you arrive, I'm confident that you'll agree with me. South Africa is safe and friendly. You have nothing to fear.

I almost forgot to answer your question:

Braamfontein is close to the center of Johannesburg, about 2 kilometers. It's just across the new Nelson Mandela bridge from city center. Sandton is about 12 kilometers north, by a modern six-lane expressway. You'll have no trouble. And in South Africa, like India, you drive on the left.

David

Texas
1 post
2. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

C'mon David...

Amit didn't ask for an ill-informed compare and contrast essay on the US and South Africa, he asked about safety issues he may encounter during his stay.

My wife is South African, her family still lives in Jo'burg and we've been there several times together. My take is that the stories of rampant crime in South Africa are exaggerated, but crime is a problem there. Both my wife's uncles have been held up at gunpoint over the past several years and you'll find that many of the homes in Jo'berg are quite fortified with walls, gates, and private security.

However, it has always seemed to me to be perfectly safe to walk in most areas during daylight hours (at least the areas that you would be prone to go to as a tourist/businessperson). We even went into the downtown area during the day, which some people had said was a dangerous area, and we didn't feel unsafe.

As for the stories about not stopping at red lights, I think they are also somewhat exaggerated. Perhaps some people do this, but in my experience, during daylight hours, the rules of the road are followed just as they would be anywhere else. At night, in desolate areas, my wife's uncles would stop at a red light, check for cross traffic and then proceed through the intersection (treating it as a stop sign, rather than a traffic light). To drive through an intersection without stopping would, of course, expose you to more danger from a serious traffic accident than from a car-jacking.

In general, you'll find the people there to be very friendly and helpful, and the infrastructure to be quite modern. The Sandton area is especially nice. If you use the precautions you would use as a foreign traveler in any big city (yes, even Canadian ones, David) you'll be fine. If you have 5 or 6 months there, be sure to venture out of Johannesburg and explore as much of the country as you can. It is a beautiful place.

-Ryan

PS - David, we're so lucky to have you on this forum to share your "expert" advice. Just so you know, a "California stop" is a term that simply means slowing to a crawl rather than a complete hard stop before proceeding through a stop sign or making a right turn at a red light. Despite whatever "legend" you've heard, people in California don't drive straight through stop signs or red lights (at least not with greater frequency than they do anywhere else in the world) Tell you what, I won't post ridiculous mistruths about your country if you refrain from doing so about mine.

London, United...
35,932 posts
106 helpful votes
3. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Funnilly enough, the one time I was driven through the centre of Jo'burg, the driver made a joke about only Capetonians stop at red lights in Jo'burg!

Amit - It is as safe and unsafe as any other city. I live in London and there are loads of places I wouldn't like to go after dark, but there are many more which are great to visit.

Take sensible precautions and ask locals for advice on routes, etc.

London, United...
29 posts
32 helpful votes
4. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Hi Amit. I agree with all the other posts here. I lived most of my life in Joburg before moving to London and still class it as the best place in the world to live. Rivonia is superb, you will love it. Crime is not the huge issue that people make it out to be. I feel less safe in London than I ever did in Jozi. The red light story is a laugh. Try not stopping and see how long it is before you receive a traffic fine. Have a great time while you are there and make sure you travel around the country a bit as well. You won't regret it. Cheers.

Bergamo, Italy
4 posts
5. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Hi Amit,

last year I spent five months doing voluntary service in a children's home in Yeoville, considered probably the most dangerous neighbourhood in Johannesburg, and certainly a big NO-Go area in all the travel guidea. Living in London and having met many people (especially white south africans) who tried to persuade me and my friend from going. Their concern was real, and after witnessing South Africa's complex situation I understand why..but at the same time do not let people's warning terrify you. You have to be aware, and avoid risky situations, but do not let fear stop your life. As a twenty-something white foreign girl I used to go verywhere by foot or on a combi (old Volkswagen type of minibus used mainly by blacks as a communal taxi)...and some people thought I was crazy...but:

NEVER WITH MORE THAN TEN EUROS IN MY POCKET

NEVER WITH A PHONE, OR A CAMERA OR JEWERLY OF ANY SORTS

NEVER COMPLETELY ALONE (USUALLY MY FRIEND OR EVEN THE KIDS)

