Why Big Vehicles Are Hard to Drive in City Streets

Ever saw a Toyota F-150 parked next to a Toyota Camry? Yeah, about that.

It’s only logical that when it comes to big cars/trucks, city driving not only requires low speed, but also demands constant awareness, which can be mentally exhausting.

On top of that, the bigger problem has become a mismatch between vehicle sizes and street layouts. Due to the rapid increase in vehicle size, not to mention their capability, cities can’t adapt at the same pace.

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Even though on the surface everything seems modern, street dimensions and margins for mistakes came from a different time.

Modern Streets, Old Dimensions

We are all witnessing the changes in our surroundings, such as in more redesigned and urban streets. Still, the dimensions and physical constraints stay the same.

When you analyze city lanes a bit, you get to realize their width hasn’t really changed – it’s still 10-11 ft. And this has to do with vehicles being MUCH smaller in size; nothing like the massive pickups or overlanders you see today. Throw in curbs, poles, and bike lanes, which also take up (valuable) usable space.

What’s more, this stands out especially when turning, as lanes were planned for passenger cars, not modern trucks. So when you end up in traffic, having to make a turn, you have to be extra careful and observant.

Today’s vehicles end up being forced to work within the limits they were never designed to be, which is another reason why slow city driving is a lot harder than being on the open road.

Why City Driving Is Where Problems Start

The reason why city driving is problematic comes from density, and consequently from speed. Vehicles drive near each other at low speeds, and there is little room left for changing position or making tiny mistakes.

Compared to the open road, where your body relaxes, and mistakes are easily fixed, as you have more time to react and fewer obstacles on your way.

Does Vehicle Size Matter in Cities?

As we’ve already mentioned, when roads were just starting to be built, they were built based on vehicles from those times, which used to be so much smaller. And today, this really shows.

When you come close to a crossroads, you have to pay attention to every single detail. Parking is a nightmare.

As street design sometimes reduces visibility, your attention span increases, focusing on other vehicles around you, pedestrians, signs, etc.

The Real Risks of Low-Speed Urban Driving

Contrary to popular belief, sometimes low speeds don’t make driving easier or safer. When you are under high stress and stuck in rush hour, speed is the last thing to worry about.

The most dangerous driver is one who is unaware of immediate consequences and how space and others influence their turns and maneuvering, which is the reason why low-speed situations escalate so fast. With that in mind, in some cases, people turn to a wide turn truck accident lawyer for advice.

Whereas open roads or off-road environments provide you time to respond and make course corrections. Your focus decreases to fewer things; without mental overload, you can react even faster than in the city.

Conclusion

When you look at big vehicles in general, you get to realize they aren’t really ‘unsafe’. And it doesn’t matter whether you’re driving on a city road or an open (unpaved) road.

And since most of the roads we have in cities are built for generally smaller vehicles – no one really predicted then that the common Joe would be driving a semi-tank in the middle of the city – big vehicles CAN sometimes be a bit awkward to drive in cities, especially when it comes to parking.

But as long as you’re aware that your car is ginormous compared to regular cars, and as long as you take this into account while driving, you’ll be fine.

But yeah, if cities (specifically roads) stay the same size as they are today and the size of vehicles increases, we might run into a problem sooner or later.

So perhaps some regulations/limitations are in order.