Are the boot’s days numbered?
The boot has morphed from a benign alternative to towing a car into a double dipping beast that gobbles up your money. The Evil Empire has authorized parking ticket warriors to boot first and a tow later (in two hours). All for the same, single, solitary parking violation (ca-ching, ca-ching).
I came across an article in the NY Post predicting the death of the boot and long live the “Barnacle.”
An enterprising company, based in New York City, has invented a new, more benign way to immobilize your car.
The yellow monstrosity, which latches onto the windshield and blocks the driver’s view, rendering the car undrivable, has already begun replacing the parking boot in cities like Allentown, Pennsylvania, and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as part of a 60-day trial that began Sept. 23.
The peculiar device is more effective than the boot at immobilizing cars and is easier to install, Kevin Dougherty, president of the New York-based Barnacle Parking Enforcement, told Philly.com.
Let’s go to the videotape
Initial reactions from Pennsylvania and Florida pilot programs
John Haney of the Allentown Parking Authority told Philly.com that he wants to see how the Barnacle fares in winter, when snow on the windshield may make it less effective.
Monique Damiano, the public information specialist for Fort Lauderdale, told the LA Times that the Barnacle has thus far been met with puzzlement in the city.
“Most of the reaction that we’re getting from violators is more of a curiosity,” she said.
Commentary
Doesn’t it make you all warm and fuzzy to learn that young entrepreneurs are searching for new and better ways to immobilize your car, take your hard-earned dough two times for the same parking violation, and add revenue to the coffers of the Evil Empire? Nice!
I’ve heard people say, “You deserve it. You shouldn’t have parked illegally in the first place. $485 is a fair fine and penalty for staying too long in a space regulated by a no standing 7A-4P zone. (ticket, tow, and boot). ”
What do you think?
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