Truck stop gambling officially went live a couple of weeks ago at a convenience store along Route 30 in Pennsylvania. Its gaming room became the first in the state to offer five video gaming terminals tailored to the state’s strict specifications.

The provision of the 2017 Pennsylvania gaming expansion law permitting up to five video gaming terminals at qualifying truck stops around the state was partly tailored on the VGT law in Illinois, with one huge difference: Unlike Illinois, there is no provision for VGTs at bars, taverns or private clubs, despite intense lobbying from the state’s tavern association.

The Pennsylvania legislature ultimately determined that VGTs in bars and taverns would saturate the gaming market, and threaten the cash cow provided by the 12 casinos across the state. Thus, the potential VGT market in Pennsylvania is a fraction of that in Illinois, not only because of the absence of bar VGTs, but because of more stringent requirements in Pennsylvania for truck stops.

For more on truck stop gambling in Pennsylvania, visit GGB News.