The New Hampshire State Police has it roots in the Motorcycle Unit. At the inception of the New Hampshire State Police in 1937, most of the Troopers patrolled many areas of the state on their own motorcycles. Motorcycle patrol was discontinued in the 1940s, but in 1978 the current Motorcycle Unit was created to resurrect the use of this means of transportation.The primary mission of the New Hampshire State Police Motorcycle Unit has always been traffic enforcement. The troopers assigned to the unit work areas that have a heavy volume of traffic as well as high accident rates. Unit members are traditionally deployed to congested areas which include Hampton Beach, Weirs Beach during Motorcycle Week, NASCAR races, as well as motorcades for visiting VIP’s. During the season, approximately 10,000 vehicle stops are made.

The Motorcycle Unit continues to be a valuable asset to the Division as a high visibility, high impact enforcement tool as well as a positive public relations tool.