A driver has sparked outrage after parking a huge American ute in three places – including a disabled spot – and then threatening a passer-by who challenged him.
A photo shared on Reddit shows a massive Chevrolet Silverado SUV taking over the three parking spaces in a Melbourne car park on Saturday.
“He said he doesn’t fit in normal people’s places (and that he might hurt me),” the witness captioned their photo.
The photo sparked a flurry of expletive-riddled comments attacking the driver and large American-style pickups such as the Ford F150 and Dodge Ram.
“These oversized vehicles should be 100 percent banned,” one person said.
A photo shared on Reddit shows a giant Chevrolet SUV taking up three spaces, including a handicap spot, in a Melbourne parking lot on Saturday
“That’s a disgusting photo,” wrote another.
Many recommended reporting the issue to Melbourne City Council, using the Snap Send Solve app, saying there was ‘no excuse’ for taking a disabled space without a permit.
Others suggested owners would have to undergo a special driving license test to drive larger vehicles, saying they should be ‘separately classified’ like motorcycles and heavy vehicles.
Although the City of Yarra council in Melbourne has no plans to introduce a ban, they are exploring options to deter motorists from buying giant SUVs.
Daily Mail Australia previously reported that Greens councilor Sophie Wade had tabled a motion to explore “ways to make travel on Yarra streets fairer and discourage large and heavy vehicles from using Yarra streets, including by charging proportionate parking charges consider based on the size of a vehicle’.
She said that “it’s really a matter of one person’s right to drive what he wants, trumping everyone else’s right to (safety) on the streets, and I don’t think that’s a compromise that we should be willing to can be closed.’
Ms Wade’s motion prompted the council to note “the dangers associated with the increasing size and weight of vehicles on Australian streets, including vehicles such as the RAM and Defender.”
Ms Wade said the council wants to introduce a parking tax on large lorries, similar to a rule introduced in Paris earlier this year.
“It’s nerve-wracking when these big gigantic vehicles come at you,” she said Yahoo News.
“If you have statistics showing that SUVs are eight times more likely to kill a child if hit than standard cars, I don’t think you should try to accommodate that.”
Melbourne’s Yarra Council is exploring ways to stop motorists from buying giant SUVs
Passionate owners have defended the American-style pick-up, saying their reputations have been tarnished by the actions of a few
Passionate owners have defended the American-style pick-up, saying their reputations have been tarnished by the actions of a few.
One Reddit user said: ‘We have a very small RV and if we have the displeasure of taking it into a shopping center parking garage, we immediately move to the outside edge to park away from everyone.’
Others agreed, saying it’s all about being “thoughtful.”