‘There has been a shift in the type of crime being experienced and it’s consistent with (pandemic effects)’
Concerns among Calgarians over homelessness and transit safety are on the rise, while fears of violent crime are down, according to a survey conducted for city police.
Part of a phone survey of 1,000 people done by Illumina Research Partners from May 6 to July 1 found 18 per cent of respondents considered homelessness their greatest concern, up from 11 per cent two years before and just two per cent in 2015.
At the same time, transit safety, particularly on CTrains, was cited as the top fear by 17 per cent of those surveyed, almost double the nine per cent in 2022 and two per cent nine years ago.
But the greatest safety concern was illegal drug use, cited by 29 per cent of respondents — an increase of four per cent from two years ago.
Those concerns over public social disorder have taken some precedence over violent crime, said Illumina Research vice-president Angela Storozuk, who noted 41 per cent of respondents called primarily for a stronger physical police presence.
“They believe a more visible police presence in the community will help deter crime and enhance community safety,” she said, adding worries over social disorder are a countrywide phenomenon.
Violent crime as a primary concern fell from 23 per cent in 2022 to 16 per cent this year, though still considerably higher than the two per cent citing it as their top worry in 2015.
Concern over illegal gang activity also dropped this year, to 10 per cent compared to 16 per cent in 2022, and well down from 18 per cent nine years previously.
The type of crimes being reported by victims has also changed, noted the survey, with 21 per cent of those being personal offences this year. In 2018, that number was nine per cent.
“There has been a shift in the type of crime being experienced and it’s consistent with (pandemic effects),” said Storozuk.
Some of those perceptions conflicted with crime data, with Calgary police saying calls linked to transit incidents plummeted by 42 per cent in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2023.
And as of mid-September, calls involving social disorder were down by 20 per cent versus the five-year average.
But according to the city, there have been 6,538 service calls through 311 regarding homeless encampments so far this year, 2,026 more than during the same 2023 time frame.
Shootings so far this year are down by 23 per cent compared to the same time in 2023 — dropping from 74 to 58 — while the number of homicides as of Sept. 25 is 11, which is four fewer than the first nine months of last year.
Meanwhile, confidence in the CPS has held steady in recent years, with 86 per cent of respondents expressing a positive view.
“But that’s the lowest level since 2010 when we began tracking that,” said Storozuk.
Eighty-six per cent of those surveyed said they thought Calgary was a safe place to live, down 10 points from a decade ago.
“People perceive their neighbourhood to be safer than the city as a whole,” said Storozuk, noting that number reached 92 per cent.