Sanctions in Paris, leaflets in Germany. The campaign against SUVs continues

Dear female driver, dear driver,

Your car is disproportionately large for city traffic for the following reasons:

Too much CO₂

Your car consumes (seriously the leaflet says 'consumes'! - ed.) more CO₂ than a small car because it is:

Too much space

Due to its size, your car takes up too much parking space, which is then not available for:

Risk of accidents and damage

You endanger other road users because:

Higher material consumption during production

Due to its size, your car is more expensive to manufacture and uses more raw materials

Your behavior is unreasonable and egotistical

This flyer was found by drivers behind the windshield of their car in Cologne, Germany, in the Deutz district.

The text has the same layout and graphic form as the official fine notice used by the city. However, with the difference that instead of the official information "City of Cologne" "City of Klima" is stated in the header, and at least from the wording of the last sentence (Your behavior is unreasonable and egotistical) it is clear that this is in no way a leaflet officially issued by the city .

A spokesman for the city confirmed to the German newspaper Express that several citizens reported finding this leaflet. However, the city does not plan to take legal action: "The production and distribution of a leaflet does not constitute a crime, especially not fraud: Their author is not trying to pretend that it is a leaflet issued by the city." A civil dispute has no chance of success either, as it is not clear who made the leaflets produced and distributed. However, if there were evidence leading to the discovery of the author's identity, it would be possible to re-examine the legal side of the case.

Reactions to the flyer are nevertheless very critical, at least on Facebook. One of the users is sure: "It's the envy of those who don't own such a car. In principle, this is not about CO₂ emissions at all, but an ideologically driven class struggle." Another asks: "What comes next? Will they start putting up signs on big houses that more material was spent on their construction and they use more energy for heating?" Read the comment on the campaign against SUVs here.

It all started in September during environmental protests in Berlin, where participants called for a ban on SUVs in the German capital. After an accident in the central part of Berlin in which four pedestrians, including a three-year-old child, lost their lives, a stormy debate about SUVs broke out. The accident was caused by a 42-year-old driver of a sporty off-road Porsche Macan, who flew off the road. Activists from the Greenpeace organization also showed displeasure towards the SUV during protests during the Frankfurt Motor Show, which began shortly after. Read more here.

SUVs have to pay more in Paris

Like leaflet activists in Cologne, however, they are starting to think at Paris City Hall. The goal is to regulate the number of SUVs in the metropolis using graduated fees and higher taxes. These would put excessively large and heavy passenger cars at a disadvantage when buying and parking them, while owners of small cars, on the other hand, would pay reduced rates.

The SUV category, which currently accounts for 38% of all newly registered cars in France, is a thorn in the side of environmentalists mainly due to higher production requirements and higher consumption when driving in the city center. Another argument is more parking space and greater demands on the transport infrastructure. Christophe Najdovski, deputy for transport of the Paris municipality, therefore published the opinion that it will be necessary to introduce a system of malus and bonuses and make residents prefer smaller car models.

“The idea is to reduce the space occupied by clunky SUVs in the city in favor of smaller cars. There are a lot of cars weighing one and a half or even two tons driving around the city, and they often carry only one person. Such vehicles should pay for the public space they occupy," said Najdovski, a member of the Green Party and since 2018 the president of the European Cyclists' Federation (ECF). The city hall has been testing what Paris without cars will look like for several years (you can see it here).

The first already launched initiative will be the favoring of small cars when parking in underground garages. Over time, the Paris City Hall plans a similar trend on the streets as well. "If a car has two tons, it should pay double compared to a car that has only one ton. The same applies to cars larger than 1.80 m, which often take up two parking spaces in parking garages," says the councilor.