Most Sao Paulo residents would leave if they could: survey

(Frontpage)

More than half the 11 million people living in metropolitan Sao Paulo -- Latin America's biggest city -- would leave if they could, an official survey released Tuesday showed.

More than half the 11 million people living in metropolitan Sao Paulo - Latin America's biggest city - would leave if they could, an official survey released Tuesday showed.

Fifty-seven percent of the 1,512 respondants to the Ibope Institute poll said they were unhappy with the quality of life in the huge city, which, when assimilated outlying towns are also counted, has a total population of 20 million.

Horrendous traffic, rampant street crime and prices that rival those of New York and London are all frequently cited as problems by those living in the Brazilian megacity.

That was reflected in the survey, which found 87 percent felt unsafe living there, with 65 percent fearing being mugged.

A particularly wet summer season which has flooded parts of Sao Paulo for days at a time was also an important concern for 28 percent.