Official statistics indicate that the UK has the highest incidence of asthma
in the world. This has been used as an argument to restrict vehicle use on
the grounds of pollution, but rural areas of Scotland have exactly the same
rates as highly urbanised areas like central London. Like global warming
and so many other things statistics such as these are being used as a cudgel
by anyone who thinks it supports their view, even though so little of it is
properly understood.
In the UK 4x4's form about 80% of school run transport in some areas and the
reason is inevitably stated as 'safety'. Fifth Gear this week showed an
off-set collision between a Land Rover Discovery and a Renault Espace (of
equivalent value, possibly the Disco as a little older) each travelling at
45mph, and the Disco came off very much worse (in fact its air bag didn't
even go off). From instrumentation in the crash-test dummies both driver
and child from the Espace would have walked away, both would have died in
the Disco. The overwhelming majority of these vehicles are owned purely for
'fashion' reasons, getting no further off-road than the local supermarket
car park, and earning the sobriquet 'Chelsea Tractors'. Personally I hate
SUVs and 'people carriers' as much as 4x4s, they are all so high-sided that
one cannot see 'through' them in car parks, they might just as well be panel
vans, and the width of many of them means I have to squeeze out of my cars,
but they have no compunction about banging my bodywork when they open
*their* doors. The recent Budget recently increased the annual road tax on
the biggest polluters by about 40 quid on ecological ground - big wows, that
is less than a tank of fuel! On cable at the moment we are getting a
program about a custom bike place in Iowa (I think) and the father and son
owners each travel to work in their own 4-seater pick-up! Why? For the
same reason a dog licks its privates - because it can ...
PaulH.
----- Original Message -----
> ... He said he was amazed at the great
> number of children being taken to Emergency for chronic asthma attacks
> during the last big smog day. But he was also amazed that nearly all had
> been taken to the hospital in a SUV !!!
|