Cubic feet would be better, especially as taller vehicles are more dangerous to pedestrians.

Problem is it's much easier to have someone just take a measuring tape to a car when ticketing and get the length. You can get the footprint, sure, but you have to ensure you measure from the same point twice, and that you're pretty much perfectly perpendicular. You could also have a database of makes and models but then you have to have somebody set up and maintain the database and that causes all sorts of headaches

But the cost of constructing parking infrastructure is more directly related to square meters than weight (in HCOL areas especially). Sure more weight means beefier structures and/or pavement are needed, but that tends to average over an area vs a large object requiring a larger investment regardless of whether it’s light or not.

Rip EVs then

people had larger families in the era where cars were smaller. no one needs an SUV in a city, they're meant for hauling firewood to the remote cabin where there's no paved roads

Cars are not the only way to move people around. They are, however, the worst way to move people around. Take a bus and/or train, and you’ll never have to worry about parking again.

In response, more and more of our streets can be reclaimed for pedestrians spaces, adding walking/biking paths, adding greenery, adding outdoor patios, etc, instead of it all just going to ever increasingly large and crowded parking spaces and One More Lane™

Yes, I understand, but a flat fee regardless of size of car as it now, is effectively a subsidy directly toward the development of car dependent cities. Also families don't tend to travel downtown by car on weekdays where space is a premium, those are usually single drivers going to work and often in NA, those lone drivers are often in large pickups and SUVs.

Large families taking the train have to pay roughly proportionally to the size, which is one of many reasons why many families opt for car culture. It's not those fault the options are this way but my point is that it can be changed.

The only place on the world where low income families have big trucks is the US because of debt and extremely car dependent infrastructure. French poor families use public transit.

Honestly, get a car and then add a roof rack instead of an SUV You have the space you need, it's cheaper than an SUV, it's more fuel efficient, and you can take it off and not have to transport all the extra weight when it is not necessary

People raised families through the 90s without the space of an SUV. You will survive.

Here in Italy the FIAT 500 was the first "family car" and was less than 3 meters long, the FIAT 500 Giardiniera was the station wagon version and it was 3.1 meters long. If you look at an old 500 now, you'd wonder how would a human fit inside.

Today's average SUV is over 4 meters long, with some going over 5 meters. In Japan there are Kei cars used as trucks, people movers, vans etc. The fact that you need a Jeep compass to be able to pick up your kid from school is absurd

Maybe they thought it was Paris, Texas?