A Greens leader has launched an extraordinary attack on American-style utes, claiming the ‘truckzillas’ are too big and dangerous for Aussie roads.
Samantha Ratnam, the leader of the Victorian Greens, said Aussie highways aren’t designed to accommodate the monster trucks – and she argues that owners should be forced to pay increased registration and parking fees on them.
‘It’s an undeniable fact that super-sized vehicles are dangerous. They have blind spots up to four metres in front of the vehicle,’ Ms Ratnam said.
‘And it is no coincidence that a child is eight times more likely to die being hit by a larger utility vehicle when compared to a lighter car.
‘Not to mention the astonishing amount of pollution caused by these beasts.’
So-called ‘Yank tanks’ have exploded in popularity across Australia in recent years and in 2023 the Ford Ranger was the nation’s highest-selling vehicle.
Ms Ratnam claims that because of their size – in some case six-metres long – and impact on the environment, owners should be forced to shell out increased registration fees.
‘Large utes have a role in regional areas, but these luxury vehicles – that often cost upwards of $100,000 – have significantly higher emissions, and are more dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists than regular passenger cars,’ she wrote on Instagram.
‘If we want to lower our transport emissions and reduce road fatalities, we need to see less of these monster cars on our streets.’
Meanwhile, the Yarra City Council in Melbourne’s east has taken a step towards addressing the issue.
It voted to explore the possibility of imposing higher parking fees and costs for drivers of large SUVs and trucks – a move that could potentially discourage the use of these vehicles in the area.
‘If you live in Fitzroy with the tiny streets that exist and you buy yourself a Hummer, you’re an absolute idiot and you need to be dealt with, with whatever way that council can deal with it,’ councillor Stephen Jolly said.
Despite the backlash, American-style trucks continue to grow in popularity in Australia with more than 10,000 new models sold in 2023. And there are no signs of sales slowing down.
Last year, Ford began importing the larger F-150 pick-up truck – one of America’s biggest sellers – to great fanfare Down Under.
In 2025, the highly anticipated Toyota Tundra worth $140,000 is set to be one of the most sought after new vehicles when it is launched.
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Russell White, CEO of the Australian Road Safety Foundation warned American-style utes have increased blind spots.
‘The bigger these sorts of vehicles are, there is a bigger risk of blind spots being large enough to hide vulnerable road users, so having things like front facing cameras should definitely be part of the overall safety envelope,’ Mr White said.
‘Just as we’ve seen with reversing cameras, its another tool that a driver can have so that they can have the information they need to operate the vehicle.
‘As they become more popular and there are more of them, unless something is done to look at the safety rating of them to evolve them with the time, we might potentially see more incidents on the roads.’
Many owners of the utes have been vilified for taking up multiple carparks with a debate erupting online.
‘This country is not built to fit full-sized American cars,’ one Reddit user said.
‘Unless you truly need that (Ford F150), you are making life worse for those driving around you and parked next to you.’
Another wrote: ‘Their height means that pedestrians are more likely to have head impact.
‘This combined with low visibility means that they are a menace on the streets. US pedestrian deaths are at their highest level in 40 years.’