New research has found a 40 percent increase in cell phone use among drivers despite laws banning it in several states. The National Transportation Safety Board has just recommended that states ban cell phone use by all drivers with the exception of emergencies.

Federal accident investigators suggested the new policy following a finding that the initial collision in a fatal Missouri highway pileup last year was caused by a distracted teenage pickup driver who sent or received nearly a dozen texts in about 11 minutes right before the accident. The driver and a 15-year-old student on one of the school buses were both killed, and over three dozen other people injured.

The board's recommendations hold heavy weight with lawmakers, and could significantly change policy over cell phone use while driving. This proposal also comes in the wake of an annual study conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which found that texting and talking while driving increased by more than half over the past year. The study concludes that distraction-related car accidents now account for about 9 percent of traffic-related fatalities.

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Do you still text on the highway? Have you abandoned your Bluetooth and reverted to holding your cell phone on the road? Did you get into an accident because of it? Should there be a national ban on cell phone use while driving?