Report: Philadelphia ranks third in U.S. for least-focused driving

PHILADELPHIA (FOX 29) - If it seems like you have driven past more and more drivers glancing down at their cell phone while maneuvering city streets or barreling down the highway recently, it's because you have.

A new report conducted by Root Insurance Company in honor of National Distracted Driver Awareness month found that Philadelphia ranked third in the nation in least-focused driving.

The report classified "distracted driving incidents" as moments when a driver picks up his or her phone while on the road. The company gathered information by using their mobile app across a 22 state sample size.

"Using existing technology in smartphones like gyroscopes and accelerometer, the Root app can identify any unusual vibration patters that indicate significant cell phone use while driving," the report stated.

Their findings concluded that the average driver is distracted for 8% of the miles they drive, and checks their phone 17 times every 100 miles.

In rural areas, distracted driving incidents occur just 15 times per 100 miles, the report say. But in urban areas - such as Philadelphia - drivers use their phones 20% more than their rural counterparts.

Overall, Pennsylvania ranked as the fourth least focused state in the nation. Utah had the most focused drivers and Maryland had the least focused, the study found.