Are NYC and London safe?

People generally are more likely to report the negative than the positive. I don’t deny that like many large cities, there can be serious incidents.

I am in London about 3 times a week in various parts using tubes and usually travel home to outskirts between 22.30 and 00.00. I have never seen any thing that worries me. I am elderly and the courtesy and consideration shown by people on crowded tubes is heart warming

Whilst some will report bad occurrences, and I sympathise with them, the perception is not entirely accurate. One should consider the number of people in circulation. I do not of course dismiss the impact of any single incident on the individual.

It's a city of 9 million people.

If you want to judge a city via social media, I wish you well.

Perhaps best to be cautious and not venture away

Worst possible way to judge risk and safety is from self-selecting evidence. Testimony from outliers is more likely to dominate.

The central parts of both cities are pretty safe. Sadly, there's crime in both London and Manhattan, but it's not usually violent, more likely things like people walking around with their phone hanging out of their back pocket, then suddenly realising it's not there any more. Inconvenient and annoying, but it could happen in any city.

You do hear about people being stabbed in London, but it is not usually in tourist areas, and unfortunately the reasons are similar to in many other cities around the world.

The most unsafe I've felt on the tube recently was on the tube on a Saturday afternoon when about five (presumably stoned) teen boys decided to sit around me, despite their being a whole section of empty seats further down. There were other people in the carriage. Now, as it happened, two of them then decided they would wrestle, while the friend nearest to them looked like he wished he was anywhere else. All fine, but people can be accidentally (or perhaps intentionally) intimidating without trying.

Must be Chichester?

while annoying is not murder

For the average person, they're probably not any more or less safe than any other large town or city. Keep your wits about you and don't walk along the pavement with your phone out in your hand and you'll be fine.

If something looks dodgy, avoid it. If a street looks dangerous, take another. If a person looks aggressive (you occasionally get individuals who are drunk/on drugs wandering around who can be a bit unpredictable), cross the street away from them. But overall it's nothing you wouldn't see elsewhere.

NYC is a bit crazier than London, for sure - walk fast and act like you know where you're going!

Up till yesterday the people of Southport would probably have said their town was pretty safe.

Then after the very tragic events the mouthfoamers came out in force to keep repeating the 'facts' a fake news outlet on X had said, despite it being confirmed that the suspect was born in Cardiff.

Masses of people are now whipped in a frenzy.

'Safe' is subjective. I've walked confidently through the rougher areas of Liverpool and Bristol without feeling unsafe. Other people avoid the same areas, because they don't feel safe.

Just act sensibly, as in the advice given by others.

I’m interested to know what @thebroadwayboy’s thoughts are after all of these responses