Abstract
Our cars are getting bigger. Vehicle ‘supersizing’ – particularly in cities – has negative impacts on both health and climate.
Evidence that big vehicles, like utes and SUVs, are more polluting; that they are driven in more dangerous ways; and that they ‘shrink’ the street space available to groups such as children and pedestrians means that we need to monitor and control their impacts. In times of global oil shortages, it’s also worth asking how much economic sense vehicle supersizing makes.
In this Briefing, we look at the rise in the use of ‘double cab utes’ in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ). We look at where and how these large vehicles are being used, and whether we need more regulation of their use. The NZ motor vehicle industry has opposed efforts to control their growth on the grounds that utes are ‘irreplaceable’. We argue their real-world use does not support this claim.