Advertisement
BUY A WINTER SUPPORT KIT & CHANGE A VENDOR’S LIFE
BUY NOW
Environment

Climate activists have deflated hundreds of SUV tyres in affluent areas across the UK

A group calling themselves The Tyre Extinguishers targeted “well-to-do” neighbourhoods and say their aim is to make it “impossible” to own a 4×4 in urban areas.

A climate activism group calling themselves The Tyre Extinguishers deflated hundreds of SUV tyres across the UK on Monday night in a protest against the polluting “killer vehicles”. 

The stunt, which the group said was the “first in a new wave of protest”, was taken to discourage the use of 4×4 cars in urban areas with the ultimate aim of making it “impossible” to own one. 

Marion Walker, group member, said “politely asking” for climate action had failed, prompting The Tyre Extinguishers to take action.

Tyres were deflated in several locations across London, including Hampstead, Notting Hill and Chelsea, while SUVs were also hit in Brighton, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bristol, Cambridge and Edinburgh. 

The group says on its website that they are targeting “post / middle-class areas” and has posted a guide on its website with instructions on how to spot and deflate SUV tyres. 

Alongside these instructions, the group has produced a leaflet for placing on the cars after the tyres have been deflated, explaining why the action has been taken.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Article continues below

“We have deflated one or more of your tyres. You’ll be angry, but don’t take it personally. It’s not you, it’s your car. We did this because driving around urban areas in your massive vehicle has huge consequences for others,” the first part of the leaflet reads. 

The leaflet suggests that the car owner uses “walking, cycling or public transport” to get around as an alternative. 

According to the group, SUVs have been targeted in particular due to their creation of “luxury emissions” by the wealthy, calling the cars a “climate disaster” causing air pollution and making roads more dangerous. 

The Tyre Extinguishers wish to see a ban on SUVs in urban areas, pollution levies to “tax SUVs out of existence”, and massive investment in free, comprehensive public transport.

The group has said its actions will continue until politicians “make this a reality”.

Other UK citizens are being urged to “join in” on the Tyre Extinguisher’s actions, with the group’s website saying that “deflating tyres repeatedly and encouraging others to do the same will turn the minor inconvenience of a flat tyre into a giant obstacle for driving massive killer vehicles around our streets.”

Group member Walker added: “Governments and politicians have failed to protect us from these massive unnecessary vehicles. SUVs are a climate disaster, they cause air pollution and are dangerous for other road users. Everyone hates them, apart from the people who drive them.

“Politely asking for climate action, clean air and safer streets has failed. It’s time for action.”

Advertisement

Change a vendor's life this Christmas and beyond

Buy a Big Issue Winter Support Kit for £34.99, you’ll receive four copies of the magazine and vendors could receive immediate tools for survival plus access to vital training and employment pathways to escape poverty for good.

Recommended for you

Read All
'Silent war on bus users': Bus routes outside London cut by up to 80% since 2008
Transport

'Silent war on bus users': Bus routes outside London cut by up to 80% since 2008

COP28: What is it, why is it important and why is an oil boss in charge?
climate crisis

COP28: What is it, why is it important and why is an oil boss in charge?

'Wake up and smell the s**t': Sewage dumped into UK waterways over 1,000 times a day, report says
Water pollution

'Wake up and smell the s**t': Sewage dumped into UK waterways over 1,000 times a day, report says

How lucrative North Sea oil became the front line of battle for the climate
Climate crisis

How lucrative North Sea oil became the front line of battle for the climate

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Here's when people will get the cost of living payment in 2024
3.

Here's when people will get the cost of living payment in 2024

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue
4.

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue