A province wide survey is underway to get a sense of what you think of the policing services provided by the OPP.
OPP Statistician Cindy Tomlinson tells Bayshore Broadcasting News this is the first time the survey has been conducted on a provincial scale.
She says since 1998, individual detachments have been conducting surveys every 2 to 3 years.
Tomlinson says they decided to expand the survey because a large part of the OPP’s work is done on the 400-series and other major highways.
She explains many of the people they come in contact with may not come from communities policed by the OPP and this survey will get their perceptions as well.
Anyone in Ontario could get the telephone call, which are made on a random basis.
Tomlinson says the survey will ask about feelings of safety, visibility of the OPP, traffic law enforcement, and the use of the new aircraft among other things.
Another new aspect of this survey is it’s being conducted by an independent market research firm.
Tomlinson says they were finding it hard to recruit volunteers for the survey and it was also taking away from valuable OPP time.
Tomlinson says the survey should wrap up this month, or as soon as they gather one thousand responses.
Participation is voluntary and the survey should take about 5 to 7 minutes.
The provincial survey will be conducted once a year, while the individual detachment surveys will continue every 2 to 3 years.
Results from the provincial survey will be published in the OPP’s business plans and annual reports.