Drivers in the five-county Philadelphia metro area have received more texting-while-driving citations than those in any other region of the state, according to a report from AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The analysis found that, of 796 tickets issued during the first six months of the state’s texting and driving ban, 355 of them were doled out in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware or Montgomery counties. Though the region houses a third of Pennsylvania’s residents, the volume of tickets, which amounts to more than 44 percent of the statewide total, is still disproportionately high.
Of the Philadelphia metro area, Philadelphia County motorists received the most texting-while-driving citations – 156 – followed by Montgomery County with 75, Allegheny County with 58, Delaware County with 52 and Bucks County with 42.
AAA compiled the report using data from the state supplemented by information from Philadelphia police. They found that the second most-ticketed region was the Pittsburgh metro area, where drivers received 111 tickets during the same period. The Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton metro area came in a distant third, with 38 citations. The state ban, which saddles violators with a $50 fine, went into effect March 8.
