Project Overview

We feel that current parking enforcement methods are cumbersome, archaic and inefficient. We understand that space is a limited resource and demand is high for convenient parking. Effective parking enforcement and collection activities are a critical part of maintaining an efficient parking management solution.

We know that most people resolve their parking violations on their own, but some need a more compelling method of ensuring they pay their debts. When these rules are not enforced, those that follow the rules are forced to carry the burden for those that don’t.

Organisation

Ideas That Stick LLC

Project Brief

When a person fails to pay their violations in a timely manner, the process of enforcement begins. This usually begins with letters being mailed to the violators’ home. When this does not produce the desired result, traditional towing and booting operations step in.

This seems like somewhat of an over-escalation, from a letter in the mail to physically removing the vehicle.

Towing and booting is an unpleasant situation for anyone who has experienced it, but it is also a drain on the administrations resources: fuel costs for towing or boot transport, storage costs for vehicles and boots, costs for damage done to vehicles and tires, etc. Not to mention the cost of all of this on the environment.
Also, in many locations, the towing personnel are separate from the booting personnel, so both must be present if the vehicle has been booted and needs to be towed. That’s twice the personnel costs, twice the fuel costs, and twice the amount of time.

Enforcement personnel, and violators, are people too.

Current methods of enforcement through booting employ a heavy, cumbersome device, that most times needs to be deployed and recovered with traffic driving dangerously close. This creates a dangerous work environment, especially during peak enforcement hours.
Violators who have been booted often must wait hours for enforcement personnel to arrive to remove the device, missing that important meeting, that special occasion, or that flight. Although there is a booting device that allows a person to pay and remove it themselves, they encounter the same safety issues as enforcement personnel, and must wrestle an unfamiliar and cumbersome device off their tire.
It’s time for a better way to enforce parking.

Design Challenge

Using the latest materials and technology, the Barnacle attaches securely to the windshield, obstructing the view and immobilizing the vehicle. It comes equipped with an integrated pump and commercial grade suction cups that provide 100's of pounds of force, securely fastening it to the windshield and making it nearly impossible to remove without the release code. With a built-in anti-tamper alarm, it can sense when someone is attempting to move the vehicle or illegally remove the device.

User friendly and lightweight, it allows the motorist to quickly remove the device and be on their way after paying the necessary fines over the phone. The Barnacle makes the process easier for all parties involved: the administration, enforcement personnel and the violator.