Booting is on the rise in New York City.
Drivers who don’t pay up for traffic tickets are more likely to have their cars ensnared than they have been at any point since before the pandemic all but shut down enforcement, according to city data.
New Yorkers’ vehicles were immobilized 134,945 times in 2023. That’s more than quadruple the number of boots clamped onto wheels throughout the city in 2020, when only 31,379 vehicles were captured by the devices’ metal fangs.
Drivers who fail to pay $350 or more in parking or traffic camera tickets within 100 days of their issuance are subject to booting.
Many booted vehicles get towed away. If their owners don’t retrieve them, the city can sell them at auction.
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How do those stand up to a Sawzall?. I used to cut galvanized steel pipes like butter. Assuming they’re not made of something significantly stronger, I figure I can fix that problem in under a minute on a fresh blade.
to whom do those boots belong and what are the consequences of damaging their property (that they surely know was clamped to your car)?
I forget where I’d read about it, some enterprising individual disassembled, then reassembled the boot off the vehicle, several times. Might be an urban legend though.
Also possibly urban legend, there was some story about a windshield suction cup “boot” or clamshell that you can get off by blasting your defroster on high heat and run a credit card along the seals. They also have GPS tracking on them with a Sim card that had unlimited data, which was then used for free internet.
And they’re just giving these away? Godbless
I’d assume if true, the arms race has progressed past it.
Good. Driving a car on public roads is not a basic human right, it carries with it certain responsibilities and obligations.
Isn’t the boot just going to make scarce city parking even less efficient? Isn’t it kind of shooting yourself in the boot to some degree?
NYC has never been interested in making parking efficient. The parking meter rates are ridiculously cheap, with many streets not charging anything for parking (or even having time limits). And yes, giving away valuable parking makes driving much more complicated – but apparently the Governor was in a diner and overheard some voters from NJ complaining about increased costs…
The alternative is that the 350 dollar fine becomes a cost-of-doing-business for those who can afford it unless the fine is changed to be income% based and the violators are ruthlessly hunted through the legal system. NYC definitely can ruthlessly hunt people legally, but I’m not sure it could do it competently. Booting and towing the violators seem a simple and cheap solution by comparison.
Bit booting and towing are opposites
Many booted vehicles get towed away.
Replace with spare tire: 10-15 minutes.
Chopping “revenue generator” off with angle grinder: 10-15 minutes.
Total costs: 20-30 minutes.
For anyone seriously considering this tactic, they already have your license plate and VIN when they boot your car. If you manage to remove the wheel and destroy the boot, many jurisdictions will come after you for damage to city property and it will cost you a lot more than paying to get the boot off. I had a buddy who found this out the hard way.
It was tongue in cheek. I only ever do this with my neighbors ride anyway.
Hey, while we’re on the subject, does anyone remember the forum thread that went viral a few years ago of a guy whose HOA booted his car, and he managed to hide the booted car in his garage and the towing company freaked out? He updated the forum posts as the saga developed, and it’s a very funny read.
https://www.jeepforum.com/threads/epic-hoa-parking-boot-battle.572540/
I loved that story but felt it was left unresolved.
I haven’t seen that before, it was marvellous, thanks for sharing. What an epic
