Environmental activists claim to have deflated tyres on nearly 2,000 SUVs in the past four weeks.
The Tyre Extinguishers said its supporters have taken action in cities across Britain in an attempt to “make it impossible” to own the vehicles in urban areas.
It describes SUVs as “a climate disaster”, “dangerous” and “unnecessary”.
SUVs feature elements of standard cars but are larger and have off-road capabilities such as high ground clearance.
Petrol and diesel-powered models are generally less fuel efficient than cars.
The Tyre Extinguishers describes itself as “leaderless” and encourages people to take action by reading instructions on how to deflate tyres on its website.
People can also print off leaflets to leave on the windscreen of affected vehicles to inform drivers what has happened.
Activists are urged to avoid SUVs “clearly used” by people with disabilities or by tradespersons.
CAMPAIGN SPREADS ACROSS THE UK… AND TO THE USA!
This week: Chiswick, Maida Vale, Wood Green, Muswell Hill, Brighton, Hove and Manchester. More planned and first indications of it spreading overseas, with reports of action in northern Colorado, USA:https://t.co/YQPMfMJvgr pic.twitter.com/XYaMkUWvL2
— The Tyre Extinguishers (@T_Extinguishers) March 17, 2022
The group, which first took action on March 7, said in a statement: “So far, the Tyre Extinguishers have disarmed nearly 2,000 SUVs in the UK, in Brighton, London, Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield, Bristol and Edinburgh, in repeated actions.
“Plans are being made to launch the Tyre Extinguishers leaflet in four other languages as interest grows internationally.”
Earlier this week, Sussex Police issued CCTV footage showing two people it wants to trace in connection with tyres being deflated in Brighton.
Marion Walker, a spokeswoman for the Tyre Extinguishers, said: “Unless a bobby is posted beside every SUV in the country 24 hours a day, we don’t expect anyone to be apprehended.
“Better to break the law than allow these killer vehicles to continue to be used on our streets.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel