Drivers of Australia's most popular vehicles could see parking rates tripled under a City of Sydney proposal to charge heavier vehicles a higher rate – but possibly exclude electric cars – following a similar move in Paris.
Drivers of Australia's most popular vehicles could be charged as much as three times the standard parking price under a new proposal from a City of Sydney councillor.
However, electric vehicles – many of which weigh half a tonne more than petrol equivalents – may be exempt from the hikes proposed by the plan, which declares its intention to charge higher parking rates for "larger and heavier vehicles such as SUVs".
Councillor Matthew Thompson has launched a campaign to see SUVs targeted by increased parking fees to discourage their use, saying “SUVs are big – big problems, big polluters, big killers”.
“They are far more dangerous than normal passenger cars and pose increased risks to pedestrians, cyclists and other road-users, with children eight times more likely to die when hit by a SUV,” a notice of motion from Thompson read.
The second-best-selling new vehicle in Australia in 2024 was the Toyota RAV4 SUV – behind the larger, heavier Ford Ranger ute – with SUVs making up 56.9 per cent of the 1.2 million new vehicles sold here last year.
SUVs took over conventional passenger sedans and hatchbacks as the most popular vehicle type in Australia in 2017 – and have remained at the top since, with six of the ten-best sellers in 2024 being SUVs.
The notice of motion filed by Thompson declares "the rise of bigger, heavier, dirtier SUVs is wiping out the climate gains from the switch to electric vehicles, and the transport sector is projected to become the biggest source of emissions by 2030."
It adds: "Heavier vehicles increase damage on inner-city roads, thereby increasing maintenance costs on roads, with the largest SUVs doing 16 times more damage than small cars on Australian roads."
It is despite 55 per cent of electric vehicles sold last year being SUVs.
The motion says councillors would need to consider "appropriate equity caveats ... for example, considering the needs of people with disabilities, tradespeople, including those who are eligible for Council’s tradesperson permit for parking, and other people with specific mobility or business requirements".
It also says it would "ensure that any proposed changes do not perversely discourage the switch to cleaner vehicles which are heavier due to their batteries."
In a social media clip – using a Mazda 2 hatchback as a prop – Thompson and Inner West councillor Olivia Barlow call for a Paris-style approach to SUV parking in Sydney.
City of Sydney parking fees are up to $8.20 an hour according to its website, meaning SUVs would pay as much as $24.60 per hour in ‘Area 1’ central Sydney.
“As bigger dirtier cars get rolled out onto the roads, the gains that have been made from switching to electric vehicles are being rapidly undone,” Thompson says in the clip.
“In fact, if SUVs were a country, they’d be the world’s fifth-largest emitter of CO2.
“They’re also really dangerous, with their size and weight meaning they’re way more likely to kill a cyclist or pedestrian on collision.”
Similarly inspired by the introduction of higher fees in Paris, the vote set in motion a look at increasing parking for larger cars but has not yet come into force.
