Some Parksville residents want to turn the volume down on excessively loud vehicle noise on several busy roads with the help of 'noise cameras'.
Hélène Dompierre wrote a letter to the City of Parksville, council and Mayor Doug O'Brien to draw their attention to the issue and says it's not the average driver causing a problem.
"It’s really the one that makes way too much noise because they have modified muffler, or by the sound of it, they have no muffler left at all,” she said.
Dompierre said the noise comes from roads including Highway 19A and the Alberni Highway, and happens at all hours but is especially noticeable at night.
“That’s not good for young families with kids either," she said. “We need to have somebody enforce the bylaws and the law.”
Dompierre's letter refers to "vehicles and motorbikes in which the factory muffler or exhaust systems have been deliberately altered to make them louder or even removed entirely. Rumblers added to pickups, deliberate backfiring, squealing tires of cars accelerating away from traffic lights, drag races late at night, modified hot rods, heavy motorbikes."
The letter was sent on behalf of Dompierre and eight of her neighbours.
The City of Parksville says its bylaw compliance staff are not equipped to undertake vehicle stops and to establish and manage such a program would be costly.
"As noted in the letter, speed and vehicle noise are typically enforced by the RCMP; however, the RCMP also have limited resources and numerous competing priorities," the city said in an email to the PQB News.
Parksville Noise Bylaw No. 1432 defines "unacceptable noise" as noise that can be heard beyond 150 metres (492 feet).
The Motor Vehicle act forbids attaching any device which increase the noise of the engine exhaust. Depending on the vehicle class, the maximum ranges from 83 decibels to 93 decibels. Drivers in B.C. can be ticketed $109 for "unnecessary noise", per the Motor Vehicle Act.
Dompierre said the noise may also be hazardous to people's health by increasing anxiety, heart disease, diabetes rate and neurological problems.
She suggested the city consider a noise camera pilot program. A noise camera works similar to a red light camera, but with a microphone. It will take a photo and record audio when a vehicle with a loud exhaust system drives past.
Saanich council recently considered a noise camera pilot project, but the idea was put on hold during a meeting in March.
A Noise Camera Pilot Project is on the schedule for this September's Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) Convention.
The resolution, brought forth by the City of Port Moody, calls for the province to explore the feasibility of using noise cameras to effectively enforce vehicular noise regulations through the creation of a noise camera pilot project for municipalities to opt into.
“We’re not the only ones living with that," Dompierre said. "The population on the Island is increasing and there’s more and more citizen who have to live with that constant noise. There are bylaws that say we have the right to enjoy a quiet time.”
Member of Parksville council will attend the UBCM convention and will vote on the resolution and the information and concerns outlined by residents will be considered by council, according to the City of Parksville.
"One of council’s strategic priorities is advocacy and the resolution work that is undertaken at UBCM is a useful opportunity to represent and advance the interests of our city," the city said.
The 2024 UBCM Convention will take place from Sept. 16 to Sept. 20 in Vancouver.
