Big Cars Are Killing Americans

I sense this is another anti-automobile / car-hostile writer who tries to throw as much at the reader as they can and hopes something will stick. Ostensibly, the piece is about how larger cars are more dangerous because of reduced visibility. On its own, that argument is worth considering. However the author brings in a myriad of tenuous and character smearing implications.

It didn't take long for the author to veer into a 'people who buy big cars are actually bigots' angle:

>"The consequences of the bigger-is-better fad are felt unequally. Black and Indigenous people are disproportionately hit and killed while walking, as are older Americans, people with disabilities, and people who live in low-income neighborhoods. The low social status of these victims—especially compared with that of wealthier new-car buyers—may help explain why we’ve been willing to ignore auto-industry excesses."

She also leans into the implication that people who drive big vehicles are lizard-brain brutes: "Without any intervention from regulators, the attempt to appeal to the “reptilian” impulse has only grown." Or, toxic masculinity: "the hyperaggressive macho-truck trend has been enormously profitable for the auto industry".

I don’t see why urban areas, especially where there is a lot of pedestrians and cyclists aren’t putting in stronger regulations on vehicles.

Limit vehicles based on hood height, weight, and horsepower. Allow some exceptions for commercial vehicles.

My city has a bike/scooter share system. They are able to automate times when they can be used, force low speeds in certain areas (through parks), and even disable them dynamically in places.

Why can’t we do the same for vehicles? There is absolutely no reason to be driving 40mph down an urban street. Nor should cars be allowed such quick acceleration.

While I agree that the size of vehicles has become completely ridiculous, there is another factor that has become ridiculous: phones. They are distracting both drivers and pedestrians:

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/tech-texting-while-wa...