A survey from Main Street Research suggests Canadians’ feelings about their own safety don’t necessarily line up with crime stats.
Regina ranked ninth out of 15 cities in terms of perceptions of personal safety.
People feel safer in Regina even more than Saskatoon despite having Canada’s highest Crime Severity Index according to stats Canada.
READ MORE: Canadian cities where people feel the most (and least) safe: poll
This is a tool that tracks the volumes of particular crime offences as well as the seriousness of those crimes year to year.
“I feel safe here, I believe if you stay out of trouble, you’ll always be O.K.,” Miguel Hernandez said.
“The more businesses and stuff that are downtown makes it a safe place. I find even in the summer time, with the police presence on bicycles makes it a lot safer,” Brad McDougall said.
READ MORE: Midway through the year, crime stats are trending downward
50 per cent of people surveyed in Regina say they feel secure. However, 33 per cent don’t.
“I live in north central and I would agree that there is a high crime rate there, I don’t feel safe letting my daughter play out in the streets,” Chris Mercer said.
When it comes to making Regina a safe place to live, Regina Police Chief Evan Bray said it boils down to a few basics. Police visibility, education, holding offenders accountable and addressing the root cause of crime.
“It’s not a false sense of security, perception is a big part of reality,” Bray said.
“To me it’s not any one thing that leads to perception of safety or perception of crime rates in the city, it has a lot to do with collaborative effort,” Bray said.
The mayor said the city and police are always working to improve where they can.
“There’s a lot of work to do in terms of community policing with outreach and everyone in our city. We do have problems with guns, and car theft and property crime,” Mayor Michael Fougere said.
Regina Police expect to release findings from their own perception survey later this year.
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