Carl-Axel Andersson, born in Gävle, moved to Stockholm at an early age to start his own business. In 1950, he founded the engineering company Cale together with his brother Lennart Andersson – the name is a clever abbreviation of "Ca"rl-Axel and "Le"nnart". Initially, they focused on general engineering production, but Carl-Axel, with his inventiveness and eye for business, was fascinated by the American invention of parking meters (invented in Oklahoma in 1935). As early as 1955, he patented his own design that was similar to the American models, but adapted for European conditions.
Without control, the parking machines became just decorative pillars .
It was not until November 4, 1957 that the city of Stockholm had trained and the first parking guards began patrolling the streets – popularly known as "lapplisor" . Suddenly Carl-Axel's invention caught fire – now you could no longer park for as long as you wanted without paying. The machines, manufactured in Gävle from stainless steel and mechanical precision, did not just become a pay station – they became part of a living set of rules .
The Lappish people – symbols of a new order
The first parking attendants wore uniforms and had the authority to issue parking fines (as the fines were called at the time). They quickly became known as "lapplisor" . In popular parlance they were both feared and despised, people were not used to being checked and complying with parking regulations in this way, but without the lapplisors Cale would never have been able to build its reputation as a world leader in functional parking solutions .
Carl-Axel Andersson understood early on that technology + supervision = success . His vending machines were robust, weatherproof and easy to empty – but it was the lapplies that gave the system credibility . Parking attendants initially had limited authority – they could not move vehicles or issue fines for traffic violations, only for parking violations.
It doesn't matter if you're a celebrity or not.
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Parkeringsböter utfärdas av
kommunen eller polisen för felparkering på kommunal mark (parkeringsanmärkning), eller av ett privat parkeringsbolag eller markägare då heter det kontrollavgift.