When the story of Harish Rana captured the collective prayers of an entire nation, people paused, empathised, and watched the Supreme Court judgement unfold as it passed a historic decision allowing passive euthanasia for Rana, who was in a vegetative state for over 13 years
Oil prices rose above $110 (£82.78) a barrel after Iranian media reported an airstrike hitting a facility on the world's largest natural gas field. The Brent crude oil benchmark hit $112 a barrel in early Thursday trade in Asia, more than 5% higher than Tuesday's prices
US Vice President JD Vance and Energy Secretary Chris Wright will meet with oil industry leaders. The administration plans to announce measures to lower gas prices. These include releasing oil from emergency reserves and easing shipping regulations
Milk has long been a cornerstone of Indian diets, simple, familiar, and deeply rooted in tradition. But in urban India, that narrative is rapidly evolving. Today’s consumers are no longer satisfied with just a glass of milk; they are seeking products that align with their fast-paced lifestyles
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The SUV takeover has made roads more unsafe for everyone else
You may have noticed – there's a car-size inflation on Australian roads that some have nicknamed car “mobesity”.
Most SUVs and utility vehicles from a decade or two ago look small next to today's models.
As we head for a fifth consecutive year of rising road deaths and what could be the worst year for pedestrian fatalities in nearly two decades, it's time to look more closely at what this means.
We already know bigger cars cause greater impacts in collisions.
But what's less discussed is whether driving one also changes how we drive – if larger vehicles make us feel safer inside them, do they also make us take more risks behind the wheel?
Four in five new cars sold in Australia are SUVs or utes – more than double the share of 20 years ago.
This isn't purely consumer-driven.
With no domestic car manufacturing, Australia imports vehicles shaped by global production trends, many of which trickle down from United States policies that reward larger vehicles.
Two subtle US policy features explain why.
First, the “SUV loophole”: under US law, most SUVs are classified as light trucks, meaning they're subject to less stringent fuel-efficiency and crash-safety standards than passenger cars.
Second, under US fuel economy rules, fuel-efficiency targets are adjusted based on the size of the vehicle's “footprint”– the area between its wheels. In practice, this means larger vehicles are allowed to consume more fuel while still meeting the target.
Together, these rules have encouraged American manufacturers to build and sell heavier SUVs and utes.
Large vehicles can deliver significantly higher profit margins than small cars.
These trends have resulted in more bigger cars being driven on Australian roads.
The combination of high car ownership, years without fuel efficiency rules, and the luxury-car-tax exemption that many utes qualify for has made Australia a highly lucrative market for large, high-emission models.
Marketing has played a significant role too: in 2023, car makers invested about A$125 million in SUV and 4×4 advertising in Australia – a 29% increase from the previous year.
There's a physical mismatch between large and small vehicles that usually transfers the danger from the occupants of the bigger car to everyone else.
While the risks of being hit by a large SUV or ute might seem self-evident, the question is how much greater those risks are.
Research provides a clear answer.
Car-to-car collisions:
Car-to-pedestrian and cyclist collisions:
These differences help explain why US pedestrian deaths – once on a steady decline – have climbed back to their highest level since the early 1980s.
This is while most countries have reduced pedestrian fatalities.
Evidence from multiple countries suggests driving larger vehicles may lead to more confident or risk-prone behaviour:
Taxes and size-dependant registration fees could potentially offset some of the extra costs of heavier vehicles on roads surfaces, congestion and emissions, or regulate demand.
Two measures would make a tangible difference:
Licence testing by vehicle class
Many drivers obtain their licence in a small sedan but can legally drive a two-tonne ute the next day. Yet, larger vehicles demand different manoeuvring skills, longer braking distances and greater spatial awareness.
Requiring a practical test in a vehicle of comparable size to what the driver intends to drive (or a streamlined license upgrade for an experienced driver when upsizing) would acknowledge that added responsibility.
The reform would also carry a symbolic message: driving a heavier vehicle comes with greater responsibility.
Penalties scaled to impact potential
A ute or SUV travelling 10kmh over the limit carries greater kinetic energy and longer stopping distance than a small sedan.
A tiered approach – where fines or demerit points scale with vehicle mass – would better reflect the disproportionate risk that bigger cars pose.
If Australia is serious about reducing road trauma, these are the kinds of targeted, evidence-based adjustments that should be considered.
Milad Haghani is Associate Professor and Principal Fellow in Urban Risk and Resilience, The University of Melbourne.
This article was first published on The Conversation.
Source: Scroll
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