EV parking "Vigilantism"

[CWO4Mann]

All of the comments and warnings are Best Practice information. Also, remember that an automobile is considered by some to be "personal space" and the "road rage" business is connected with the psychology of "personal space" and perhaps penis envy. In any event, the eventuality of becoming a statistic (either as a victim or as a subject of arrest) seems pretty certain if such behavior is acted out. While I can fantasize all day long about having a GAU 30mm firing depleted uranium discarding sabot high explosive tracers hiding behind the charging cover of my Leaf, I leave it at that ... imagining all kinds of things while I close my eyes and lower the Movie Screen of the Mind where -- oh so many -- motion pictures have been projected (mostly when I was a teenager, but I digress).

Stay safe out there and take every actual and perceived insult with a happy wave and a big smile as you press the little red button on the stick, move your heads-up display to target the offender, listen to the hydraulics move the gun to aim on him, then select a 3-second burst of 300 rounds. There now, feeling all better ???

 

[RegGuheert]

I'm also reminded of a recent comment left on the Washington Post web site, where a guy claimed to get a huge thrill out of unplugging ev's parked at the Dulles Airport parking garage, and seemed to enjoy the alarm it set off on the Volt.

That's one reason I tried to use Level 1 instead of Level 2 at Dulles. With the 15-foot 12-AWG cord secured by the LEAF's hood on one end and by the door on the power station on the other I thought I was all set for my five-day trip and would not block those who wanted to use Level 2 for a day trip.

But it didn't work. ChargePoint decided that the car was unplugged when it wasn't drawing power and turned off the electricity. In reality, the timer had not yet kicked in. In essence, ChargePoint did exactly hate same thing as the self-reported vandal did: they unplugged our LEAF.

It is a little ridiculous for them to take up eight prime spots when they make it quite difficult to use four of them.

 

[Deleted member 3147]

i want a device that makes me able to vaporize anyone and everyone who pisses me off in car-related matters; that includes driving to annoy me and ev-related snubs -- especially tailgaters who dont like it when i drive 65 mph in the HOV lane.

I want the same device to use on road boulders who only drive 65 in front of me in the HOV lane.

Your move :mrgreen:

 

[vrwl]

Use a sticker, it gets the point across and could possibly prevent future issues. Here's one I like and it's not unreasonably priced for a roll of 50:

http://www.seton.com/economical-parking-control-labels-violation-l0508.html

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Use a sticker, it gets the point across and could possibly prevent future issues. Here's one I like and it's not unreasonably priced for a roll of 50:

http://www.seton.com/economical-parking-control-labels-violation-l0508.html

buck a piece? that is economical? wow.

 

[Volusiano]

Use a sticker, it gets the point across and could possibly prevent future issues. Here's one I like and it's not unreasonably priced for a roll of 50:

http://www.seton.com/economical-parking-control-labels-violation-l0508.html

buck a piece? that is economical? wow.

Try http://www.myparkingpermit.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. At least they're $30 for a roll of 50. I would get the permanent adhesive kind (instead of the removable kind) that's hard to remove. I think that's where the value is. Otherwise the offender simply can just peel and throw away quickly and just walk about without a second thought.

 

[Nubo]

I suspect the vigilante post was made in jest, and once it got a response, the joke was escalated. But in any case, there's no winning in personal interaction with the kind of person who ICEs an EVSE spot.

Almost certainly they know what they're doing and any attempt to dissuade them is going to be counterproductive. A "friendly reminder" is just going to be the cherry on their little hate-cake.

Vandalism is definitely dangerous to all concerned. The tenacious sticker is closest to the mark, but it's not really going to change their behavior or attitude; just harden it. The only real leverage is to have them towed or cited. That's still likely to tick them off but it could possibly deter them in the future. It will definitely free up the spot now while Po-po takes their toy away.

 

[vrwl]

Use a sticker, it gets the point across and could possibly prevent future issues. Here's one I like and it's not unreasonably priced for a roll of 50:

http://www.seton.com/economical-parking-control-labels-violation-l0508.html

buck a piece? that is economical? wow.

