Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes > Chapter 265 - Rules of the Road

• Accident: shall mean any event that results in injury or property damage attributable directly or indirectly to the motion of a motor vehicle or its load. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:1-a
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Autocycle: means a 3-wheeled motor vehicle that has a steering wheel and seating that does not require the operator to straddle or sit astride, is equipped with safety belts for all occupants and is manufactured to comply with federal safety requirements for motorcycles. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:4-d
• Automobile utility trailer: shall mean any trailer suitable for towing by a passenger automobile or pick-up truck, and which is being towed by such vehicle for the purpose of hauling personal property intrastate or interstate; excepting such trailers when hauling livestock. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:5
• Bicycle: shall mean every pedalled vehicle propelled by human power upon which any person may ride, except child's tricycles and similar devices. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:6
• Bus: shall mean every motor vehicle designed for carrying more than 10 passengers and used for transportation of persons; and every motor vehicle, other than a taxicab, designed and used for the transportation of persons for compensation. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:7
• bylaw: when used in reference to legislative action taken by a city, town, county or village district shall have the same meaning as an ordinance and shall be subject to the same procedures for enactment. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:45
• Certificate: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:9
• Commercial motor vehicle: shall mean a motor vehicle or a combination of motor vehicles, used in commerce, to transport passengers or property if:
  (a) The vehicle has a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more;
  (b) The vehicle has a gross combination weight rating or actual weight of 26,001 or more pounds, inclusive of any towed unit with gross vehicle weight rating or actual weight of more than 10,000 pounds;
  (c) The vehicle is designed or used to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver; or
  (d) The vehicle is of any size and is used in the transportation of hazardous materials required to be placarded under 49 C. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:12-e
• Commissioner: shall mean the commissioner of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:13
• Compact utility tractor: shall mean any self-propelled 4-wheel vehicle utilizing diesel fuel, with a rated horsepower not to exceed 28 horsepower, that is capable of carrying not more than one occupant, is equipped by the manufacturer with at least one PTO (power take-off) in addition to any PTO installed for the purpose of an under-tractor mower deck, and has no provision for carrying a load other than attached implements such as snowplows, tool boxes, or bucket loaders. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:13-a
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Construction equipment: shall mean all bulldozers, rollers, scrapers, graders, spreaders, pavers, bituminous mixers, retreading machines, compressors, power shovels, excavators, backhoes, wagons, concrete mixers, generators, message boards, wood chippers, bucket loaders, snow loaders, rooters, scarifiers and construction tractors, and such other items of equipment which in the opinion of the director should be classified as construction equipment. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:42
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Crosswalk: shall mean that part of a highway at an intersection included within the connections of the lateral lines on opposite sides of the highway measured from the curbs, or in the absence of curbs from the edges of the traversable highway or any portion of a highway at an intersection or elsewhere distinctly indicated for pedestrian crossing by lines or other markings on the surface. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:17
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: shall mean the department of safety of the state of New Hampshire. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:19
• Director: shall mean the director of the division of motor vehicles of the department of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:20
• Division: shall mean the division of motor vehicles in the department of safety. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:22
• Driver: shall mean a person who drives or is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle as defined in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:25
• Electric bicycle: shall mean a pedaled vehicle equipped with an electric motor of less than 750 watts that falls within one of the following 3 classes:
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:27-a
• Emergency vehicles: shall mean all vehicles of fire departments and police departments, the state department of corrections, and such ambulances and emergency vehicles of municipal departments or public service corporations as authorized by the director. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:28
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Explosives: shall mean any chemical compound or mechanical mixture as defined in the rules adopted by the director of state police pursuant to N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:31
• farm: means any land, buildings, or structures on or in which agriculture and farming activities are carried out or conducted and shall include the residence or residences of owners, occupants, or employees located on such land. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:32
• following: when used by way of reference to any section of these laws, shall mean the section next preceding or following that in which such reference is made, unless some other is expressly designated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:13
