Exactly one year ago today the Hands-Free law took effect in New Hampshire. It banned drivers from using electronic devices while driving, the primary target of the ban being cell phones and smartphones. We were told that this ban would make New Hampshire roads safer, and we’d have fewer crashes and deaths as a result of removing these distractions. I said they were full of s**t.
July 1, 2016, headline – DMV: More of us are dying on NH roads
Twenty more people have died in car crashes in New Hampshire this year than at this time last year — an increase of 57 percent, according to statistics released this week by the state’s Division of Motor Vehicles.
Those six months correspond to the first six months of last year without the ban.
Collisions are up too, according to the DMV. There were 1000 more reportable crashes in the first six months of 2016 than the previous year when we had no ban.
According to the state’s Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV), 58 people died in 55 motor vehicle crashes this year between Jan. 1 and June 26, compared to 38 deaths in 35 crashes over the same time frame last year.
The total number of “reportable” motor vehicle crashes over the same time period also shows a huge increase, with 7,788 crashes reported in 2016 versus 6,837 in 2015.
The powers that be blame everything from opioids (which may also cause erectile dysfunction, toe-nail fungus, higher taxes, lazy-eye, transgenderism, and even highway fatalities), to ‘distracted driving.’ They have even posited that the lack of significant snowfall this past winter resulted in more deaths.
“Without those ‘parachutes,’ those cars go off the road, hit a tree, roll over, and can result in fatalities. There are also more people on the roads during the winter when there’s no snow.”
I blame the lack of global warming, which according to “experts” causes increased snowfall.
As for the distracted driving, I’ve shared some studies and reports that indicate that banning cell phones would not make a difference. But the New Hampshire Legislature passed it and Governor Hassan signed it. And so far, matters have gotten much worse. All with the ban in place.
And no, you will not find any reference in the article to the hands-free law or the one year anniversary of the ban on cell phone use in motor vehicles in New Hampshire.
