Cape Town - Newlands stadium must comply with new safety regulations if it is to continue hosting rugby matches.
According to reports in the Cape Times the stadium requires comprehensive upgrades on its current infrastructure if it is to meet the requirements of the Safety at Sports and Recreational Events Act.
The act, which came into effect in 2011, has a number of stipulations for events attended by 2 000 or more people. Stadiums were given three years to comply to the regulations, meaning that from next season Newlands will have to be fully compliant.
Among the numerous regulations, stadiums are required to:
- Be evacuated within 10 minutes if there is an emergency.
- Have collapsible barriers to separate the stadium bowl and the field in case of emergencies.- Have a temporary or permanent heliport.- Install seats that are a minimum of 50cm wide and 30cm high at the back, with a 80cm gap from seatback to seatback.- Have one turnstile for every 1 000 spectators.
Newlands has an official capacity of 48 000 spectators, meaning they would require 48 turnstiles.The South African Rugby Union (SARU) has previously raised concerns about Newlands' ability to meet the minimum requirements, stating that upgrades would be "logistically impossible" given that the stadium is in an established residential area.
The R4.5 billion Cape Town Stadium, built to host matches at the 2010 Soccer World Cup, which has long been courting the Western Province Rugby Union (WPRU) as potential tenants, is fully compliant with the act.