'The Friendly 7'

[Duncan Grimmond]

"Many of the young mums we see dropping kids off at school have large SUVs. I assume they feel safer in them but apparently they are less safe for pedestrians."

On my way home from the workshop last Thursday at about 3.25 the road outside a village Primary school was so restricted that the single decker bus could not get through the gap, I had four cars waiting behind me, in front was the bus with 5 cars behind it and another was jammed on the side-road off the village green while SUVs parking both sides of the road and also on a bend picked up half a dozen children. The irony is that people complain their children are getting fatter and lack enough exercise. Walk 100 yards to a car?....no too far for the mum and the pavement is restricted by the pairs of nearside wheels. Room for a pram or pushchair? Forget it. Disabled, wheelchair access, no chance.
We're all a bit guilty of it I know but it's only for a minute...Well really!

[Dave Wortley]

We are a gullible lot aren’t we? Why do we need these heavy over-wide vehicles in a country like ours with such narrow roads? TV marketing has much to answer for.
Perhaps it’s because we are all farmers or tow trailers.

[Dave Mann]

I note that Scotland has recently outlawed parking on the pavement while our politicians have kicked it into the long grass.

[Mike Costigan]

Dave, we don't need to outlaw pavement parking, since it's illegal to drive onto the pavement in the first place.

[David Cochrane]

When you see a police car parked partly on the pavement (such as I did a couple of years ago), you cease to wonder at other people doing it.

[Dave Mann]

I'm well aware of that Mike but unless the authorities actually see the car driving on the pavement they don't do anything.        
That doesn't stop me, I'm not above standing on the kerb to stop such activity. A few years ago I was doing some work on my daughter's house round the corner from us and took my tools round in a wheelbarrow and quite frequently had to use the road much to drivers annoyance with one lady actually hitting it in her Porsche after I'd jumped out of the way. She wasn't pleased as he Porscher came off second best.

[Tony Griffiths]

I am sure the predictions from 40 years ago would not have conceived that the fairly normal family transport in our country would include so many overweight, oversized SUV’s. The latest from USA is the Tesla’s Cybertruck weighing in at 3080kg and capable of an acceleration from 0 to 60mph in 2.5 secs.
Why would you need such a vehicle?
Many of the young mums we see dropping kids off at school have large SUVs. I assume they feel safer in them but apparently they are less safe for pedestrians.

David - and everyone - enjoy this wonderfully funny takedown of an obscene and useless monstrosity designed for "vacuous rich twats". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQx3_aCWQsU

[Duncan Grimmond]

Most entertaining (apart from the inescapable advertising)
One of the advantages of having a smaller car (A7, 2CV Messerschmidt etc) can be that it's often possible to drive between bollards designed to stop traffic... don't tell anyone please

[Dave Wortley]

The stylist was obviously an expert at origami. Such smooth lines!

[Reckless Rat]

The offence of wilfully driving on a footway was created by the 1835 Highways Act and section 72 of the said act is still in Force, albeit outdated in terms of its legalese and also for the maximum penalty that can be applied. It is sadly outdated and one of the reasons the government is looking at updating it to reflect what is needed in the 21st Century.

"If any person shall wilfully ride upon any footpath or causeway by the side of any road made or set apart for the use or accommodation of foot passengers; or shall wilfully lead or drive any horse, ass, sheep, mule, swine, or cattle or carriage of any description, or any truck or sledge, upon any such footpath or causeway; or shall tether any horse, ass, mule, swine, or cattle, on any highway, so as to suffer or permit the tethered animal to be thereon."

The maximimum penaty is £2.