• Full trailer: shall mean any trailer being towed behind a semi-trailer as part of a combination vehicle also known as twin-trailers or "double bottoms. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:37-a
• governing body: shall mean the board of selectmen in a town, the board of aldermen or council in a city or town with a town council, the school board in a school district or the village district commissioners in a village district, or when used to refer to unincorporated towns or unorganized places, or both, the county commissioners. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:48
• governor and council: shall mean the governor with the advice and consent of the council. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:31-a
• Hazardous materials: shall mean hazardous materials as defined in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:40
• Ignition interlock device: shall mean breath alcohol ignition interlock device or enhanced technology ignition interlock device, which is a system or device that connects a breath analyzer to a motor vehicle's ignition system. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:43-a
• Intersecting way: shall mean any way which joins another at an angle, whether it crosses the other or not. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:45
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• justice: when applied to a magistrate, shall mean a justice of a municipal court, or a justice of the peace having jurisdiction over the subject-matter. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:12
• License: shall mean any driver's license or any other license or permit to drive a vehicle issued under the laws of this state or a reciprocating state including:
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:48
• Mobile carrier: means an electrically powered device that:
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:56-a
• modified: means , but is not limited to, a substantial and material alteration or replacement of the engine, drive-train, suspension or brake system or alteration of the body which may be chopped, channelled, sectioned, filled or otherwise changed dimensionally from the original manufactured body. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:106-a
• Moped: shall mean a motor-driven cycle whose speed attainable in one mile is 30 miles per hour or less; if an internal combustion engine is used, the piston displacement shall not exceed 50 cubic centimeters and the power-drive system shall not require the operator to shift gears. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:57
• Motor truck: shall mean any truck of greater than 26,000 pounds manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating, or any motor vehicle equipped with other than pneumatic tires. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:59
• Motor vehicle: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:60
• Motor-driven cycle: shall mean any motorcycle or motor scooter with a motor which produces not to exceed 5 horse-power, and any bicycle with motor attached except any electric bicycle. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:65
• Motorcycle: shall mean every motor vehicle having a seat or saddle for the use of the rider and designed to travel on not more than 3 wheels in contact with the ground, but excluding electric bicycles, tractors, and mopeds. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:63
• Neighborhood electric vehicle: shall mean any 4-wheeled electric vehicle that has a maximum speed which is greater than 20 miles per hour but not greater than 25 miles per hour, and which complies with the federal safety standards established in 49 C. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:66-b
• Nonresident: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:67
• Number plate: shall mean the sign or marker furnished by the director, on which is displayed the registration number or mark of a vehicle assigned thereto by the director, which shall bear on the face thereof a permanent or changeable designation of the effective period. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:68
• Off highway recreational vehicle: shall mean any mechanically propelled vehicle used for pleasure or recreational purposes running on rubber tires, tracks, or cushion of air and dependent on the ground or surface for travel, or other unimproved terrain whether covered by ice or snow or not, where the driver sits in or on the vehicle. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:69
• Open road tolling lane: shall mean any lane on a toll road so designated by a traffic control device or lane control system at which certain vehicles equipped with transponder devices for the payment of tolls are permitted to travel at highway speeds without reducing speed or stopping to pay a toll. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:69-a
• Owner: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:72
• Person: shall mean the same as provided in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:74
• Personal delivery device: means an electrically powered device that:
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:75-a
• petition: when used in connection with the equity jurisdiction of the superior court, and referring to a document filed with the court, shall mean complaint, and "petitioner" shall mean plaintiff. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:51
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Pocket bike: includes , but is not limited to, motorized devices commonly known as "mini-cycles" "mini-choppers" and "pocket rockets" but does not include a moped as defined in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:77-a
• Police officer: shall mean any constable, peace officer, or other officer authorized to make arrests or serve process. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:78
• Public way: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:83
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Revocation: shall mean the termination by formal action of the department or of a court of competent jurisdiction of a person's driver's license or privilege to drive on the ways of this state, or of any other license, registration or permit issued by the department. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:90
