Carspreading: how we lost our streets to SUVs

Cars are getting bigger. We’ve all noticed it. Streets once home with hatchbacks are now dominated by large SUVs and 4x4s. 

The problem is our streets aren’t getting any bigger, so any increase in vehicle size comes at the expense of space for other people and other things. More than half of new cars in the UK are too wide for urban parking spaces. 

And bigger cars means bigger risk, with large SUVs posing far more of a danger to vulnerable road users like children, pedestrians and cyclists. 

Carspreading

This phenomenon is known as “carspreading”, and once you see it you won’t be able to ignore it any longer. 

In a poll in February 2025, 59% of UK respondents agreed that SUVs are not necessary in towns and cities, whilst 61% agreed that SUVs take up too much space. 

Ultimately, this is an issue of fairness. SUVs, being more expensive, are largely owned by wealthier drivers, but their impacts are felt by other road users. 

Safer, fairer streets

The SUV Alliance manifesto would see SUV drivers pay fairly for their impact on roads, on the air we breathe, and for the extra space they take up. 

In October 2024, Paris introduced higher parking charges for SUVs, with the largest vehicles paying 3 times more than small cars per hour. This led to a two-thirds drop in SUV use in the city in just 3 months. Local councils here in the UK could do the same or similar, ensuring SUV owners pay for the extra space they take up and the extra damage heavier vehicles do to the road.

Reforms to Vehicle Excise Duty would ensure larger vehicles are taxed more than smaller one. Currently, VED is based on emissions, but as more and more cars sold are battery electric, this system fails to capture the social cost of new cars. Reforming VED to be based on weight would mean heavier SUVs pay more. A recent poll in The Times suggests 70% of people support this move.

Finally, passenger vehicles size limits would ensure the bloat of ever-bigger, heavier vehicles comes to an end. At present, regulations for new cars allow them to be almost as big as a single decker bus. Aspects like height and bonnet height are underregulated, despite being most closely associated with increased risk of causing a fatality in a crash with a pedestrian or cyclist.

Take action now

Without action, SUVs could make up three quarters of UK car registrations in 2027. Our streets are for everyone and need to be shared, with space for walking, wheeling, public transport, nature and local commerce, alongside small cars where necessary. 

SUVs threaten this vision of fair and safe streets. The SUV Alliance calls for urgent measures to reduce the presence of SUVs on our streets. Read our full manifesto here.

Feature image: Crispin Hughes / Clean Cities Campaign / Climate Visuals.