Police see increase in speeding, distracted driving on New Hampshire roads

ROADS AND WHAT’S BEING DONE TO STOP IT. I SEE PEOPLE DRIVING, YOU KNOW, 10 OR 15 MILES AN HOUR OVER THE SPEED LIMIT, JUST PEOPLE DRIVING TOO FAST. IF YOU FEEL LIKE YOUR COMMUTE HAS BECOME MORE UNNERVING, WELL, YOU’RE NOT ALONE. PEOPLE WHO ARE DOING THIS AND NOT LOOKING OR PAYING ATTENTION. AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THEY’RE LOOKING UP OR I CAN SEE THEM. THIS SWERVING TO THE LEFT TOO FAR. IT’S AGGRAVATING. YOU KNOW, IT’S ANNOYING. IN FACT, DRIVING ON U.S. ROADS HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY MORE DANGEROUS. ACCORDING TO THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION. WE HAVE TO BE PATIENT AND COURTEOUS TO OTHER DRIVERS OUT HERE. RETIRED NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE POLICE SERGEANT STEVEN COOPER HAS SEEN IT ALL. AFTER SPENDING MORE THAN 20 YEARS WITH THE AGENCY. I’VE SEEN PEOPLE THAT HAVE, UM, A FULL PLATE OF BREAKFAST IN THEIR HANDS, WHETHER DRIVING WITH THEIR KNEES, DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY. COOPER TOOK A RIDE WITH NEWS 9 TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THOSE PROBLEMS ON NEW HAMPSHIRE HIGHWAYS, FOR INSTANCE. THEY WANTED TO GO THAT WAY. NO DIRECTION. SO THAT PEOPLE KNOW WHERE THEY’RE GOING. CORRECT? IT’S PROBABLY NO SURPRISE, BUT ACCORDING TO COOPER, CELL PHONES ARE ONE OF THE BIGGEST DISTRACTIONS BEHIND THE WHEEL. DESPITE THE STATE’S HANDS-FREE LAW, WHICH WENT INTO EFFECT IN 2015 BETWEEN MAY 1ST OF LAST YEAR AND APRIL 30TH OF THIS YEAR, STATE POLICE GAVE OUT MORE THAN 1200 TICKETS FOR HANDS FREE VIOLATIONS. AND THESE ARE THE TIMES WHERE YOU KNOW IT’S NOT TIME, YOU KNOW, TO LOOK OVER AND AND PLAY WITH YOUR PHONE OR VISIT, YOU KNOW, ANSWER A TEXT. THESE ARE THE TIMES THEY’RE GOING TO BE THOSE FENDER BENDERS, RIGHT. SO I THINK PEOPLE ASSUME I’M SLOWING DOWN. I’M SLOWING DOWN. I HAVE PLENTY OF TIME. EXACTLY, EXACTLY. HE’S HONEST. SHE’S LOOKING AT HER CELL PHONE. SEE? SHE’S NOT PAYING ATTENTION. MORE OF THE EGREGIOUS VIOLATIONS, MORE OF THE MULTITUDE OF DIFFERENT VIOLATIONS ALL HAPPENING AT THE SAME TIME, ESPECIALLY SPEEDING, SAYS LIEUTENANT CHRISTOPHER STORM OF NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE POLICE. WITHIN THE LAST YEAR, THE AGENCY HAS ISSUED SOME 1600 TICKETS FOR DRIVING 25 MILES OR MORE OVER THE 65 MILE PER HOUR LIMIT, INCLUDING ONE PERSON WHO WAS CAUGHT GOING 128MPH. THE INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE TRAVELING OVER 100 MILES AN HOUR, IT’S ALMOST AN EVERYDAY OCCURRENCE NOW FOR OUR FOLKS IN THE SPECIAL ENFORCEMENT UNIT AND OUR TROOPERS ON THE ROAD. THE PROBLEMS AREN’T HAPPENING ON ONE PARTICULAR HIGHWAY. SO STATE POLICE HAS ENFORCEMENT TEAMS SET UP ACROSS NEW HAMPSHIRE TO MONITORING OUR ROADS, BOTH FROM THE GROUND AND THE AIR. NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE POLICE UTILIZES A CESSNA 182. AND THEN WE GO OUT AND WE HAVE LINES THAT ARE PAINTED ON THE ROADWAY. AND IT’S A BASICALLY A TIME DISTANCE EQUATION THAT’S DONE. SO WHAT’S CAUSING THIS NEED FOR SPEED? SEVERAL THINGS, SAYS COOPER FROM HOW CARS ARE MADE THESE DAYS TO IMPATIENT DRIVERS TO EVEN FAMILY HISTORY, HOW ARE OUR PARENTS DRIVING? RIGHT. IT’S THAT LIKE LEAD BY EXAMPLE. DO THEY DRIVE SAFE? DO THEY DRIVE RECKLESSLY? WHAT ABOUT OUR FRIENDS THAT WE DRIVE INTO CARS WITH? HOW THEY DRIVE? AND SO COULD IT COULD BE LEARNED BEHAVIOR TOO. AND WITH ONE OF THE BUSIEST DRIVING SEASONS OF THE YEAR APPROACHING, STATE POLICE WILL HAVE MORE TROOPERS ON THE ROADS THROUGHOUT THE SUMMER. WE ARE OUT THERE TRYING TO MAKE THAT ROADWAY SAFE, AND OUR ACTUAL NUMBERS FOR STOPS IS ACTUALLY U