April 01, 2016
Pennsylvania drivers are increasingly flouting the rules of the road, racking up a 43 percent increase in distracted driving citations between 2014 and 2015, according to statistics released in a new report from the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts.
The report compiles data on citations related to texting while driving – sending, reading or writing a text message or email – and wearing or using headphones while a car is in motion.
Leading the pack in 2015 was Montgomery County with 298 citations, part of a grand total of 879 over the past four years. That's 177 more than second-worst Allegheny County, which had 235 in 2015 and 702 since 2012. York (223), Bucks (183) and Chester (166) counties filled out the top five for 2015.
Philadelphia's citations, which are maintained by the Traffic Division of the Municipal Court, are only available as recently as 2014, when city drivers drew a total of 195. That year, Philadelphia was second behind Montgomery County's 223 citations.
The gender divide in the report strongly skews toward men, who received 67 percent of citations in Pennsylvania. Some other key findings from the report can be found in the infographic below.
Infographic on distracted driving in Pennsylvania.
