Montreal is, for the most part, a remarkably safe city. It is perhaps the safest major urban area in North America. Think, for example, about the notorious crime rates in American cities of comparable size and caliber. Chicago and Houston, for example, both have inordinately high crime rates.
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TL;DR Map enthusiast Jesus Marquez used police data to compile a crime "heat map" for the city of Montreal. From his work, we can see that crime is concentrated in the downtown, Dorval, Hochelaga, Mile End, and part of Lachine. View Marquez's map below.
Still, Montreal is not immune from criminal activity. Quebec's largest city, too, has seen the effects of a nationwide increase in violent, gun-related crimes.
But few neighbourhoods in the city have a reputation for crime. The city of Montreal publishes a map depicting crime across the city, but criminal activity is marked only according to the nearest street corner; specific locations are not disclosed.
And despite its wealth of public data, the SPVM can be rather witholding when it comes to information on crime.
To better represent crime rates across the city, map enthusiast and Montreal resident Jesus Marquez used police data to compile a crime "heat map." From his work, we can clearly discern which Montreal neighbourhoods are the most dangerous.
@gismapsDowntown by far has the most crime per 1,000 residents. Though, the map cautions, crime rates there "are skewed due to high influx of non-residents in these areas who are not present in census data."
In addition to downtown, Dorval, Hochelaga, Mile End, and part of Lachine also appear to have high crime rates.
The SPVM points out, however, that despite a high rate of commercial burglaries, the rate of "qualified thefts" in Dorval (thefts that involve violence or firearms, for example) is relatively low. Dorval residents are therefore not in any more danger than residents of other Montreal neighbourhoods.
The safest areas, Marquez shows, are in Verdun, St Laurent, LaSalle, and CDN-NDG.
Check out more maps on Marquez's Instagram page and website. His map of places to buy Venezuelan arepa flour in Montreal is particularly helpful.
