Mount Edgecombe

Mount Edgecombe
View of the Mt Edgecombe Country Club Estate with Phoenix in the background
Mount Edgecombe Mount Edgecombe
Coordinates:29.721°S 31.050°E/-29.721; 31.050
Country	South Africa
Province	KwaZulu-Natal
Municipality	eThekwini
Area
• Total	8.34 km2(3.22 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	7,323
• Density	880/km2(2,300/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
•Black African	10.5%
•Coloured	1.5%
•Indian/Asian	36.5%
•White	50.0%
• Other	1.5%
First languages(2011)
•English	84.1%
•Afrikaans	4.8%
•Zulu	4.4%
• Other	6.7%
Time zone	UTC+2(SAST)
Postal code(street)	4302
PO box	4300

Mount EdgecombeorMt Edgecombeis a town inKwaZulu-Natal,South Africa,situated just north ofDurban,which forms part ofeThekwini,the Greater Durban Metropolitan area. Much of the suburb is cordoned off as a gated settlement comprising resorts, golf courses and aretirement home.It was previously a sugar growing area. The population increased by 89% between 2001 and 2011 from 3,874 to 7,323. Its name is derived fromMount Edgcumbe HouseinCornwall,England, the family seat of theEarls of Mount Edgcumbe.

Geography

Mount Edgecombe is situated in a hilly area just 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) inland from the coastal resort ofuMhlanga Rocksand approximately 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) northeast of the Durban CBD. It is bounded to the east by theN2 freeway,to the north by theM41 freewayand to the west by theR102.Neighbouring towns includeuMhlangato the east andPhoenixto the west.

Mount Edgecombe encompasses three distinct areas - the Mount Edgecombe Country Club Estate, the industrial area to the west and the retail precinct to the north.

Culture and contemporary lifestyle

Mount Edgecombe Country Club Estate has long held its reputation as the most expensive estate in the Greater Durban metropolitan area and comprises two smaller golf estates, numbered 1 and 2 which contain their respective championshipgolf courses.

Economy

Sugar

With a long history as a sugarcane growing area, today Mount Edgecombe is essentially the centre for the South African sugar industry, home to the corporate headquarters of the South African Sugar Research Institute and the South African Sugar Association.

Although much of the sugarcane farms that once surrounded Mt Edgecombe have now been absorbed into the town, it is roughly as far as one can go within the Greater Durban metropolitan area before it dissolves into rolling sugarcane fields.

Industries

Mt Edgecombe is one of the smaller industrial centres in the Greater Durban metropolitan area mainly housing various light industries such as hardware andlogistics– notably the regional distribution centres ofSpar(for perishables) and Freedom Stationery.

Retail

Although Mount Edgecombe is primarily a residential suburb, it does have a retail precinct situated along Flanders Drive, on the northern border, lined by the Flanders Boutique Mall and a wide variety of automotive and technological businesses.

A notable landmark in Mount Edgecombe is the Cornubia Mall, a 65,000-square-metre (700,000 sq ft) shopping centre opened on 27 September 2017, which forms part ofCornubia City,a planned smart city north of the town developed on former sugarcane land byTongaat Hulett.

Infrastructure

Healthcare

Mount Edgecombe is served by the Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital, a private hospital owned byLife Healthcare Grouplocated in the suburb of Rockford (falls underPhoenix), on the boundary between Phoenix and Mount Edgecombe.

Rail

Mount Edgecombe is served by the Mount Edgecombe Railway Station which lies on the main commuter line betweenDurban(viaPhoenix) andKwaDukuza(viaVerulam), known as the North Coast Line, operated byMetrorail.

Roads

TheN2Outer Ring Roadis a north/south freeway, connecting Mount Edgecombe withDurbanto the south and withKing Shaka International AirportandKwaDukuzato the north, while theM41is an east/west freeway, connecting Mount Edgecombe withuMhlangato the east.

TheR102is a north–southregional routeconnectingVerulamwithDurbanthat by-passes Mount Edgecombe to the west as North Coast Road. TheM26is an east/westmetropolitan routeconnecting Mount Edgecombe withPhoenixas Phoenix Highway.

Developments

Newly upgraded Mount Edgecombe Interchange

The Mount Edgecombe Interchange, recently upgraded in October 2019 serves as the interchange between the N2 and M41 freeways and has become a notable landmark in Mount Edgecombe especially with one of the flyovers being the longest incrementally launched bridge in South Africa, at a length of 948 metres.

See also

• Illovo Sugar