All while having smaller cabs, making them less effective tools for transporting construction supplies and equipment.
Then there’s the higher pollution. This leads to more frequent and severe bushfires, droughts, floods, hurricanes and heatwaves.
“Currently, automakers must hit a fleet-wide target for cars of 181 grams of CO2 emitted per mile, but 261 for light trucks, a 36 percent difference. By 2026, cars must average out to 132 grams of CO2 per mile compared with 187 for light trucks, a 34 percent difference.”
“Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned economic pressure from natural disasters will continue through 2023 after modelling showed severe flooding across the country last year cost the economy $5 billion.”
Then there’s the added costs of higher fatalities from larger, heavier vehicles:
“More than 7,500 pedestrians were killed by drivers last year — the highest number since 1981. The final tally may be even greater given that Oklahoma was unable to provide data due to a technical issue.”
"The chances of a pedestrian dying in a single-vehicle crash were 68 percent higher when that vehicle was a light truck relative to a car, all else being equal.
More tailpipe emissions means more deaths and hospitalisations:
"Tailpipe pollution contributes to the premature death of 11,105 Australians every year, according to new research.
“The modelling from the University of Melbourne claims vehicle emissions in Australia are also to blame for more than 12,000 hospitalisations annually due to cardiovascular issues, along with almost 7000 respiratory hospitalisations per year.”
@LovesTha @CableMonster @DriftinGrifter So pick-up trucks are now typically larger, heavier, and cause more road damage than their '90s counterparts.
All while having smaller cabs, making them less effective tools for transporting construction supplies and equipment.
“Currently, automakers must hit a fleet-wide target for cars of 181 grams of CO2 emitted per mile, but 261 for light trucks, a 36 percent difference. By 2026, cars must average out to 132 grams of CO2 per mile compared with 187 for light trucks, a 34 percent difference.”
https://www.vice.com/en/article/3abk7b/bidens-new-fuel-economy-standards-still-allow-cars-to-pollute-more-if-theyre-not-called-cars
“Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned economic pressure from natural disasters will continue through 2023 after modelling showed severe flooding across the country last year cost the economy $5 billion.”
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/floods-cost-economy-5-billion-last-year-20230112-p5cc1t.html
“More than 7,500 pedestrians were killed by drivers last year — the highest number since 1981. The final tally may be even greater given that Oklahoma was unable to provide data due to a technical issue.”
https://www.npr.org/2023/06/26/1184034017/us-pedestrian-deaths-high-traffic-car
"The chances of a pedestrian dying in a single-vehicle crash were 68 percent higher when that vehicle was a light truck relative to a car, all else being equal.
https://arstechnica.com/cars/2024/01/higher-vehicle-hoods-significantly-increase-pedestrian-deaths-study-finds/
"Tailpipe pollution contributes to the premature death of 11,105 Australians every year, according to new research.
“The modelling from the University of Melbourne claims vehicle emissions in Australia are also to blame for more than 12,000 hospitalisations annually due to cardiovascular issues, along with almost 7000 respiratory hospitalisations per year.”
https://www.drive.com.au/news/emissions-kill-10x-more-australians-than-road-toll/
So that’s 10 good reasons right there.
(2/3)
@LovesTha @CableMonster @DriftinGrifter So let’s sum this up then.
Modern pickup trucks are substantially larger and heavier than their '90s counterparts, with a smaller cab.
That means they weigh far more, are far bigger, and yet carry less than the vehicles that did the same job 30 years ago.
At least in Australia, they are directly subsidised by the federal tax system. Federal and state taxes pay for main roads.
And they’re giant economic externality machines.
On local streets, which are funded by local councils, they cause additional road damage that is cross-subsidised by local councils.
They generate externalised costs from higher emissions, in the term of more frequent and severe bushfires, floods, droughts, and hurricanes.
They generate externalities in terms of pedestrian injuries and deaths that are subsidised by the healthcare system.
They generate higher health costs from air pollution. Again, these costs are cross subsidised.
That’s without even getting into the massive subsidies at play with car-dependent suburban sprawl.
Or how modern pickup trucks are a massively inefficient use of road space.
Or how businesses are forced to cross-subsidise car ownership by needing to have large parking lots for motorists.
So yeah, it’s probably not unreasonable to ask you to pay your fair share for some of those costs.
(3/3)