N7 (South Africa)

The N7 is a national route in South Africa that runs from Cape Town northwards through the West Coast and Namaqualand regions to the Namibian border at Vioolsdrif. It is known as the Cape Namibia Road. After crossing the border, it changes designation to B1 and runs north through Windhoek and the north of Namibia.

The N7 national route forms the first section of the Tripoli-Cape Town Highway, which is a proposed link between Cape Town and Tripoli, the capital city of Libya, being developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Union.

Route
The N7 begins at a four-way interchange with the N1 national route in Cape Town, adjacent to Acacia Park, heading northwards. South of this interchange, it is the M7 route of Cape Town (Jakes Gerwel Drive).

The portion of the road within Cape Town is a freeway, but it loses limited-access freeway status shortly after exiting the urban limits at the M12 interchange (Malibongwe Drive). From here, it remains a dual-carriageway and gains limited-access freeway status again at the Melkbosstrand M19 interchange. It remains a limited-access freeway until just after Malmesbury at the R45 intersection. Thereafter, the N7 is a single-carriageway highway with wide paved shoulders to Piekenierskloof Pass and through the Olifants River valley until Clanwilliam.

The rest of the N7 to the Namibian border, through Vredendal and Springbok (where it meets the N14 national route) is a single-carriageway highway with no paved shoulders.

After crossing into Namibia, it becomes the B1 road to Keetmanshoop and Windhoek.