Apart from that, travel, go to places, anjoy the nature....ciao Adriana

Joburg, South Africa
428 posts
33 helpful votes
6. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

The other posters have responded adequately on issues of safety and security, but I'd like to advise you on how long it will take you to get from home to work. I work in Braamfontein, and although I don't live in Sandton, I have colleagues who do, and the traffic can be rather heavy in the mornings and evenings. The "modern expressway" connecting the two slows to a crawl at peak hours. As Joburg's middle class has expanded, so has the number of cars on the roads, but the road network hasn't really expanded, meaning that our major thoroughfares are becoming more like those of large cities elsewhere in the world - gridlocked much of the time. It could take you anything from 45 minutes to an hour for the journey to and from work. Ask your company to look for accommodation closer to Braamfontein - in an area such as Mellville, for example, which is extremely cosmopolitan and has wonderful restaurants.

Philippines
4 posts
25 helpful votes
7. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

I have never found JHB to be 'dangerous'...London was one of the worst places I lived in, dirty, expensive, unfriendly, arrogant and..dangerous...but I can probably say the same for Shenzhen where I am currently, except that there is no semblance of law and order here...he, he...I really wish foreigners to our wonderful country, SA, will stop believing all the BS spouting from the mouths of embittered racists...SA is the best place in the world - fullstop !

Johannesburg
9 posts
8. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Whoa Folanke,

Since when does a persons natural concern for their own safety come from embittered racism?

I see not one thread of information on this post to suggest such.

As a UK citizen in JHB for 10 years (and London for 4 - gun pointed at me...Hampstead, nearly stabbed...Ealing...sorry, sorry couldn't resist! ha ha) I agree that there is too much "let me tell you about my (or someone else's) run-in with crime in ZA" and not enough practical information.

So without further ado......................Amit, I agree with ros-jhb, Melville is as good as Rivonia and closer to Braamfontein. Melrose Arch is another option and cuts the distance down by about half that of Rivonia.

As for your crime concerns - give yourself three weeks and everything will become second nature.

Ags
Edinburgh, United...
1,284 posts
94 helpful votes
9. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

Well, I've read all the other posts and most have the position correct.

Distance from Rivonia to Braamfontein is about 20kms or so but the area of Sandton in peak hours is absolute chaos and with 'load shedding of electricity' (don't ask - a whole other subject regarding suspension of electricity countrywide by our national provider) it's worse than ever.

Anyway, without heavy traffic (and load shedding), you would be looking at around 30 minutes to get there; unfortunately it will probably take you about 60 minutes or more; the answer though is to leave earlier than everyone else and you will breeze into Braamfontein.

It is perfectly safe to travel in a car - just make sure your cell phone/briefcase/handbag/valuables are not lying on the back seat or passenger seats - put everything into the boot of the car.

Places to avoid are anywhere you are not familiar with and obviously no walking around anywhere at night. No-one does anyway as most people either have cars or take public transport.

Not stopping at red traffic lights. This is becoming an urban legend I think. When crime was really bad (and it is getting better overall) it was suggested by the police that if you were a woman on your own driving at night and you 'felt unsafe' or thought there was something suspicious around you as you stopped at a traffic light,if you checked all the other roads around you, then it would be fine for you to cautiously go through a red traffic light, but again, only if there was no other traffic around and it was very late at night. This particular 'legend' seems to be have been blown out of proportion.

Check out the numerous other posts from people asking about safety in Johannesburg on TA - you may get a better perspective.

You may also want to check out the Johannesburg's website - http://www.jobur.org.za - it may give you a little more insight into what makes this city tick.

Regards

Agnes

London, Uk
78 posts
129 helpful votes
10. Re: How safe is Johannesburg to visit?

When I was in Cape Town last year there was nobody at all on the streets at night. This is the only place I have been to in the world where this level of fear applies. Everywhere else I walk on city streets at night. During the day things were fine, although local people said keep an eye out. People I met were uniformly friendly though. I'm off to Johannesburg next week, and expect things substantially the same although marginally worse.

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