In 2013, New Hampshire had 135 fatalities on our highways, an increase of 20% over the previous year. The New Hampshire Department of Safety reports that nearly 30% of all fatal accidents are now the result of distracted driving. The problem is real and it’s growing.
Today, New Hampshire House members took steps to take mobile devices out of the hands of drivers, and return those hands back on the steering wheel. By a vote of 192 to 133, the New Hampshire House endorsed the so-called distracted driving bill. The proposal now heads to the NH Senate for further review.
“We know that cell phones and mobile devices are a major distraction for all drivers, threatening the safety of roadways for all of us,” says Pete McNamara, President of the New Hampshire Auto Dealers Association. “We need to send a clear message to all drivers: put down the cell phone and get your eyes back on the road.”
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This compromise plan has the endorsement of New Hampshire State Police, Verizon, General Motors and the Alliance of Auto Manufacturers. According to HB 1360, “No person while driving a moving motor vehicle upon a way or temporarily halted in traffic for a traffic control device or other momentary delay, shall use any hand-held mobile electronic device, including but not limited to reading, composing or writing an email message or text message, initiating, receiving, or conducting a conversation, initiating a command or request to access the Internet, or inputting information into a global positioning system or navigation device.”
Fines for breaking this new law would be $100 dollars for a first offense, $250 for a second offense and $500 for every violation after that for a period of two years. There are exceptions in the bill for drivers making emergency calls to 911. The law also carves out exceptions for drivers who pull over to make a call, or to compose an email or a text.
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“Let’s face it, the current distracted driving law is weak,” says McNamara. “In 2012, our state police wrote over 100-thousand tickets and only 16 were for texting and driving. More people are using their phones while driving, and fatal accidents are on the rise. We need to do something.”
Statistics show young drivers are at the greatest risk of getting into an accident, and the allure of personal devices adds even greater risk to being distracted. NH Auto Dealers encourages the Senators to support HB 1360.
