May is the month to take your driving habits seriously — and not because anything dramatic happens overnight. The shift is mathematical. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, traffic accidents begin trending up in May and stay elevated through the summer holidays. Memorial Day weekend alone consistently runs about 10 percent above comparable non-holiday periods.
The reasons aren't mysterious. More travel. More outdoor celebrations. Longer evenings. More events involving alcohol. Locally, traffic on Highway 521, in South End, and around the Bowl at Ballantyne all rise as the weather opens up.
A few specific shifts worth knowing about this season:
North and South Carolina are both hands-free states now. North Carolina's Hands Free NC Act took effect December 1, 2025, with a six-month warning period; full citation enforcement is now in effect across the state. South Carolina's hands-free law went live September 1, 2025, with citations replacing warnings on February 28, 2026. The practical version: holding a phone while operating a vehicle is now a citable offense in both states. First offenses run roughly $100; subsequent offenses within 36 months scale up.
Set up navigation and music before you start moving. The statutes permit hands-free voice commands and dashboard-mounted devices — but holding the phone is the line.
If you're driving for Memorial Day weekend, a few habits that compress the risk curve, from Joe'Terrious Neal of Morton & Gettys, the law firm featured in the May Stroll Ballantyne Everyday Law column:
- Travel during the day if you can. Alcohol-related incidents skew heavily toward nighttime hours.
- Plan stops every two hours. Fatigued driving is a top contributor to multi-day road-trip incidents.
- At your destination, watch for everything that isn't a car. Motorcycles, bicycles, scooters, pedestrians, kids on the curb. Volume goes up everywhere over a holiday weekend.
- A dashcam pays for itself the first time you need it. If you're in an accident and the other driver's account differs from yours, the recording resolves the dispute.
If something does happen. Move to a safe location. Check for injuries. Call 911. Document everything — photos of the scene and the vehicles, contact information from every party and any witnesses. Get medical attention from an ER or urgent care immediately, even if you feel fine; a delay can complicate later care.
If you or a family member is dealing with the aftermath of a traffic accident, Morton & Gettys can be reached at 803-366-3388 or mortongettys.com/contact.
This service piece is adapted from the May 2026 issue of Stroll Ballantyne Country Club, where Joe'Terrious Neal authors the Everyday Law column.