Phone makers asked to help cut driver distraction

U.S. safety officials called on smartphone makers to add features that would keep motorists from using functions linked to a surge in deaths due to distracted driving, a proposal that drew immediate opposition from the electronics industry.

The voluntary guidelines proposed Wednesday asked device makers to take steps such as blocking some video displays and preventing manual text entry while vehicles are under way.

'As millions of Americans take to the roads for Thanksgiving gatherings, far too many are put at risk by drivers who are distracted by their cellphones,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. 'These commonsense guidelines, grounded in the best research available, will help designers of mobile devices build products that cut down on distraction on the road.”

Among the ways the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said manufacturers can meet the guidelines is to create a 'driver mode” that limits functions when a vehicle's transmission moves to 'drive” from 'park.” It said maps could continue to be displayed on a phone for navigation.

The Consumer Technology Association, a trade group whose members include top smartphone makers Apple and Samsung Electronics, characterized the guidelines as 'extreme.”

'This regulatory overreach could thwart the innovative solutions and technologies that help drivers make safer decisions from ever coming to market,” Gary Shapiro, president of the Arlington, Va.-based trade group said in an emailed statement. 'NHTSA doesn't have the authority to dictate the design of smartphone apps and other devices used in cars - its legal jurisdiction begins and ends with motor vehicle equipment.”

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, with members including Ford, General Motors and Toyota, 'will carefully review these guidelines,” Wade Newton, a spokesman for the trade group, said in an email.

'It's important to encourage drivers to use in-vehicle systems rather than handheld personal electronic devices that were not engineered for use in the driving environment,” Newton said.