An April 29, 2024, blog post from the Washington State Department of Transportation notes that the state is testing drone technology to remove graffiti from hard to reach places, such as bridges and overpasses.
A Tacoma area maintenance crew, led by Mike Gauger, is learning how the drones operate, how they apply paint, and if they can cover graffiti.
The drone, built from an Aquiline Endure model, uses a spray nozzle and is linked to a paint supply on the ground.
State officials note that in 2023 maintenance crews spent more than $815,000 on graffiti removal statewide (including staff time and equipment).
“That’s nearly 10,300 hours of labor spent covering 700,000 square feet of graffiti along our highways,” the blog post reported.
After research revealed there were no drones dedicated to graffiti removal, the maintenance team worked together on a design for months, finally getting a working prototype in the spring of 2024.
“We are the first transportation agency to pilot the use of drones to combat graffiti,” the blog post concludes.
You can read the full blog post here.
This does not solve the problem, which are the people who damage private property with spray cans. For far less money one could install a wildlife camera and get the culprits on camera. Apprehend them, give them an orange jump suit (better yet, white-and-pink striped suit) and make them clean up their own mess when and where the public can see and shame them. When teens in our community were caught vandalizing their own public swimming pool (they weren’t very bright), their parents made them stand at the community entrance with placards of admission and apology. And they were made to compensate the community for the damage they caused. Guess what – there has not been a recurrence of stupid teenager acts there since.
+1