To think levying additional charges on SUV owners in London is a bad idea?

You know what you never really see new anymore? People carriers. Whatever happened to them?

We had a Sharan when I was young and it was fantastic.

I know they haven't vanished per se, but why don't we do more minivan style cars for those who have big families or who need more room?

What do you think a family your size drive 20 years ago, before the SUV boom?

At least the EV you mentioned is nearly 8 in shorter than your SUV. That’s significant for safety.

You may need a relatively large estate for your large family. However the average London household consists of 2.51 people, so many London SUVs are being driven by people who do not share your need and can downsize. A family of 4 does not need an SUV, even with a dog and luggage, as @itsnotfairisit and others remind us.

Every downsizing is a win for all of us.

OP is exaxtly the reason we need schemes like these to deter people from buying these pieces of crap.

My partner and i used to drive a fiat 500 for over a decade. It was a lovely car and we had 2 teenage children during that time. We had to get rid because of all the huge cars that litter our streets and make driving it a recipe for disaster. The fact it had a high crash test score, 7 airbags and ran on fumes meant nothing if it was in a head on collision with a 2T bohemouth car coming the other way.

Tax/charge them to the hilt and get people to accept that travelling from A-B is about everyones safety, not just yours.

People had large family dogs, luggage, musical instruments etc etc before the coming of the monster SUVs and managed. And as has been mentioned by many on here, their boots are often actually smaller than those in a hatchback, certainly an estate car.
The problem with these SUVs is their sheer girth and height. For a city trying to encourage more pedestrian and bicycle journeys this tax proposal will make it safer.
Theyre uneccesary and frankly (as a country dweller) I think they look ridiculous and status-obsessed when I see them on my frequent trips to London

Not so much heaviest, but size wise something close to what I own and it would be an EV so heavier as a result. The size is ideal for travelling with a large family, dog, and luggage.

and lower? I find the height of SUV’s part of the danger when at roundabouts and they completely block the view.

i don’t think that there is a specific definition of an SuV so ultimately it could be that your car wouldn’t fall into a definition if it is as small as a Yaris as you suggest.

Why do you want the heaviest car? What is it about heavy cars that is so appealing? Is it like owning an XL Bulldog, a sort of low-key need to threaten people?
Or would you just get a heavy estate to show Saddiq he can't boss you around?

A good proportion of them will be on lease so in 1, 2 or 3 years time when the lease is up the additional charges will be something that will prompt some people to look at alternatives.
The point of the tax isn't to make them safer it's to discourage people from having them.

Do you think 800,000 people in London are going to change their vehicle anytime soon? If forced into replacing my old X5 SUV, I’ll be buying a 5 series EV estate, which is actually longer, wider and heavier because of the batteries. On the plus side, it will be a whole 20cms lower and won’t be an SUV.

"Also, should the worst happen and you are involved in a collision, I would very strongly prefer to be in an SUV than a smaller car."

But surely if the worst happened and you or your child was involved in a collision where you were pedestrians, you'd strongly prefer for it to be a smaller car than an SUV...?

These charges do make a proportion of people think twice about using the cars subject to charges for short journeys.

I would support a short period of exemptions - a few years - for people with disability badges or who have the support of their GP, so that a smaller car can be bought without undue hardship. A permanent exemption when deemed medically necessary.

But edge cases make bad law.

Not sure how many vehicles you own but there is only one on my drive and it will be used no matter whether the journey is 5 minutes or 5 hours. Paying money won’t make the journey safer.

What's your distance off ground at the front. That's what generally increases the risk to children when hit.

Just checked the dimensions. My 2017 BMW X5 SUV is shorter, narrower, and lighter than a new BMW 5 electric estate car.

OP, your opening post explains exactly why this initiative is being considered. You basically say it doesn't matter you are more likely to kill a child because you will be safer. We are not talking about 80 miles an hour head ons, this is trapping kids under your huge front bonnets and bull bars doing urban speeds that don't get above 50 mph. You will be fine hitting a kid a 30 mph in a smaller car, they might survive it too.

It will make people think twice about using them to do a 5 minute journey ifnits going to cost them. So it keeps them off the roads.

Not sure how paying a daily charge improves safety.

I got asked at the tip once if my car's previous owner was Dr Who. I had packed it well that day.

I go camping with my little Smart ForTwo - tent, camp kitchen stand, bbq and gas stove, cool box, utensils, pots & pans, food, chair, table, sleeping mattress and bag/blankets/pillows, sheepskin rug, lights, clothes and toiletries for a week all fit in.

I’ve also transported 6ft tall DS, two amps and three electric guitars to gigs in it numerous times before he got his driving licence.

My neighbour who has a small SUV thinks it’s amazing how a big mound of camping equipment can vanish into what looks like a tiny space. He calls it my jenga witchcraft 😆

Audi 100CD massive

Yeah they were massive.

They looked it though. A lot of other hatchbacks don't look so huge but have good space regardless. VW golf for eg can fit a double bass easy, Toyota SUV can't.

Does anyone remember the Volvo estates (960s?) from the nineties? They had phenomenal boot space

There have been interesting discussions on model railway websites about car boot sizes and despite their size most SUV boots are quite small

Yes, some SUVs have remarkably tiny boots. My children played trombone and trumpet and we often gave lifts to band to a tuba player. A Peugeot 205 did the trick at a squish, tho the Volvo was better.