An independent crime survey published yesterday found that half the population of two large provincial centres feel threatened on the streets of their towns.
The survey of crime in Ennis and Tralee is part of a campaign by the Ennis Chamber of Commerce to secure closed-circuit television (CCTV) for Ennis - it is already in place in Tralee.
In both towns, however, a heightened Garda presence was seen by respondents as the best way of reducing the threat to people's personal safety on the streets.
The survey found 48 per cent of respondents felt threatened on Ennis's streets. Some 52 per cent felt threatened on Tralee's streets, where the main threat was perceived to be that of personal attack.
In Ennis, groups of young people on the main streets after dark was felt to be the single greatest threat.
The president of Ennis Chamber of Commerce, Mr Joe Moran, said he found such figures disturbing, but he said: "We can act on them."
The independent survey of 200 businesses and 200 people in Ennis, with half that amount being surveyed in Tralee, also found that almost 50 per cent of businesses in Ennis have been subject to crime over the past three years.
The survey - commissioned by the Ennis Chamber of Commerce and endorsed by the Garda Commissioner, Pat Byrne - also found that in the last three years, Ennis businesses on average spent €8,315 on crime prevention.
The survey also found that only 15 per cent of those who carried out crimes on business were charged in Ennis with 8 per cent being convicted, while 17 per cent of respondents' family members were victims of crime over the past three years.
However, the survey showed that the response to CCTV in Tralee was mixed, with 51 per cent of respondents stating that it was of no benefit to Tralee and 40 per cent of businesses stating that it brought about no changes in the level of crime.
Some 53 per cent of the Tralee public stated there should be better monitoring of CCTV.
Welcoming the report yesterday, a spokesman at Ennis Garda Station said yesterday: "The people now have spoken and we're listening."
He could not say, however, if extra Gardaí will be put in place on Ennis's streets as a result.
The spokesman said that will be a decision for the Chief Supt and Supt at Ennis Station who were both unavailable for comment yesterday.
The cost of installing a CCTV system is estimated to be over €250,000. Mr Shane Malone, chief executive of Ennis Chamber of Commerce, said the local community, including the private sector, is pledging to contribute half that amount to the scheme. As Ennis is Ireland's "information age town", it is expected that the costs will be lower than elsewhere to install the system.
Mr Malone said the poor response to CCTV in Tralee was due to the Tralee public not taking ownership of the project.
He said: "Ennis has now become the town in Ireland with the most complete picture of its own crime situation."
