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Emptier roads, less enforcement led to drops in Phoenix-area traffic violations during pandemic

Bad driving, however, on the rise, local officials say

Five law enforcement agencies in the Valley and state each reported considerable drop-offs in traffic citations issued from 2019 to 2020, which agency spokespeople largely attributed to there being fewer vehicles on the road during coronavirus lockdowns.

Some agencies also said departments scaling back traffic enforcement efforts to minimize officers’ face-to-face contact with the public.

Surprise police had the largest reduction in citations between 2019 and 2020, with a 39% drop-off. Surprise was followed by Peoria police with a 36.8% reduction, then Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (22.4%), Glendale police (15.8%) and the Arizona Department of Public Safety (15.3%).

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