National Transportation Safety Board wants to ban usage of cell phones in cars

Car accidents happen on a daily basis and while it’s not always the case, more often than not, one of the drivers is using a mobile device behind the wheel. Well, it looks like the folks over at the National Transportation Safety Board wants to put an end to all that. It’s been reported that the NTSB wants to ban all driver use of cell phones and other portable electronic devices except in emergencies.

The recommendation doesn’t have the weight of the law, but this decision could have policy repercussions in the states and municipalities that lead to stricter laws about cellphone use on the road. While I’m not an advocate for using the phone behind the wheel, cars and smartphones are becoming increasingly integrated in this day and age, so it’s hard to see people taking it seriously.

Perhaps we can see some changes done by phone manufacturers and app developers to make phone operation while driving safer i.e. more voice-activated commands, apps with a “car mode” featuring larger buttons etc. What do you think of the NTSB’s proposal?