Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
Franklin County, Pennsylvania, has about 159,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A traffic ticket written in Franklin County is a court case in the Magisterial District Courts, and the conviction it ends in goes on the driving record kept by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. This guide says which court takes the ticket, who writes them and where the driving record lives.
This guide covers where tickets go, who writes them, the driving record, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Franklin County public records, Franklin County arrest records, Franklin County warrants, Franklin County inmate search, Franklin County criminal records, Pennsylvania arrest records and Pennsylvania inmate search.
Where a Ticket Written in Franklin County Goes
Tickets in Franklin County go to the Magisterial District Courts, which take traffic tickets, summary offenses, small claims and preliminary hearings; Philadelphia has the Municipal Court instead. A paid ticket, a dismissal and a trial all end up in that court's records.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at franklincountypa.gov/departments/clerk-of-courts, phone 717-261-3805.
Statewide, UJS Web Portal is the Pennsylvania courts' free statewide docket search.
Who Writes the Tickets in Franklin County
The Franklin County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Chambersburg, Waynesboro, Greencastle and Mercersburg write the traffic tickets in Franklin County.
The FBI's agency list also places four state agencies, one campus police department, three other agencies and one state police unit in Franklin County (the arrest records guide names each one); the Franklin County State Police writes the tickets on the state highways.
The Shippensburg Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Franklin County, so its arrests are not broken out for Franklin County here.
The Driving Record and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
Convictions are reported by the court to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, which keeps the driving record and decides on points and suspensions. Order the driving record from that agency, not from the court.
Paying a ticket is a conviction, reported to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation like any other; contesting it means a plea of not guilty entered with the court by the date on the ticket.
A DUI is a criminal charge rather than a ticket, with its own license case before PennDOT (see Franklin County DUI).
Cities in Franklin County
Wherever in the county a ticket is written, it is answered in the Magisterial District Courts.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Franklin County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own traffic tickets guide opens there:
- Chambersburg (23,041)
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I pay a traffic ticket from Franklin County?
With the Magisterial District Courts.
Who keeps my driving record in Pennsylvania?
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. The court reports each conviction to it, and paying a ticket counts as one.
Which court handles traffic tickets in Franklin County?
The Magisterial District Courts, which take traffic tickets, summary offenses, small claims and preliminary hearings; Philadelphia has the Municipal Court instead.
Is this the official Franklin County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.