Sadiq Khan, it’s time for action
Members of the SUV Alliance, alongside allies, signed a letter to London Mayor Sadiq Khan earlier this month, calling for swift action on carspreading. The letter was prompted by the publication of London’s Vision Zero Action Plan 2 which took firm aim at larger cars and SUVs as a growing source of road danger in the capital.
Whilst the Action Plan pulled no punches on SUVs as an issue, it fell short of promising concrete actions, merely pledging to ‘ complete analysis to better understand the safety risk and impacts posed by oversized SUVs’. The letter offers policy recommendations that the Mayor could explore immediately, giving Transport for London the opportunity to become the first English public authority to take action on SUVs (Cardiff being the first UK authority).
The letter is published in full below.
Dear Mayor Khan,
We very much welcome your renewed commitment in London's Vision Zero Action Plan 2 to eliminate all road deaths and serious injuries by 2041. We are also grateful for your leadership on the need to tackle dangerous and oversized cars.
Around a third of all cars on London’s roads are now larger SUVs. This is especially concerning for children, who are far more likely to die if struck by one. It is unsurprising then that 61% of London parents are concerned bigger cars make it more dangerous for children to walk and cycle (YouGov, 16% disagree).
This unnecessary trend of ever bigger cars - known as ‘Carspreading’ - is putting lives at risk and adding to a myriad of other problems in London. New cars are getting 1cm wider on average every two years, causing bus delays, parking stress and traffic congestion. Internal combustion SUVs burn around 20% more fuel, which is totally undermining London’s action on air pollution and climate.
We welcome TfL’s commitment to ‘analyse the issue’ but the impacts of SUVs are well documented already.
The time to act is now, as is already happening elsewhere.
Paris tripled parking fees for heavy cars and Edinburgh banned SUV advertising. Why not here in London? We urge you to act before it is too late, including by:
Integrating an oversized vehicle levy into London road pricing schemes;
Ending the paradox of SUV advertising on TfL’s website and billboards;
Supporting boroughs to incorporate vehicle size into parking tariffs;
Delivering alternatives, including electric car clubs and cargo bike sharing;
Campaigning for maximum vehicle dimensions and for Vehicle Excise Duty to include a progressively higher tax proportional to the vehicle’s weight.
We support your commitment to a safer, fairer and healthier city for everyone. Will you please meet with us to discuss the above at the earliest opportunity?
Yours sincerely,
Oliver Lord, Head of UK, Clean Cities
James Ward, Co-Director, Adfree Cities
Jemima Hartshorn, Founder and Director, Mums for Lungs
Nicola Pastore, Co-founder, Solve The School Run
Silviya Barrett, Director of Policy and Research, Campaign for Better Transport
Francesca Agostini, Co-founder, Green School Runs
Jeremy Leach Co-founder, Action Vision Zero
Anna Krajinska, Director, T&E UK
Alice Roberts, Campaigns Director, CPRE London
Rachel White, Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, Head of Policy and Communications
Kyle Lischak, Head of UK, ClientEarth
Juliet Michaelson, Co-Director, Possible
Tanya Braun, Director of External Affairs and Fundraising, Living Streets
Tom Fyans, Chief Executive, London Cycling Campaign
Love Ssega, Founder, LIVE + BREATHE
Robert Davis, Chair Road Danger Reduction Forum
Feature image: Viridiana Rivera via Pexels.