Bangor has delayed the rollout of the Barnacle parking enforcement system, but the threat of the device has helped the city recoup thousands of dollars in unpaid tickets, according to the agency that oversees parking management.
Residents can expect to start seeing the Barnacle around the city within the next couple of weeks, said Parke Clemons, area manager for PCI Municipal Services, the company contracted by the city to manage parking.
The Barnacle is a device that covers a car’s windshield and obstructs the driver’s vision, essentially making it impossible — or very dangerous — to drive the car.
Bangor initially planned to deploy the tool in August, but the parking agency hasn’t used it yet because it had to notify people who could be eligible for the punishment, Clemons said. Anyone with three or more unpaid parking tickets would be eligible, and city code requires that these drivers be notified by mail before their vehicles can be immobilized.
The Bangor Daily News first reported on the plan in early July, and the city sent more than 100 letters in August to people who were at risk of having their car immobilized for unpaid tickets.
The city collected about $9,000 in July and August from people who would have been eligible for the Barnacle, according to Clemons. Some of those were repeat offenders who had racked up dozens of tickets and owed more than $1,000.
Bangor is still owed about $24,000 from people with three or more unpaid tickets, which is higher than earlier estimates, he said.
Between the announcement about the Barnacle and a parking amnesty period in July, when those with overdue tickets could be paid within incurring late fees, Clemons said the city’s progress towards recouping money it’s owed exceeded his expectations.
“In my ideal world, that would be great if we never had to deploy [the Barnacle] — we definitely will,” he said, but the progress in recent months shows “how effective both the amnesty was and just the threat of knowing it’s coming.”
Clemons said he thinks the shock of seeing photos of the barnacle in local news coverage is motivating people to pay their tickets.
“We’re actually getting people to pay without having to [go] to the last resort, which is the Barnacle, so I’m very pleased,” he said.
When the enforcement device is released, a driver will have to pay their overdue tickets and a $75 fee to remove it, a city official previously said. Bangor is leasing the Barnacle for $250 per month on a one-year contract.
Drivers with outstanding parking tickets can pay them online or in person at the Pickering Square Parking Garage.
