I have a fear of large vehicles. As a pedestrian in the city, I worry about crossing in front of a vehicle. Some of these vehicles are so large, standing at an average height of 5′6, the top of my head barely shows over the hood. Large pickup trucks and SUVs have a harder time seeing adults in front of them, nevermind children. And, as a driver of a smaller auto, I fear colliding with one of these vehicles. The outcome of which would be clear, with my car and body suffering the greater impact of the collison. If I feel unsafe, I am sure other people too, which fuels the desire to buy ever larger size autos for safety concerns.
Focusing on better infrastructure design is one solution, but I believe that automobiles are too large and oversized for the average drivers’ needs. Why does a person who weighs 200 lbs need a vehicle that weighs on average 4,410 to 5,710 lbs to commute? With ever larger cars dominating, that’s more wear on our roads, less parking spaces, and a growing sense that automobiles are choking our planet.
There are many policies for lawmakers to review. And, please review them all, including environmental impacts of larger vehicles, data on pedestrian deaths, vehicle modification laws, better enforcement (think Lift law violations or coal-rolling devices), taxing vehicles for their weight and size; and importantly, how fuel economy standards (CAFE standards) have perversely encouraged more trucks and SUVs on our roads over smaller cars (see: “Why Americans love big cars” by VoxMedia and “Small cars are getting huge. Are fuel economy regulations to blame?” By The Drive).
Samantha Finch, Salt Lake City
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