It’s happened to many drivers – you walk outside to find that there’s a boot on your car. In most cases, this happens because you have multiple unpaid citations for things like speeding, parking, etc. This has been a common practice, but some cities are adopting something new for cars. Enter the parking barnacle, which some people call a windshield boot. 

The parking barnacle could be the new car boot

The parking barnacle is still relatively new, whereas the car boot has been in use for quite some time. Essentially, the windshield boot is another way to ensure that drivers pay their proper fines and adhere to traffic and parking laws. The way it works is the public employee uses an app to enter the vehicle information and determine how much the driver owes. Then, they attach it to the windshield using suction cups. 

Once the person notices the parking barnacle on their car, they can scan a QR code to pay the fines and remove it. From there, they return the windshield boot to a specified location. So far, the parking barnacle program seems to be a success, as various cities have implemented it. This is similar to the express car boot, which some call a smart boot.

According to Barnacle, the device weighs just 17 pounds but has 1,000 pounds of force with the use of its commercial-grade suction cups. 

Why the switch to the windshield boot?

The car boot has been around for quite a while as a way to enforce parking rules and collect fines. Because of this, some may wonder why cities are switching to the parking barnacle. Perhaps the biggest reason is that it, like the express boot, is new technology that makes things easier for drivers and employees. 

However, there are other reasons to switch to a parking barnacle. For starters, applying the car boot can be a bit tedious for the employee and can also be dangerous in some ways. Because of the time it takes, some drivers confront the person putting on the car boot. Additionally, they can damage a vehicle. This could happen during installation or when people try to drive the car with the boot. 

Then there’s also the removal. Unless it’s a smart boot, the driver will need assistance from an employee to remove the boot, which can be time-consuming. However, options like the parking barnacle allow the driver to do it themselves and return it. There are car boot scams since it’s been in use for so long. 

Of course, it may be a while before you see parking barnacles in every city, but they are slowly on the rise. So far, New York City, Greeley, Colorado, and Charleston, South Carolina are among the areas that have them. Additionally, some universities have adopted the parking barnacle.