Upper Highway Area

The Upper Highway Area is a region west of the city of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is the suburban western part of the Greater Durban metropolitan area and extends from Kloof in the east to Botha’s Hill in the west. It includes the main towns of Hillcrest, Gillitts and Kloof and the smaller areas of Assagay, Botha’s Hill, Everton and Waterfall.

The Upper Highway Area is named after the M13 highway (King Cetshwayo Highway) that passes through the area as well as its location above Fields Hill and the Kloof escarpment. The M13 connects the area to the Lower Highway Area of Pinetown and Westville as well as the city of Durban.

Prior to 1 December 2023, vehicle registration plates in the Upper Highway Area started with NU - N for Natal, U for Upper Highway which covered the suburbs within the Upper Highway Area such as Hillcrest, Kloof, Gillitts, Botha's Hill, Assagay, Waterfall and Everton as well as New Germany and Queensburgh just outside the Upper Highway.

Geography
The region extends from Botha’s Hill in the west to Kloof in the east and up north to incorporate Waterfall, with most of the population density of the Upper Highway Area concentrated along the M13 highway.

Along the M13 are the main towns are Hillcrest (pop. 13,329) and Kloof (pop. 29,704) which serve as the landmark suburbs of the region and are separated by the smaller town of Gillitts (pop. 8,661), also situated along the highway. Bordering Hillcrest to the north is the semi-rural suburb of Waterfall (pop. 7,525) and north of Gillitts is the suburb of Everton (pop. 870).

Bordering Hillcrest to the west are the semi-rural settlements of Assagay (pop. 3,156) and Botha’s Hill (2,673), lying on the hill above Hillcrest. Though separate, these towns and suburbs have virtually become one due to development and urban sprawl that there is little to no space between them now.