Target noise, not motorcycles — that’s the word from
Saskatoon city council.
The city government decided this week that a bylaw that
would specifically go after loud motorcycles is not right for the city. The
mayor and city councilors sent back a report on the bylaw to the city
solicitor, asking for a way to make a noise law fair to everyone.
The council wants any noise law to be effective against all
vehicles. They said cars with loud stereos and trucks with engine retarder
brakes can be just as loud as motorcycles with custom exhaust pipes. Even
chainsaws and other small devices can be very loud, they said.
But there are no federal standards governing car and truck
sound systems or exhaust noises, so the city would have to decide what the
decibel limits should be for all vehicles before enacting a bylaw.
One councilor, Pat Lorje, said the whole bylaw issue should
be scrapped, rather than reconsidered. Fewer laws is better, she said.
Saskatooners or ites? You must be very proud of your city!!! I have been delaing with noise concerns since 2008 and SASKATOON….You are making decisions that truly reflect balance and fairness. KUDOS to you!
The noise issues stemming from bikes are being focused not just on the street bikes but in regards to off road motorsports as well. The Bob Rumball Camp of the Deaf has been charged by a private wealthy seasonal resident who lives across the lake from the camp. Mr Bruce Buchan is charging the camp under the EPA. 3 years later and still incomplete disclosure (evidence), the Camp has yet to be heard before a JP but has spent thousands of dollars just to show up at the court house and on lawyer fees.
The camp rides between 9-5 mon to thurs and for 4 weeks and then used to host MX races… now event organizers dont’ want to race there because the louder bikes won’t pass the sound protocol. Yes, even with a sound protocol and bikes meeting the Ministry of the Environment guidelines….some one like Mr Buchan can launch a private prosecution under the EPA. It’s not a good outlook for loud motor anything and we need to stand together collectively and respectfully to have our voices heard as well, there has to be a balance of bikes that will always produce some noise and tolerance. But until we stand together they will shoot us down one province, one town, one organization at a time until the by-laws are so restrictive it will be near impossible to ride anything without fear of a ticket or a full on prosecution.
check out supportparrysoundmotorsports face book page
maybe there is a way we can all approach the municipal, provincial and Federal governments with our voice before we are legislatively silenced. SASKATOON and EDMONTON are amazing examples.!
There’s a novelty device available for cars that transmits “vroom vroom” sounds of the hotrod of your choice through your stereo system based on the voltage put out by your alternator. Maybe a product like this, put in a helmet, would allow the loud pipes people to enjoy their exhaust notes and not bother everyone else.
It would not scream “lookit me!” like the loud pipes though, so probably no market.
“Just today a bike rode through downtown Kingston and a total stranger felt compelled to tell some one (me) how much he dislikes it.”
Hmmm, sounds like this is the kind of thing the law in Saskatoon was written to address.
Uniform law to treat all noise-makers equally sounds proper from my perspective.
It doesn’t catch your attention that there is enough dislike of exhaust noise to get a law that far in a city with 25 motorcycles, actually 24 since I left :grin .
Just today a bike rode through downtown Kingston and a total stranger felt compelled to tell some one (me) how much he dislikes it. Should be a sign.
Forget decibel meters and just count the scowls as you ride you loud bike or dumb ass loud stereo on wheels down the street. 3 scowls = $100 fine.
start riding our loud bikes now? There have always been “loud” bikes being ridden in Saskatoon. The point is the powers that be in Saskatoon are smart enough not to make a blanket law that punishes the guilty by association. Just ’cause I said I enjoy an aftermarket exhaust doesn’t mean I ride around annoying everyone by revving the sh@t out of it. Asshat indeed.
Yeah, let’s all ride our loud bikes in Saskatoon now and generate the political will to ban what we are doing!
Asshats.
I heard all the Cool Old Fast Guys are riding Loud Scramblers these days. Prairie Towns rule! Ride Eat Sleep Repeat!
Triumph Scrambler with an Arrow 2-1, life is good in the middle of nowhere 🙂
AH! Finally a area of Canada with some bloody common sense! The decibel reading should have included screaming children at the Wal Mart too! I think I will ride out west this year and rip through town on the XR1200 with the FMF slip ons! FREEDOM IS GOOD NO? cheers!