Attempting to ban SUVs from parts of Edinburgh could become “complex” and “messy,” council transport chiefs have said.

It comes after councillors backed a call to consider introducing restrictions on larger cars, with one claiming some army tanks have better visibility than “gas-guzzling” SUVs as a motion was passed last year. Edinburgh Live reports that City transport convener Councillor Scott Arthur said he was “broadly supportive” of the move as a lot of people, particularly in the city centre, felt “intimidated by larger vehicles moving around.”

He said research showed both pedestrians and drivers were “much more likely” to be injured if an accident involves a larger vehicle.

However he said powers available “are limited” and introducing weight restrictions on streets could be potentially “messy.” Officials claimed that one possible route could be to revise parking permit fees to “reflect a combination of available information such as by emissions, weight, size or class vehicle type” but warned: “Such an approach could become complex, and this form of charging regime would only have an influence on vehicle use or ownership if the owner required or held a parking permit.”

(PIc: Yay)