Bitterfontein

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]

Key Information

Bitterfontein
Bitterfontein Show map of Western Cape Bitterfontein Show map of South Africa
Coordinates: 31°02′10″S 18°15′58″E / 31.03611°S 18.26611°E / -31.03611; 18.26611
Country	South Africa
Province	Western Cape
District	West Coast
Municipality	Matzikama
Area [1]
• Total	39.90 km2 (15.41 sq mi)
Elevation	355 m (1,165 ft)
Population  (2011)[1]
• Total	986
• Density	25/km2 (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
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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]

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