I’m not sure why you think a van is a better option. If we’re talking about people who actually use their big hauling thing for more than running to Starbucks, they’re different options for different uses. They’re not more efficient, and on fact may may be less efficient in comparable models. The bigger ones are built on exactly the same truck frames.
People who actually need one can choose whatever. I don’t have a need for either, don’t have either, and probably never will. But I’ve seen this van argument a lot, and I think it’s silly and misunderstands how the two are built and their tradeoffs.