The fully-automated systems have been in testing and development for almost three years now, but this marks the first widespread official use of the noise cameras. Underlying the campaign against noise is an eye toward future development of residential and other 'sensitive' building projects alongside major thoroughfares.
Designed by Acoustic Research Laboratories of New South Wales, Australia, the camera-based system uses a set of microphones to monitor and analyze sound activity on neighborhood streets. When a noise that crosses the set threshold is recorded, it stores 10 seconds of audio and video of the noisy scene and generates a ticket, reports The Newspaper. The machine can hold data for up to 10,000 tickets before needing to be emptied and reset.
New South Wales is beginning its roll-out of the noise camera program, while South Australia and Victoria already have similar programs targeting commercial vehicles using compression brakes, known more commonly in the U.S. as Jacob or Jake brakes, which generate a huge amount of noise but offload a great deal of stopping power from the mechanical brakes, which can overheat in some situations, causing the heavy vehicles to run out of control.
Officials say the programs in those states can easily be expanded to encompass other noise issues, including loud passenger vehicle exhausts, stereo systems or other noise pollution.
According to the manufacturing company's specifications, however, there are some issues with the hardware that will prevent its roll-out across very cold and very hot regions of the world. The operating range of the equipment is certified only between 5 and 40 degrees Celsius (41 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit) - meaning the equipment would be essentially non-functional, or at least not reliably accurate for a significant portion of the winter and/or summer in many areas of the United States and Europe.
Via: The Truth About Cars
Reader Comments
Wed Oct 22 2008 3:33 AM
HECTOR says
I hate those idiot Harleys that announce their presence 17 blocks away with their noice. I hate the pick up trucks with the tricked out exhaust that do the same. And let's not forget the gansgta rappers with their boom-boom-booming bass.
But it's hard to see this noise camera BS as anything other than a revenue producing scheme. You just know the British gov't are slapping their foreheads and saying *why didn't we think of that?!*
Wed Oct 22 2008 6:48 AM
Mike says
Wow, what a blow to personal rights. If I wanted straight pipes on my bike or hotrod, I'd be pissed off if they did this in the U.S. What next? In car monitoring systems that send a message to Police when you're listening to Led Zeppelin "too loudly". How do they determine what is too loud and what is not? And aren't those Jaybrakes there for safety? Or would they rather have bigrigs plowing through traffic because they cant stop?
Wed Oct 22 2008 7:07 AM
Jim says
Mike, you don't have any rights to disturb the peace and everything you noted is already covered by a law in the US, the issue is enforcement. BTW that's Jake brake.
Hector if its not a money making scheme now it will be soon with the blessing of the community. In a neighboring town a citizens group gathered about a thousand signatures (population about 7000) demanding that the local police crack down on noisy motorcycles and other vehicles. It's a resort area and it is not unusual to have a group of 10-30 noisy lifesavers go past.
Heck I may forward this to the board of selectman.
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