Nearly 6,000 Brussels drivers caught calling or texting behind the wheel

In the first quarter of 2016, Belgian police fined 27,674 drivers for using a mobile phone while driving. Of those caught, 5,652 were driving in the Brussels-Capital Region, writes Bruzz.

If the trend continues through the remainder of 2016, it would result in 110,700 violations annually, a slight increase compared to the previous year (108,809), according to figures from interior minister Jan Jambon.

Mobile phone use among drivers in the first quarter of 2016 was highest in the provinces Antwerp (5,678), the Brussels-Capital Region (5,652), Hainaut (3,108) and East Flanders (2,880).

Many more men (14,681) than women (6,355) call or text while driving (gender not specified for 6,639 of the drivers). In terms of age, most violations were registered among 41-60-year-olds (7,761), followed by the age groups 31-40 years (6,022) and 21-30 years (4,672).