Sir Sadiq Khan has been urged to act on so-called ‘car spreading’ on London streets and to seek higher taxes for SUVs. London Assembly Members agreed a motion calling on the mayor to take action because of fears that the increasing size of cars is damaging road surfaces, causing congestion and putting other road users at greater risk of death and serious injury.
SUVs are generally taller, wider and heavier than traditional cars, and less fuel-efficient. The increase in the size of cars has been described as car spreading.
The London Assembly called on Sir Sadiq to ask the Treasury to amend vehicle excise duty to include a tax based on vehicle weight. It also wants the mayor to request that councils in the capital consider charging more for parking larger cars, and to call on the Department for Transport to introduce tighter limits on the size and bonnet height of passenger vehicles.
The motion was agreed by 14 votes in favour and eight votes against. SUVs have grown in popularity in recent years, with many drivers favouring their higher seating position. They accounted for a third of all new car registrations in the UK last year, compared with just 12% a decade earlier.
Labour London Assembly Member Elly Baker, who proposed the motion, said the capital’s streets “weren’t designed for larger vehicles like SUVs”. She went on: “Their greater size, weight, and higher bonnets put vulnerable road users at greater risk, reduce available parking spaces, and cause more wear and tear on our roads.
“It’s time we took sensible steps to manage the impact of oversized cars and ensure our streets remain safe and accessible for everyone.”
But AA president Edmund King insisted it is “up to Londoners to choose the type of vehicle that best fulfils their needs”. He added: “It is not really the role of the London Assembly to dictate what cars individuals should drive.
“Some larger families may well need bigger vehicles with more passenger seats, whereas a driver conducting most trips alone may well choose a city car.
“London’s streets were developed around the horse and cart, so of course our infrastructure needs modernising to keep up with change.”
A recent study found pedestrians and cyclists are 44% more likely to die if they are hit by an SUV or similar-sized vehicle rather than a traditional car.
The analysis produced by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and Imperial College London stated that the figure rises to 82% for children.
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