Bitterfontein

Bitterfontein
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Coordinates: 31°02′10″S 18°15′58″E
Country	South Africa
Province	Western Cape
District	West Coast
Municipality	Matzikama
Area [1]
• Total	39.90 km^2 (15.41 sq mi)
Elevation	355 m (1,165 ft)
Population  (2011)[1]
• Total	986
• Density	25/km^2 (64/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [1]
• Black African	3.5%
• Coloured	91.2%
• Indian/Asian	0.4%
• White	4.7%
• Other	0.2%
First languages (2011) [1]
• Afrikaans	97.4%
• Xhosa	1.3%
• Other	1.2%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)	8200
PO box	8200
Area code	027

Bitterfontein is a village in the Knersvlakte, the northernmost area of the Western Cape province of South Africa, 320 kilometres (200 mi) north of Cape Town. It is the railhead of a line from Cape Town; ore from the copper mines at Okiep is transferred there from road transport to the railway. It is also located on the N7 (Cape Town–Namibia) national road; the distance from Cape Town is 386 kilometres (240 mi) by road and 465 kilometres (289 mi) by rail.[2]

Bitterfontein is located in the Matzikama Local Municipality, which is part of the West Coast District Municipality. According to the 2001 Census, it had a population of 906 in an area of 1.77 square kilometres (0.68 sq mi).[3] It is served by a police station,[4] a primary school,[5] a library,[6] and a satellite health clinic.[7]

Trivia

• The South African country singer Ruben Lennox wrote a song about Bitterfontein

References

1. "Main Place Bitterfontein". Census 2011.
2. Boonzaaier, Boon (2008). Tracks Across the Veld. ISBN 978-0-620-41711-2.
3. Census 2001 — Statistics for Main Place
4. "Bitterfontein Police Station". Cape Gateway.
5. "Bitterfontein Primary School". Western Cape Education Management System. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21.
6. "Bitterfontein Library Depot". Cape Gateway. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
7. "Bitterfontein Municipality Satellite Clinic". Cape Gateway.