Try http://www.myparkingpermit.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. At least they're $30 for a roll of 50. I would get the permanent adhesive kind (instead of the removable kind) that's hard to remove. I think that's where the value is. Otherwise the offender simply can just peel and throw away quickly and just walk about without a second thought.

Even better! Here's the link to that particular sticker: http://www.myparkingpermit.com/Parking-Violation-Stickers/Vehicle-Parked-Illegally-Towing/SKU-D-2051.aspx

 

[rcyoder]

Vandalism is definitely dangerous to all concerned. The tenacious sticker is closest to the mark, but it's not really going to change their behavior or attitude; just harden it. The only real leverage is to have them towed or cited. That's still likely to tick them off but it could possibly deter them in the future. It will definitely free up the spot now while Po-po takes their toy away.

I've been at this battle since my EV1 days...

The jerks who ICE EV charging spaces are the same ones who will park in Handicapped spaces without needing it. They don't care that you need it, they just want to save 50 feet of walking. I agree that the best way to deal with them is to get them towed and / or ticketed for not charging in an EV charging space. If you have the correct signage on the spot here in California, towing is enforceable. Direct personal confrontation or vigilante stickering tends to aggravate this kind of behavior. Getting your car towed will make some people think twice.

Note: You need to be careful of the laws of the state you are driving in. Here in CA you need to be plugged in while parked in an EV charging space - vandals who know this will unplug you and get you ticketed...

IMHO: I'd prefer to have a charging spot that *isn't* preferred - I'd much rather walk across the parking lot than to not be able to get a charge.

 

[mkjayakumar]

How about putting a sign in front of the parking spot that clearly tells them that violators will be towed ? I have seen many Blink spots with nothing more than EV sign, and it is not clear to many people that an ICEv cannot park there.

 

[walterbays]

How about putting a sign in front of the parking spot that clearly tells them that violators will be towed ? I have seen many Blink spots with nothing more than EV sign, and it is not clear to many people that an ICEv cannot park there.

Many places deliberately lack EV-only signs and ICE vehicles can park there. Perhaps the property owner installed charging stations for some green "check off" or to get the subsidized installation, but really does not care whether they are useful. Or he may have an exaggerated faith in people's good intentions. The most clueless of these property owners will in the future look at records showing the stations hardly ever being used and conclude there is no demand.

In this first wave of installations a typical location (near me) may have 2-3 charging stations, one in a handicapped parking space, and all located with that handicapped parking space in prime parking location most enticing to ICE drivers whether they're EV haters, selfish, ignorant, or just in too big a hurry. With luck, education, and effective advocacy the next wave of installations could be much better. Having seen the demand owners might add 5-10 additional charging stations and, with the ADA requirement already met, locate them in a distant corner of the parking area where ICE vehicles don't want to park.

I'm afraid that even the stickers with hard to remove glue could be considered vandalism since removing it might damage the paint. I see nothing better than ticket/tow, and tell owners who won't post EV-only signs or won't enforce them exactly why you're shopping at their competition instead.

The one "citizen action" I could support would be something like bicyclists' Critical Mass http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Critical-Mass-bike-movement-at-20-years-3897679.php. Get a bunch of BEV drivers together to park blocking off every pump at a gas station, and film the ICE drivers unable to fill their tanks because the pumps are EVED. The video, if done with a sense of humor, might go viral and help educate some drivers who negligently ICE charging stations. But then I'd only want to do that with the agreement of the gas station owner, who might just agree in order to get the free publicity. It would have to be an independent; I imagine the big oil companies would quash any such heresy from one of their franchise stations.

 

[Volusiano]

I'm afraid that even the stickers with hard to remove glue could be considered vandalism since removing it might damage the paint.

I would never suggest putting it on paint. I always assume that it would be put somewhere on the windshield where no damage would be done to remove except for a little more hassle to either scrape the glue off with razor blade or some gum remover.

