Friday Funny? Cartoon Lampoons the Growing Size of Trucks and SUVs

The Nib takes on the latest trend in car culture: massive vehicles.

1 minute read

December 17, 2021, 5:00 AM PST

Large pickup trucks are parked in neat rows extending into the fuzzy background of the image.

A new cartoon by Jen Sorensen for The Nib skewers the psychology and corporate interests behind the ever growing size of trucks and SUVs in the United States.

Whether this satire is actually funny is part of the point, of course. The stakes are incredibly high in terms of air pollution, climate change, and traffic and pedestrian safety. It's clear which side of the issue Sorensen is on—imagining a new "Chey Stretch" to "dominate the highway" in a world full of "Chevy Exurbans" and "Ford Insecures."

Here is a sample of background reading from Planetizen on the U.S. trend to larger vehicles, starting with recent news about how the federal government is finally starting to push back on car companies:

Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Will Finally Make Carmakers Consider Pedestrian Safety (December 2021)
Study: More SUVs Lead to More Pedestrian Deaths (August 2021)
As Trucks Grow in Size, So Do the Safety Risks (June 2021)
Men and SUVs: A Bad Mix for Traffic Safety (December 2019)

The cartoon is found at the link below.

FULL STORY: King of the Road

Wednesday, December 15, 2021 in The Nib

Environment Transportation United States Friday Funny Car Culture Car-Centric Planning Satire Cartoons View More

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