It’s time to consign these giant SUVs to the rubbish heap of history

The vehicles are not only too big and dangerous, they create a disproportionate amount of pollution that ends up in the ocean

The problem with SUVs (and EVs, which are also heavy vehicles) goes way further than your leader indicates (“SUVs are too big and too dangerous – their drivers should be made to pay”).

Tyre and, to a lesser extent, brake degradation is related to the weight of the vehicle: not in a linear way, but to the square of the weight, so doubling the weight increases wear and tear four times, other things being equal. Tyres are the main source of land-based microplastics entering our oceans, where they absorb and concentrate forever chemicals discharged by our environmentally reckless water and pharmaceutical industries.

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The car made pedestrians second-class citizens. Don’t let driverless vehicles push us off the road altogether | Adam Tranter

If we want autonomous tech to succeed it must be designed to share space with us, rather than forcing us to adapt to it Adam Tranter is the co-host of the Streets Ahead podcast. He was formerly West Midlands cycling and walking commissioner under mayor Andy Street This week, the UK government announced its plans to fast-track driverless vehicle trials in the UK. One of the key companies involved noted that London presents a significant challenge: “It has seven times more jaywalkers than San Francisco.” There’s more than one problem with that statement – and it encapsulates so much of what’s already going wrong in the adoption of driverless cars. For a start, “jaywalking” isn’t even a thing in the UK. We thankfully have no such concept or offence. Unlike in many US cities, pedestrians here are free to cross the road wherever they see fit. And thank goodness for that. Adam Tranter is the co-host of the Streets Ahead podcast. He was formerly West Midlands cycling and walking co...

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