The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, has called for government intervention against the growing spread of urban off-road vehicles (SUVs). “It is crucial to solve the problems they pose in terms of additional energy demands, public space taken up and additional danger to pedestrians,” Birol told the newspaper on Monday Les Echos in Paris.
States should advise customers not to buy an SUV and take regulatory action in view of the trend towards heavy vehicles. This could take the form of higher taxation or higher parking fees. “If you look at the transport sector in general, you see two very strong trends: the increasing importance of electric vehicles, but also the increasingly important place that SUVs occupy,” said Birol. According to IEA data, SUVs accounted for almost half of global new car sales in 2023, at 48 percent. In Europe they even exceeded the 50 percent mark. Because of their higher weight and less aerodynamic shape, SUVs emit an average of 20 percent more CO₂ than sedans.
The IEA, based in Paris, is an interest group that advises industrialized countries on energy issues. On Sunday there will be a public poll in Paris on the plan to charge three times as much parking for large city SUVs as for ordinary cars. The city argues that the special tariff of 18 euros per hour in the center and 12 euros in the outskirts should limit the nuisance caused by SUVs. At the same time, it is about sending a message to the automotive industry that the big cars are endangering ecological change.