Canadians think Regina safer than Saskatoon: poll

While Regina and Saskatoon both have relatively high crime rates, a new poll says people have different perceptions about how safe Saskatchewan's biggest cities are.

According to a Mainstreet/PostMedia poll of 4,234 people, most Canadians think Regina is safe, while less than half believe Saskatoon is safe.

People think Toronto is less safe than either of the two Saskatchewan cities.

"Summer headlines are often dominated by crime like no other season," Quito Maggi, president of Mainstreet Research, said in a news release. 

"Gun related fatalities in Toronto have more than doubled since last year. In Saskatoon, a series of stabbings has continued to make headlines."

Saskatoon had Canada's highest crime rate in 2015 (8,427 crimes per 100,000 people) of 33 communities, according to Statistics Canada. 

On that basis, it might not be a surprise that only 45 per cent of Canadians call Saskatoon safe.

However, while Regina's crime rate was second-highest last year with 8,146 crimes per 100,000 people, it ended up in the middle of the pack on the safety perception index.

Sixty-one per cent said they considered Regina safe. 

Winnipeg had the worst reputation with only 35 per cent saying they considered it safe. Ottawa was deemed the safest city, with 72 per cent calling it safe.

Mainstreet conducted its phone poll on Aug. 3 and 4. A poll with that sample size is considered to have a margin of error of plus or minus 1.52 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

Participants were asked: "Thinking about the City of [City Name] would you say you consider it very safe, somewhat safe, somewhat unsafe or very unsafe?"