Smartphones can combat crime in downtown core, Winnipeg police chief says

Winnipeg's police chief says smartphones are one of the tools he wants to use to improve safety in the city's downtown core.

Speaking at the the first Downtown Winnipeg Safety Summit, Chief Danny Smyth said he wants to use the devices to push information to police and other security services around the downtown. Smyth said the University of Winnipeg uses a similar security system, and he said Downtown Winnipeg BIZ hopes to launch a pilot project in the coming months.

"It's a way to collect and consolidate all that information and respond to things in real time in a way that could show people that perhaps their perception of downtown isn't really living up to what really is happening," he said.

In his address Monday morning at the RBC Convention Centre, Smyth pitched several strategies to improve downtown safety, including better collaboration between police and downtown security systems, smarter deployment of resources and updated technology.

Smyth said the network of security cameras installed downtown more than a decade ago needs to be upgraded, He also said the deployment of those cameras should be reviewed, because downtown has changed significantly since they were installed.

The chief also identified several challenges police face downtown. He singled out Portage Place Shopping Centre, and in particular the bus shack on Portage Avenue and the promenade behind the mall, as major trouble spots.

Smyth said other trouble areas include the bus shack on Vaughan Street and the Millennium Library and surrounding area.