Dallas will start using windshield “barnacles” on Aug. 24 for vehicles with three or more unpaid parking tickets in the same calendar year.
According to FOX 4, the city will attach a self-release immobilizer to the windshield instead of towing first. Drivers then have 24 hours to pay the tickets and a $100 fee. They also authorize a refundable $300 credit-card hold. Once they pay, they get a code to unlock the device. If it is still on after 24 hours, the car can be towed.
D Magazine, citing a city manager’s memo from Assistant City Manager Ghassan Rastogi, said the device blocks the driver’s view so the car cannot be driven safely. After unlocking it, the driver must return it to a drop box at the Oak Cliff Municipal Center, 320 E. Jefferson Blvd. The hold is typically released within three business days after the device is returned. Payment plans will be available, the memo said.
Dallas will begin using windshield “barnacles" on vehicles with multiple unpaid parking tickets starting Aug. 24, offering drivers an alternative to immediate towing. https://t.co/cyxjkd6TpH
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) August 19, 2026
The city said the program is meant as a faster alternative to the auto pound.
“When possible, the City will use a vehicle immobilizer rather than towing, allowing motorists to avoid locating their vehicle at an impound facility and incurring additional towing and storage fees,” the memo stated.
The same week, Dallas announced higher on-street parking rates downtown and in Deep Ellum starting Sept. 1, with meters in the Main Street corridor running until midnight.
The city has not released a list of streets where barnacles will be used first. Tickets can still be paid through the city’s parking portal or by phone.
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