Key Points

Crime

• In 1995, there were 47,048 non traffic offences reported to Police in Christchurch.
• In Christchurch between 1991 and 1995 non traffic offences increased by 27.2 percent, while nationally crime increased by 4.5 percent.
• Between 1994 and 1995, the number of reported crimes in the City increased by 9 percent. This was largely due to a sizeable increase in dishonesty crimes during 1995.
• In 1995, Christchurch had the highest rate of offending per 1,000 people in the South Island, but its rate was considerably lower than a number of North Island areas.
• The clearance rate for non traffic crimes has generally improved since 1991.
• Although the number of reported violent crimes in Christchurch declined slightly between 1994 and 1995, this type of crime has more than doubled since 1991.
• Dishonesty offences make up the majority of all reported crime in the City, accounting for 70 percent of all reported offences in 1995.

Vehicle Safety

• In line with national trends, the number of road injury crashes and casualties reported in Christchurch has declined since 1991.
• During 1995 there were 1,132 reported injury crashes resulting in 1,507 casualties.
• Collisions at intersections were the most common form of crashes.
• The injury crash rate per 10,000 population in Christchurch has declined significantly in recent years, although Christchurch still has the highest collision rate of all the main centres.
• Between 1991 and 1995, a total of 141 people died on City roads.
• The casualty rate per 10,000 people has declined significantly in recent years, in line with national trends.

Perceptions of Safety

• Many residents believe travelling around the City on a bicycle is unsafe.
• The Central City is considered by many residents to be unsafe at night.