§  ‘Carspreading’ is on the Rise

§  Why Cities Are Clamping Down on Oversized SUVs and Big Cars

§  Discover why ‘carspreading’ is a problem.?

§  SUVs getting bigger, environmental impact, Paris parking surcharge tripled, Cardiff SUV charges, safety concerns explained

SUV Trend: A new term has entered the urban planning vocabulary, and it perfectly captures one of modern city life’s most frustrating phenomena: “carspreading”. This trend describes how cars—especially SUVs—are steadily becoming larger, wider and heavier across the UK and Europe, dominating streets that simply weren’t designed for vehicles of this size. Cities worldwide are now fighting back. Paris has tripled parking fees for heavy vehicles, while Cardiff has become the UK’s first city to introduce weight-based parking charges. The trend raises critical questions:

·       Why are cars getting bigger.?

·       Who benefits.?

·       And are these policies the right answer.?

Understanding the Carspreading Phenomenon

What Exactly Is “Carspreading”.?

Carspreading refers to the growing dominance of large vehicles—particularly SUVs—on city streets, taking up excessive public space and creating challenges for parking, pedestrian safety and environmental sustainability. The name mirrors the concept of “manspreading” but applies to vehicles that sprawl across parking spaces and pavements designed for smaller cars.

The Dramatic Rise of Vehicle Sizes

The numbers tell a striking story. Since 2018, the average width of new car models sold in the UK has increased from 182cm to 187.5cm—a 5.5cm jump in just seven years, according to data from Thatcham Research. Meanwhile, average vehicle weight has climbed from 1,365kg to 1,592kg over the same period.

This isn’t a recent phenomenon either. Between 2001 and 2020, the average width of cars on European markets grew by nearly 10cm, while their length increased by more than 19cm, according to the International Council for Clean Transportation. The current Volkswagen Golf hatchback, for example, is 9cm wider and 22cm longer than its mid-1980s predecessor and several hundred kilograms heavier.

The SUV Explosion

Sports Utility Vehicles have become the dominant force driving this trend. In 2011, SUVs represented just 13.2% of the market across 27 European countries. By 2025, their market share had exploded to 59%. Even luxury brands have transformed their business models: Porsche’s Cayenne SUV and Macan crossover are now bestsellers; Bentley’s Bentayga SUV accounted for 44% of sales last year; and Lamborghini increasingly relies on its Urus four-wheel drive model.

Many of these vehicles are styled to look like off-road vehicles but lack genuine off-road capabilities such as four-wheel drive. Driving mostly on tarmac, they’ve earned the derisory nickname “Chelsea tractors”—a satirical reference to their prevalence among urban wealthy residents.

Why Are People Buying Bigger Cars.?

Safety and Practicality Arguments

Rachel Burgess, editor of Autocar magazine, believes vehicle size is the primary draw for consumers. “Everyone I’ve spoken to over the years who has bought an SUV says they like being higher up, they like better visibility and they feel safer on motorways and bigger roads,” she explains. For parents, the added height makes getting children in and out easier. For less mobile individuals, SUVs offer genuine accessibility benefits compared to lower sedans or hatchbacks.

Lucia Barbato, from West Sussex, demonstrates the practical appeal. Running a marketing agency from home while raising three sons in an area with limited public transport, her second-hand Lexus RX450 hybrid SUV is, as she puts it, vital: “On a Monday morning with three boys, three school bags, three sports kits, and a trumpet thrown in the boot, there isn’t even room in the car for the dog.!”

Profit Margins: The Real Driver

Behind consumer preferences lies a more fundamental economic reality. Carmakers are only too happy to meet demand for larger vehicles because building bigger cars is significantly more profitable, argues David Leggett, editor of industry intelligence website Just Auto.

“Profit margins are generally much higher on larger cars with higher price points. This is largely due to the laws of economics in manufacturing,” Leggett explains. While fundamental manufacturing costs—operating factories, design work, and component prices—are fixed regardless of vehicle size, these costs represent a much larger proportion of a small car’s selling price than a large one’s.

Daniele Ministeri, senior consultant at JATO Dynamics, points out that many SUVs are closely related to conventional cars and use identical basic structures. “For some models, the main differences are limited to factors such as body style, suspension and seating position, allowing them to command an SUV premium price, without comparable cost increases,” he says.

