I think the EV Hummer is going to be interesting test case. It's something like 9 thousand pounds and a thousand horsepower, 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds.

Society generally accepts small, fast sports cars and slow, heavy trucks, but fast, heavy trucks are something new. Sports cars are accepted I think in part because they're not designed like battering rams. If a sports car is in a wreck it'll probably take severe damage, and the driver is at a pretty high risk of injury too even if the car has sophisticated safety features. With this new Hummer, someone could sneeze and plow through three lanes of traffic and come out unscathed. The consequences of risky behavior are falling disproportionatly on the people who don't drive big trucks.

(This argument applies also to EVs like the Model S to a somewhat lesser degree. They're also fast and heavy, but they at least don't look like something you'd smash through a roadblock in some action movie with, so they kind of get a free pass.)

Requiring a CDL for certain vehicles that are heavier, more powerful, and with high risk of damage or injury to others seems like a reasonable option to me.

"Larger pickups and SUVs should have much more stringent licensing requirements akin to a CDL."

Why only them? The basic driver test is a joke. They should make the testing more strict for everyone. The license requirements for a CDL are probably more strict than you think (health, alcohol, etc).

Totally agree. My dad bought an airstream and an F150 big enough to tow it. Driving that thing scared me. The thing was huge, visibility was poor, and consequences of error were magnified.

I currently drive a pickup - my first truck in the 25 years I’ve been driving. There’s no need for more stringent licensing - people just need to pay attention to the road and stop behaving like they’re on a formula 1 track. My soon to be 15 year old daughter has been learning to drive my pickup (crew-cab F-150) and has no difficulties at all driving it responsibly.