Politicians in Strathcona County, Alberta, will be talking about taking measures against vehicle noise, including motorcycles with loud pipes, at an upcoming council meeting.
According to the Sherwood Park News, county councilors discussed the challenges of tackling the issue at a recent meeting, with input from local police regarding their experiences fighting loud pipes, as well as the experiences of the Edmonton police force.
Following the report and discussion, reaction was divided; some councilors felt it was a waste of time to move any further on the issue, with only a handful of tickets expected to be issued, but a majority voted in favour of discussing action on loud vehicles (with motorcycles in particular being mentioned) at an upcoming council meeting.
While this is typically an issue faced by councils in the spring, they may actually have an effective plan in place if they start the process now — they’ll need new equipment for measuring sound levels if they want to make the tickets stick.
If the council actually takes action against loud vehicles, it will be the first time that’s happened at the county level in Alberta, that we’ve heard of. And it will be another example of what happens when motorcyclists disregard existing laws on vehicle noise — no other issue has whipped up as much anti-motorcycle sentiment in recent years in Canada.
I get a real kick out many (not some) of the guys who ride bikes with loud pipes. Most of the loud bikes are indeed Harleys like it not. The next class of loud bikes are those which have modified pipes and want to sound like Harleys. The logic of such a move escapes me and after riding for more than 40 years, I am still baffled (no pun intended) by the childishness that this practice displays. Loud pipes do not save lives as many of these clowns would have you believe. Instead it gives all motocyclists a bad name and scares the s–t out of our seniors, kids and others. I have been riding accident free for over 40 years and never owned or ever wanted to own a bike with loud pipes. It makes me laugh even more when these guys accelerate to make the bike even louder and when the bike settles on the front forks they may have attained a top speed of 40 kms per hour!!! breathtaking huh??. You would think they were travelling at the speed of light!!! I have attended rallies in the USA and have seen troopers stopping bikes with loud pipes and making them park them or have them towed to a compound..Harley Davidson now refuse to install factory pipes above a certain decibel level..Loud pipes are a mask for low horsepower and the riders male part deficiency…..absolutely no need and I say throw the book at all of them.I hope all governments will crack down on this unnecessary practice and the sooner the better.
I don’t like loud pipes but the ones on Diesel pickups around here are just as bad as Harelys
Almost, but not quite, IMO. OTOH, there aren’t many Harleys riding past my place from November to April. The big diesel pickup idiots will still be out there. But then my windows will be closed, too, so the noise doesn’t bother me so much.
Straight-piped cruisers, diesel pickups, and heavy trucks with no mufflers are probably the biggest sources of noise outside my house, with loud performance cars and bikes a lesser irritant (I live on a road taken by many on the way to Toronto Motorsports Part near Cayuga). At least they tend to move on quickly.
Wow, anyone surprised the “CMG staff” choose a Harley for their pics? Start the trashing!
Just last month I was watching the Duke of Kent addressing the Lorne Scots’ Trooping of the Colors in Brampton, lovely ceremony. Then a pack of sportbikers rode by, looked directly at the crowd and proceeded to throttle up, clutch in, bouncing it off their rev limiters. Every one sounded piped, including the loudest Panagale I’ve ever heard. Bunch of dicks.
Interesting also that some new cars offer exhausts that their drivers can adjust. Car and Driver tested some recently and some cars were over 100db – stock “legal” exhausts! A double standard maybe?
I had no idea it was a Harley, just a picture of a cruiser to me.
I’d guess I encounter a dozen jerks on loud cruisers for every one loud sportbike idiot I see. That sounds like a bunch of the stunting morons that have been getting more common around here.
Where I live, Harley riders make up the majority of the ‘loud pipes save lives’ crowd. I assume that is the same in most cities and towns, although, I would graciously correct this statement if it were proved to be otherwise. To conclude: suck it up and accept the fact that Harley Davidson’s are the contributing factor to peoples resentment of loud vehicles, motorcycles in particular. In closing, my 2009 Blandit is Hardley noticed by anyone. 😉
Those nasty Harley types at it again.
What’s the point of owning a HOG if you can’t piss off everyone?
«Harley-Davidson: The most efficient way to convert gasoline into noise without the adverse side effect of horsepower.»
Riders say its a safety issue to be heard but the noise is found to be minimal. Wearing proper visable clothing while riding is more important. We need to get rid of the stereo type loud Harley and others who convert their pipes and start respecting others. Maybe they will start respecting us as riders.
Good. I live in a small town in Ontario, motorcycles with loud pipes come through all the time. Shakes my windows, causes a disturbance to everyone. They have no respect, they got on the throttle in the middle of town and speed out. They could wait a minute until they get out onto the highway, but no. So I say, ticket them until they can’t afford to ride anymore.