How Safe Are Bucks County Towns? New Report Ranks PA's 'Safest'

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — A new report released this month by the website ElitePersonalFinance ranks Pennsylvania's Top 100 safest places by measuring their violent crime statistics against their population.

So how did Bucks County communities stack up against other towns?

First, ElitePersonalFinance looked at the latest FBI crime statistic data, using violent crime as the main criteria. To calculate scores for towns, the website divided the total number of violent crimes by the population, then multiplied that figure by 1,000.

"This way, safer cities got the lowest score and those more vulnerable to crimes got higher scores," the website says. "The cities that did not report crimes to the FBI and those under 5,000 residents were not included in the Top 100 list."

Nine Bucks County communities made it onto ElitePersonalFinance's 100 Safest Places in Pennsylvania list.

Buckingham Township, with a population of 20,311, ranks near the top at No. 13. With a population of 20,311, the township had one violent crime, according to FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of 0.05. Buckingham is ranked number two among municipalities with a population of between 10,000 and 30,000 people.

Ranked No. 37 on the list is Newtown Township with a population of 22,880. The township had five violent crimes, according to FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score 0.22. Newtown is ranked 17th among municipalities with a population of between 10,000 and 30,000 people..

Rounding out the Top 50 Safest Places in Pennsylvania list is New Britain Township. With a population of 11,252, it ranks at No. 50. The township had three violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score 0.27. New Britain is ranked No. 22 among municipalities with a population of between 10,000 and 30,000 people.

Other Bucks County communities making the Top 100 Safest Places List in Pennsylvania are:

• No 57: Lower Makefield. With a population of 32,768 residents, the township had 10 violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of 0.31.
• No. 58: Northampton Township. With a population of 39,289 residents, the township had 12
  violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of 0.31.
• No. 70: Solebury Township. With a population of 8,585, the township had 3 violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of 0.35.
• No. 82: Upper Southampton. With a population of 15,038 residents, the township had six violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of .40.
• No. 87: Bedminster Township. With a population of 7,241, the township had 3 violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of 0.42.
• No. 94: Pennridge Regional, With a population of 11,013, the police district had five violent crimes, according to the FBI crime stats, giving it a crime score of 0.45.

The site is unable compare crime rates in small versus large cities. That’s why ElitePersonalFinance made a detailed analysis and narrowed the results according to population segments, which are included below:

Population of 3,000 to 10,000

• Solebury, No. 65
• Bedminster, No. 75
• Upper Makefield, No. 100

Population of 10,000 to 30,000

• Buckingham, No. 2
• Newtown Township, No 17
• New Britain Township, No 22
• Upper Southampton, No. 35
• Pennridge Regional, No. 43
• Central Bucks Regional, No. 54
• Warrington, No. 70
• Warwick, No. 81
• Doylestown Township, No. 84