Safety of the Urban Environment of St. Petersburg in the Perception of Women (Example of Nevsky Area)

Amount of people living in the city grows every year, more than half of the world’s population now live in urban areas, and this tendency is not going to change. Urban safety is an important factor influencing the quality of city life and not only safety by itself but also a sense of safety moderates our urban life. Women feel more unsafe and insecure than men in an urban environment. ). This fact of daily fear of crime have an influence on the way women interact with the city and it limits their activities. The aim of this study is to determine what exactly in a city makes women feel unsafe, how women define a safe and unsafe city, what their fears can be associated with, how fear affects their behaviour. Findings are based on interviews and observations conducted in the Nevsky District, Saint- Petersburg. This study identified 3 main groups, which include urban fears of women — social, physical, and personal. The study also showed how fears affect women's behaviour in the city and limit their activities. The work showed that the district needs initiatives related to the management of urban areas. In this regard, the paper presents practical recommendations aimed at increasing the sense of safety in the study area not only for women but also for all its users.