 

[kubel]

I thought about doing this at chargepoint stations that are ice'd:

-Unlock the pistol grip.
-Loop it THROUGH the wheel (or some other part of their car that is obvious to the driver and that prevents them from driving off).
-Re-lock the pistol grip in the holster.
-Walk away whistling.

But after further thought, I figured it would probably have the unfortunate result of a driver just driving off and ripping the station out or causing some other damage.

 

[thankyouOB]

I thought about doing this at chargepoint stations that are ice'd:

-Unlock the pistol grip.
-Loop it THROUGH the wheel (or some other part of their car that is obvious to the driver and that prevents them from driving off).
-Re-lock the pistol grip in the holster.
-Walk away whistling.

But after further thought, I figured it would probably have the unfortunate result of a driver just driving off and ripping the station out or causing some other damage.

leave it to a gun owner to have a really stupid idea--
like the family of weapons decal on the back window--or a really really really terrible sense of humor.
some stuff is just not fodder for jokes.

 

[epic]

what isan ice?

 

[derkraut]

How about putting a sign in front of the parking spot that clearly tells them that violators will be towed ? I have seen many Blink spots with nothing more than EV sign, and it is not clear to many people that an ICEv cannot park there.

Many places deliberately lack EV-only signs and ICE vehicles can park there. Perhaps the property owner installed charging stations for some green "check off" or to get the subsidized installation, but really does not care whether they are useful. Or he may have an exaggerated faith in people's good intentions. The most clueless of these property owners will in the future look at records showing the stations hardly ever being used and conclude there is no demand.

In this first wave of installations a typical location (near me) may have 2-3 charging stations, one in a handicapped parking space, and all located with that handicapped parking space in prime parking location most enticing to ICE drivers whether they're EV haters, selfish, ignorant, or just in too big a hurry. With luck, education, and effective advocacy the next wave of installations could be much better. Having seen the demand owners might add 5-10 additional charging stations and, with the ADA requirement already met, locate them in a distant corner of the parking area where ICE vehicles don't want to park.

I'm afraid that even the stickers with hard to remove glue could be considered vandalism since removing it might damage the paint. I see nothing better than ticket/tow, and tell owners who won't post EV-only signs or won't enforce them exactly why you're shopping at their competition instead.

The one "citizen action" I could support would be something like bicyclists' Critical Mass http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Critical-Mass-bike-movement-at-20-years-3897679.php. Get a bunch of BEV drivers together to park blocking off every pump at a gas station, and film the ICE drivers unable to fill their tanks because the pumps are EVED. The video, if done with a sense of humor, might go viral and help educate some drivers who negligently ICE charging stations. But then I'd only want to do that with the agreement of the gas station owner, who might just agree in order to get the free publicity. It would have to be an independent; I imagine the big oil companies would quash any such heresy from one of their franchise stations.

Good luck with that, Walter. But you better have someone standing by to bail you out of jail :roll:

 

[derkraut]

what isan ice?

ICE= Internal combustion engine.

 

[Nubo]

I thought about doing this at chargepoint stations that are ice'd:

-Unlock the pistol grip.
-Loop it THROUGH the wheel (or some other part of their car that is obvious to the driver and that prevents them from driving off).
-Re-lock the pistol grip in the holster.
-Walk away whistling.

Along those lines...

(disclaimer: for amusement only, don't do this)

 

[nosuchthing]

Anyone thought of the possibility that the ICE person had NO IDEA where they were parking and paid no attention to the contraption in front of them, and don't even know there is such a thing as a Leaf? People get occupied with their tasks and simply don't pay attention.

Or they thought the sign was something coming soon to a parking lot near you. I still get people asking me if my Leaf is like Volt, i.e. gas and electric.

It's a new parking paradigm. Public needs to be educated. It needs to hit the DL pamphlet at your local DMV. It's going to take a while before cops will be told to enforce it like they do disabled spots.

 

[Volusiano]

^^^ If the sign is clear you cannot plead ignorance. If you can read and drive and park, you're supposed to heed where you're driving and where you're parking and all the signs.

It shouldn't be about an education on EV. It's about an education in legitimate parking, which should have already come as part of obtaining a driver license.