Reasons Vehicle Width Is Increasing and Concerns Over Parking and Pedestrian Safety

The steady increase in the width of new cars in recent years has even led to the term “vehicle obesity,” meaning that cars are getting “fatter sideways.” New models from various brands such as Citroën, MercedesBenz, Audi, Volkswagen, and BMW have become wider than the previous generation, and the average width of vehicles worldwide has also continued to increase over the past 20 years. Behind the growth in vehicle size are consumer demand for more spacious interiors and cargo space, expanded sales centered on SUVs, and the need to accommodate batteries as electric vehicles become more widespread. In addition, the perception that bigger cars are safer is also having an impact. In the United States and Europe, as the share of large SUVs and mid to largesized vehicles rises, a trend is emerging in which other vehicle classes are also expanding. The problem is that roads and parking lots cannot keep pace with this rate of change. In Korea, the width of new parking spaces has been widened, but many older parking lots still have narrow stalls, raising concerns about door dings. In Europe as well, it has been pointed out that urban parking spaces and pedestrian environments cannot accommodate the increasing width of vehicles, which could worsen parking inconvenience and pedestrian safety issues.