Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In

Data scientists in the U.K. are starting to figure out what we've known for a while now in the U.S.: SUVs are killing pedestrians.

But unlike here, British traffic safety officials might actually do something about it. A British transport safety official told Forbes that the commonwealth might even ban them.

Recent analysis by Leeds University found that drivers of vehicles with 2- to 3-liter engines killed the people they struck roughly twice as frequently as drivers of cars with engines smaller than 1.8 liters — 2.4 percent of the time vs. 1.4 percent of the time. By comparison, a 2020 Chevy Suburban is powered by a 5.3-liter engine at the smallest.

Adam Reynolds a transportation policy advisory with Britain's Department of Transportation told Reid the agency would continue to investigate, including efforts to isolate the effect of vehicle shape and size.

“If the data does show that SUVs are twice as deadly, then ownership in urban areas should be discouraged and use within cities curtailed with a ban on new sales," he told Reid.

U.S. researchers have estimated that SUVs are 2-3 times more likely to kill pedestrians when they strike them than sedans (cars). The effect is worse for children.

Still since Trump's election, national traffic safety officials have slow-walked any attempt to reign in the styling choices that are killing pedestrians at highs unseen in two generations.

Meanwhile, the U.K, has about a quarter of the traffic fatalities per capita as the U.S. And a larger percentage of British traffic deaths are pedestrians, because British walk more.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Tuesday’s Headlines of Many Colors

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called rainbow crosswalks "a distraction" and called on cities to eliminate them.

July 8, 2025

Monday’s Headlines Are Big and Beautiful

The ginormous GOP tax and spending bill President Trump signed on July 4 will make the air dirtier, a lot of it from tailpipe emissions.

July 7, 2025

The Single Most Important Element In Creating Good Cities

A lot of U.S. cities are getting their "right of way" all wrong — and urbanists can help by getting to know this poorly-understood concept.

July 7, 2025

Thursday’s Headlines Are Charged Up for the Fourth

The Republican megabill is bad for the electric vehicle industry, but it could be worse.

July 3, 2025

Why is the Secretary of Transportation Begging Americans to Take More Road Trips?

Instead of making America easier to see on all modes, the US Department of Transportation is encouraging U.S. residents to just get in their cars and drive.

July 3, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines Are for the Children

From mothers with babies in strollers to preteens on bikes, much of the U.S. is hostile to families just trying to get around without a car.

July 2, 2025
See all posts