Max Smith, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – More than seven in ten people living in the D.C. metro area feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where they reside.
Gallup asked the question of people across the country, finding that 72 percent of people do feel safe walking alone at night in their area, the same percentage as those who feel safe in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria Metropolitan Statistical Area which consists of the entire D.C. area but excluding Anne Arundel, Howard and St. Mary’s counties.
Alexandria recently touted decreasing levels of crime and the latest data from the Council of Governments also reflects an overall downward trend.
While the D.C. and Richmond areas rank in the middle of the survey, the Baltimore-Towson statistical area ranks closer to the bottom. Just 66 percent of those asked in that area, which includes Anne Arundel and Howard counties, say they feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area they live in.
That is still significantly higher than in the Memphis, Tenn. area, which comes in last on the list with 55 percent of those asked saying they feel safe walking alone at night. The New Orleans, La. area is second to last with 59 percent saying they feel safe.
The area where the most people say they feel safe is Minneapolis-St. Paul, where 80 percent say they feel safe. The Denver-Aurora, Colo. area is second.
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