Municipality profile, EC102

Blue Crane Route

Blue Crane Route is a local municipality in Eastern Cape. Census 2022 counted 49 883 people in 16 117 households, about 3.1 people per household. That is up 38.6% from 36 002 people in Census 2011. 97.2% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 87.2% had a flush toilet. It has the 31st largest population of the 33 municipalities in Eastern Cape.

Eastern Cape. Category B3 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

49 883

Up 38.6% from 36 002 people in Census 2011.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 10. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Census 2011 and Census 2022

Blue Crane Route: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure	2011	2022	Change
Population	36 002	49 883	+38.6%
Households	9 761	16 117	+65.1%
People per household	3.7	3.1	-0.6
Males per 100 females	96.5	94.2	-2.3
Aged 0 to 14	29.2%	25.0%	-4.2 pts
Aged 15 to 34	30.8%	30.3%	-0.5 pts
Aged 60 and over	10.6%	14.0%	+3.4 pts
Households in a formal dwelling	95.9%	97.2%	+1.3 pts
Households in an informal dwelling	2.9%	2.4%	-0.5 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme	80.2%	79.1%	-1.1 pts
Households with a flush toilet	84.5%	87.2%	+2.7 pts
Households with no toilet	6.3%	4.2%	-2.1 pts
Households cooking with electricity	82.5%	72.8%	-9.7 pts
Households cooking with gas	2.4%	20.4%	+18.0 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)	8 036	10 653	+32.6%

Change is SA Data Hub's calculation from the two figures: a percentage change for counts, and the difference in percentage points (pts) for shares. Cooking shares are of households that named a cooking fuel; Stats SA leaves out “none”.

The 2011 and 2022 figures cover the same area. Stats SA, Census 2022 Municipal fact sheet (Report no. 03-01-82, revised), page 1: “Census 2011 indicators were generated based on aligned census data to current municipal boundaries (2021)”.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 10; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Eastern Cape, page 12; General housing information per municipality (1), Eastern Cape, page 13; General housing information per municipality (2), Eastern Cape, page 15. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

See how all municipalities changed between Census 2011 and Census 2022

Compare with another place

Questions people ask: Which province is a municipality in? · Which municipalities grew fastest between Census 2011 and Census 2022? · How many municipalities are there in South Africa?

People

Males: 24 191
Females: 25 691
Males per 100 females: 94.2
Attending school (ages 5 to 24): 10 653

The largest age group in Blue Crane Route in 2022 was aged 35 to 59, at 30.7% of people.

Aged 0 to 1425.0%
29.2% in 2011
Aged 15 to 3430.3%
30.8% in 2011
Aged 35 to 5930.7%
29.4% in 2011
Aged 60 and over14.0%
10.6% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 10; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Eastern Cape, page 12. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Housing

Census 2022 counted 16 117 households, with about 3.1 people in each. In 2011 there were 9 761, with about 3.7 people in each.

97.2% of households in Blue Crane Route lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.

Formal dwelling97.2%
15 660 households
Informal dwelling2.4%
394 households
Traditional dwelling0.3%
52 households
Other0.1%
10 households

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (1), Eastern Cape, page 13. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Water, toilets and cooking

87.2% of households in Blue Crane Route had a flush toilet in 2022, and 72.8% cooked with electricity.

Water from a regional or local scheme79.1%
12 743 households. 80.2% in 2011.
Flush toilet87.2%
14 056 households. 84.5% in 2011.
No toilet4.2%
679 households. 6.3% in 2011.
Electricity for cooking72.8%
11 708 households. 82.5% in 2011.
Gas for cooking20.4%
3 283 households. 2.4% in 2011.

Shares of households. Cooking shares are of households that named a cooking fuel. Water from another source includes boreholes, tankers, rivers and springs.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (2), Eastern Cape, page 15. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

How it compares

Population, 2022: Blue Crane Route49 883; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape219 097Blue Crane Route has 77.2% fewer people; Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Blue Crane Route has 82.9% fewer people
People per household: Blue Crane Route3.1; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape3.9Blue Crane Route has 0.8 fewer people per household; Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Blue Crane Route has 0.8 fewer people per household
Households in a formal dwelling: Blue Crane Route97.2%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape82.3%Blue Crane Route is 14.9 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Blue Crane Route is 10.2 pts higher
Water from a regional or local scheme: Blue Crane Route79.1%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape60.8%Blue Crane Route is 18.3 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Blue Crane Route is 4.8 pts higher
Households with a flush toilet: Blue Crane Route87.2%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape52.8%Blue Crane Route is 34.4 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Blue Crane Route is 25.2 pts higher
Electricity for cooking: Blue Crane Route72.8%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape63.5%Blue Crane Route is 9.3 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Blue Crane Route is 6.8 pts higher

Each average is the simple mean of the municipal figures, so a small municipality counts as much as a large one. Gaps between shares are in percentage points (pts).

97.2% of households lived in a formal dwelling, 14.9 pts above the average per municipality in Eastern Cape.
87.2% of households had a flush toilet, 34.4 pts above the average per municipality in Eastern Cape.

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in Eastern Cape whose Census 2022 population is closest to Blue Crane Route's (49 883). Where two are equally close, the lower municipal code comes first.

Sources

Every 2011 and 2022 figure on this page is from Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43, revised edition, originally released 10 October 2023), which gives Census 2011 figures alongside Census 2022 ones. Tables for Blue Crane Route: Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 10; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Eastern Cape, page 12; General housing information per municipality (1), Eastern Cape, page 13; General housing information per municipality (2), Eastern Cape, page 15. SA Data Hub checked them against the publication on 28 October 2026.

Changes, shares of the total, averages and similar municipalities are SA Data Hub's own calculations from those figures. Corrections are listed on the updates page.