Campaigners have demanded that owners of larger vehicles and SUVs are slapped with new fees to use the road.
Andy Burnham has been told to introduce new taxes aimed at SUVs (Image: Getty)
Andy Burnham has been told to introduce a new ‘SUV tax’ with heavier vehicles targeted on UK roads. Campaign group Transport & Environment (T&E) has demanded “action”, calling for reform around parking charges and the introduction of local taxes based on vehicle size and weight.
A report from T&E and Clean Cities suggested SUVs were to blame for the rise of “carspreading” on UK roads. They claimed cities could lose between 8.5% and 14% of their on-street parking spaces by 2040 if the size of new models continues at pace.
SUVs owners pay more for permits in Bath (Image: Getty)
To tackle the issue, Barbara Stoll, Senior Director of Clean Cities, suggested that new parking charges and taxes needed to be considered.
Barbara said: “Regulators need to wake up and set maximum limits for the size of new cars. Cities and governments can act now by structuring parking charges and taxes to reflect the risk that bigger cars impose.”
Some areas are already taking action against SUV owners, with a range of new fees already implemented. Paris introduced higher parking surcharge rates for heavy SUVs and larger vehicles back in October 2024. This followed a public referendum held earlier in the year which concluded there was support for new fees.
The UK has since followed, with Cardiff councillors green-lighting plans to introduce additional fees for SUV owners in the Welsh capital. Bath and North East Somerset Council have already introduced new size-based charges, with new fees applying to resident parking permits from August.
Council cabinet member Joel Hirst said: “Research shows that larger vehicles like SUVs pose a greater risk to pedestrians and cyclists in collisions, with children particularly vulnerable. By introducing size-based permit charges, we are encouraging the use of smaller, safer and cleaner vehicles.”
However, SUVs are in massive demand across the UK and are considered to be the most popular type of vehicle among buyers.
SUV sales accounted for over 52% of all new cars sold, with the cars proving to be popular among families.
Transport&Environment added: “European cities are facing an unprecedented threat to urban space because the trend towards large SUVs risks eliminating vast numbers of parking spaces.”