Safety index · Ward 5, Washington, D.C. · data through November 2026
Is South Central, Washington, D.C. safe?
South Central shows a typical level of reported crime for Washington, D.C.. Its SafeRoute safety index is 70 out of 100 — 14 points above the citywide median of 56, ranking 35th of 132 D.C. neighborhoods — based on 182 incidents reported to the DC Metropolitan Police within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to November 2026.
DATA THROUGH NOVEMBER 2026 · 9 MONTHS OF DATA
The 0–100 scale is calibrated to Washington, D.C. — a typical Washington, D.C. neighborhood sits near 56. It ranks South Central against other neighborhoods here, and cannot be read against a score in another city.
Most of what's reported here is property-related — vehicle crime alone is 65% of reports — rather than violence against strangers, though the full mix below is worth a look.
Incidents spread across the day here — roughly 33% of severity-weighted reports come in the evening (6 p.m.–midnight) and 24% overnight.
Where incidents cluster
What's reported here
| Vehicle crime | 118 · 65% | |
| Other theft | 35 · 19% | |
| Burglary | 12 · 7% | |
| Violent crime | 10 · 5% | |
| Sexual offences | 4 · 2% | |
| Robbery | 3 · 2% |
When it happens
Severity-weighted share of reported incidents by time of day, from police incident timestamps.
Is Washington, D.C. safe at night? See which neighborhoods see the most reported crime after dark →
Walking in South Central at night?
SafeRoute scores every walking route against the same official crime data on this page — and shows how much of each route runs on lit streets. Compare the routes and share your walk. Free, no account.
Get SafeRoute on the App StoreNearby areas
- Gateway71/100 · Moderate
- Langdon63/100 · Moderate
- Fort Lincoln76/100 · Low risk
- Woodridge76/100 · Low risk
- Arboretum69/100 · Moderate
Common questions
Is South Central safe at night?
Moderate overall (safety index 70/100). About 57% of severity-weighted incidents in South Central are reported between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. At night, prefer lit, busier streets — a block or two of detour often avoids the clusters on the map above.
What is the most common crime in South Central?
Vehicle crime — 118 of 182 incidents (65%) reported within 1 km of the neighborhood center over the 9 months to November 2026.
How is the South Central safety index calculated?
SafeRoute weights each incident reported to the DC Metropolitan Police by severity (violence weighs more than shoplifting), sums the last available period within 1 km of the neighborhood center, and normalizes against citywide crime rates onto a 0–100 scale — higher is safer. It describes reported crime only; it is not a guarantee of safety. The scale is calibrated within Washington, D.C., so scores compare neighborhoods to each other and cannot be read against another city's.