• Right-of-way: shall mean the right of one vehicle or pedestrian to proceed in a lawful manner in preference to another vehicle or pedestrian approaching under such circumstances of direction, speed or proximity as to give rise to the danger of collision unless one grants precedence to the other. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:91
• road: shall include all bridges thereon. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:26
• roadway: means that portion of a way improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, including the berm or shoulder where such berm or shoulder is used by persons riding bicycles or other human powered vehicles. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:75-b
• Rural residence district: shall mean the territory contiguous to a way not comprising a business or urban residence district when the frontage on such way for a distance of
  1/2 mile or more is mainly occupied by dwellings or by dwellings and buildings in use for business on any one side. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:93
• School bus: shall mean a vehicle owned by a public or governmental agency, or a privately owned vehicle, including a station wagon, suburban, panel body vehicle and vehicles converted to a school bus, but excluding a passenger vehicle, employed solely in transporting school children to and from school or school activities by virtue of a contract with a municipality, municipal board or school board authorities. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:96
• Semi-trailer: shall mean a vehicle of the trailer type so designed and used in conjunction with a self-propelled vehicle that a considerable part of its own weight or that of its load rests upon and is carried by the towing vehicle, and not including a pair or set of wheels commonly used as an implement for other purposes than transportation, provided, however, that the word "semi-trailer" shall not include any vehicle as described in this section if used exclusively for agricultural purposes unless said vehicle be of the type constructed specifically to be towed by a tractor-type truck. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:98
• Sidecar: shall mean a one-wheel attachment to a motorcycle. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:99
• Snowmobile: shall mean any vehicle propelled by mechanical power that is designed to travel over ice or snow supported in part by skis, tracks, or cleats. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:102
• State: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:106
• Suspension: shall mean the temporary withdrawal by formal action of the department or of a court of competent jurisdiction of a person's driver's license or privilege to drive a vehicle on the ways of this state, or any other license, registration or permit issued by the department, which temporary withdrawal shall be for a period specifically designated by the department or court and until the reissuance of the license, registration, permit or privilege. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:107
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Tractor: shall mean : any self-propelled vehicle designed or used for agricultural purposes or as a traveling power plant or for drawing other vehicles, but having no provision for carrying a load other than attached implements such as snowplows, tool boxes, or bucket loaders, but shall not include vehicles used for recreational purposes or agricultural/industrial utility vehicles as defined in N. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:108
• Traffic: shall mean pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars, and other conveyances either singly or together while using any way for purposes of travel. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:110
• Traffic control signal: shall mean any device, whether manually, electrically or mechanically operated, by which traffic is alternately directed to stop and permitted to proceed. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:111
• Trailer: shall mean any vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property or passengers wholly on its own structure and for being drawn by a self-propelled vehicle, except those running exclusively on snow or on stationary tracks and vehicles used exclusively for agricultural purposes. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:113
• Transporter: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:114
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Truck: shall mean every motor vehicle designed, used or maintained primarily for the transportation of property. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:115-b
• Truck-tractor: shall mean any vehicle designed and intended primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to carry a load other than a part of the vehicle and load so drawn, except that a truck-tractor engaged in the transportation of automobiles may transport motor vehicles on a part of the power unit. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:116
• United States: shall include said district and territories. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:4
• Urban residence district: shall mean the territory contiguous to a highway not comprising a business district when the frontage on such highway for a distance of 300 feet or more is mainly occupied by dwellings or by dwellings and buildings in use for business. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:118
• Vehicle: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:122
• Veteran: means any person who:
  (1) Served in the United States armed forces for more than 4 years and continues to serve; or
  (2) Has been discharged or released from duty in the United States armed forces with:
  (A) An honorable discharge; or
  (B) An uncharacterized discharge based on a service-connected injury, illness, or disability. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:50
• Way: shall mean :
  I. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:125
• Wrecker: shall mean a motor vehicle of the truck type designed, manufactured, intended, or adapted primarily for the towing of vehicles upon a way. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 259:126