The Parking Crisis: Too Wide for Standard Spaces

A Creeping Problem

The standard minimum width of an on-street parking space in many UK locations is 1.8 metres. However, data from T&E, a green transport campaign group, reveals a troubling reality: by mid-2023, more than half of the top 100 best-selling cars in the UK were fractionally wider than this standard.

According to research from Transport for Quality of Life, in 2023 alone, 161 UK car models were too long for standard parking spaces and 27 models made opening their doors difficult. This creates a cascading effect: cars that don’t fit properly block adjacent spaces, create visibility issues and generate frustration among other drivers.

Public Opinion Reflects Growing Frustration

A YouGov survey commissioned by Clean Cities reveals widespread public concern. Four times as many UK car owners agree (71%) that more SUVs “will make parking more difficult” compared to those that disagree (15%). Most strikingly, 59% of UK respondents agree that SUVs are not necessary in towns and cities, compared to just 20% who disagree.

Interestingly, three-quarters of SUVs sold in the UK are registered to people living in towns and cities—the very places where their size creates the most problems.

Environmental and Emissions Concerns

The Carbon Impact of Bigger Vehicles

The International Energy Agency has issued a stark warning: “Despite advances in fuel efficiency and electrification, the trend toward heavier and less efficient vehicles such as SUVs, which emit roughly 20% more emissions than an average medium-sized car, has largely nullified the improvements in energy consumption and emissions achieved elsewhere in the world’s passenger car fleet in recent decades”.

SUVs were the second-largest contributor to increases in global CO2 emissions during the 2010s and by 2022, their worldwide emissions reached almost 1 billion tonnes. Even electric SUVs require larger batteries and have lower efficiencies than smaller models.

Manufacturing and Resource Costs

Bigger cars require more raw materials to manufacture and shed more tyre particulates as they wear, creating additional environmental burdens beyond tailpipe emissions. A 2017 study published in peer-reviewed research suggested that fostering vehicle weight reduction could produce greater cumulative emissions savings by 2050 than those obtained by incentivizing a fast transition to electric drivetrains—unless there’s extreme decarbonization of the electricity grid.

The irony.? As electric vehicles grow in popularity, they tend to be heavier than their petrol and diesel equivalents, potentially magnifying weight-related problems.

The Safety Question: Who Pays the Real Cost.?

Safety for Occupants vs. Everyone Else

While bigger cars may be safer for their occupants—larger structures absorb more crash energy—critics argue they are considerably less safe for other road users. Research from Belgium’s Vias Institute, presented in 2023, suggested that a 10cm increase in vehicle bonnet height could increase the risk of vulnerable road users being killed in a collision by 27%.

High bonnets create blind spots that make it harder for drivers to see pedestrians and cyclists, particularly children. Studies consistently show that being hit by a larger car increases the risk of death or serious injury to pedestrians, cyclists and drivers of smaller vehicles.

A London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine study found children are three times more likely to suffer fatal injuries in accidents involving SUVs compared to standard cars.

Cities Fight Back: The Paris Model

How It Started

In October 2024, Paris voted to triple on-street parking charges for “heavy” vehicles following a public vote, albeit one with notably low turnout (only 5.7% of eligible voters participated). For petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicles weighing more than 1,600kg, parking in the city center now costs €18 per hour (€225 for six hours), compared to the previous €6 per hour (€75 for six hours).

Electric vehicles face a higher threshold: €18 applies to electric cars exceeding 2,000kg. Importantly, residents are exempt, as are taxi drivers, tradespeople, health workers and people with disabilities—the policy targets visitors and non-residents.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo’s Justification

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo justified the measure before the vote, saying, “The larger it is, the more it pollutes.” She claimed the new restrictions would “accelerate the environmental transition, in which we are tackling air pollution”.

The Results Are Striking

A few months after implementation, Paris city hall claimed the number of very heavy cars parking on city streets had fallen by two-thirds. According to reports in Le Parisien, the tripling of parking rates specifically reduced SUV use of surface parking by approximately 66%. While some observers question these figures, the policy clearly has had a measurable impact.

Cardiff Becomes UK’s First Mover

Historic Policy Decision

In October 2025, Cardiff Council voted to become the UK’s first local authority to introduce weight-based parking surcharges. The Labour-controlled authority decided to increase parking permit costs for cars weighing more than 2,400kg—roughly equivalent to two Ford Fiestas stacked together.

