That driver next to you on the Houston freeway is more likely to be tapping on their phone when they should be worried about tapping their brakes, a new study has found.

Comparing the 46 states with bans on texting to the four that do not – Texas, Missouri, Arizona and Montana – researchers with AT&T found drivers in the states without a ban have a roughly 17 percent higher rate of texting.

The study was unique in that it used AT&T customers with Android phones and logged their texting from moving vehicles. The information, which only included incidents of texting and shielded identities, was then analyzed with a host of other factors to get a valid sample of how likely people are to text while commuting in metro areas, Susanne Halstead, senior data scientist with AT&T, said Tuesday.

That means unlike surveys where people are asked about their texting habits behind the wheel – where some people lie – the study is based on actual incidents of people texting from a moving car and census data related to how many people drive alone or with someone.

Supporters of statewide texting bans said the findings demonstrate laws have a positive effect.

“There is concrete evidence that states with texting bans have fewer drivers who are texting,” said Kara Macek, spokeswoman for the Governors Highway Safety Association. “Which is the exact behavior we are trying to change.”

Forty cities in the state have a local ban, including Bellaire, Conroe, Galveston, Missouri City, Tomball and West University Place. But attempts to ban texting while driving in Texas have run into opposition or ambivalence in Austin, where Gov. Greg Abbott and his predecessor Rick Perry have both balked at a law they said controlled adult behavior.

“That is a really hard mindset to change,” Macek said, calling opposition to a ban in the four holdout states “a tough nut to crack.”

The study, which provides valuable comparisons, Macek said, gives ban supporters more opportunity to urge for law changes but also another chance to warn drivers. Ultimately, she added, it is not about texting but all types of distractions that drivers confront.

“We know it is dangerous to interact with your phone, period,” she said.