“These heavier vehicles typically produce more emissions, cause greater wear and tear on roads, and critically pose a significantly higher risk in the event of a road traffic collision,” the council explained.

Gradual Expansion Plans

To begin with, increased charges will apply only to a small minority of vehicle models. However, Cardiff plans to gradually lower the weight threshold over time, progressively capturing more vehicles. Other local authorities across the UK are watching closely and considering similar measures.

Oliver Lord, leader of Clean Cities, praised the decision: “Cardiff is demonstrating true foresight by addressing the SUV carspreading that is overtaking our streets. It is only just that those who drive the largest, heaviest, and most environmentally damaging vehicles contribute more for the extra space and hazards they create”.

France’s Broader Approach: Tax-Based Solutions

National Vehicle Tax Strategy

Beyond Paris’s local parking policy, France has implemented a national approach. The country imposes extra registration taxes on cars weighing more than 1,600kg with penalties starting at €10 (£9) per kilogram, reaching €30 per kg for vehicles above 2,100kg. While this only applies to a relatively small proportion of current models—and electric vehicles are excluded—it can add up to €70,000 to the cost of buying a new car.

The Counterargument: What About Those Who Need Large Vehicles.?

Genuine Use Cases

Matt Mansell, a Guildford father of three who runs both a technology company and property development business, represents those arguing for practical necessity. “I need to have enough space to put children in with all of their kit—also, you can fit a door or a three-foot length of pipe in it,” he says of his Land Rover Defender 110. “It’s very much a utility vehicle, but it’s presentable”.

For people with specific professional needs—tradespeople, those with mobility issues, large families without good public transport access—bigger vehicles genuinely serve a purpose.

READ MORE: West Bengal Weather Update: Winter Chill to Intensify This Weekend, Temperature to Drop Sharply

Could Smaller Cars Make a Comeback.?

The Electric Opportunity

David Leggett believes people could potentially be encouraged to buy smaller vehicles through adjusted tax regimes. “There are opportunities to tweak tax regimes to make smaller cars relatively attractive,” he says.

The challenge is profitability. “There will always be a market for highly manoeuvrable and low-cost city cars in urban areas, but making them profitably is a huge challenge,” Leggett acknowledges.

New Generation of Affordable Small EVs

However, the industry is finally cracking the code. Several relatively low-priced small electric vehicles have recently entered the market, including BYD’s Dolphin Surf, Leapmotor International’s T03, Hyundai’s Inster, and the new Renault 5. They will be joined before long by Kia’s EV2 and Volkswagen’s ID Polo.

Rachel Burgess, editor of Autocar, offers a more philosophical perspective: “Clearly, people want SUVs, and I’m not sure what the answer to that is. But small cars are coming back, as the industry has understood how to make money from small cars in an electric world. I do believe everything is cyclical and trends come and go in every part of life, including cars. SUVs won’t be around forever”.

Policy Options for Cities and Governments

What Experts Recommend

Transport for Quality of Life and other campaign groups have suggested a comprehensive policy toolkit

·       Progressive parking fees based on vehicle weight or size

·       Changes to Vehicle Excise Duty to tax heavier vehicles more at point of sale

·       Maximum size regulations for new car sales from 2030 onwards

·       Parking discounts for low-emission and compact cars

·       Advertising restrictions on SUVs (Edinburgh, Liverpool, The Hague, and Amsterdam have already implemented tobacco-style advertising bans)

·       Mandatory “ecoscore” labels for electric vehicles showing environmental impact

Conclusion: A Problem Requiring Urgent Action

The “carspreading” phenomenon represents a fundamental conflict between consumer preferences, manufacturer profit motives, urban design, environmental sustainability and road safety. Cities from Paris to Cardiff to Zurich (which voted to introduce similar policies in 2025) are recognizing that the status quo is untenable.

Whether through parking fees, taxation, size limits or advertising restrictions, policy intervention appears inevitable. The question isn’t whether cities will act but how comprehensively and quickly they’ll do so. What’s certain is that our streets won’t keep expanding to accommodate ever-larger vehicles—eventually, something has to give.

Call to Action (CTA)

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