Noisy bike crackdown irks riders

Police are cracking down on noisy motorcycles, upsetting riders who claim the noise is something that protects them from other motorists.

South West District Superintendent Lawrence Panaia said police often received complaints about loud noise from motorcycles and they would be patrolling with noise meters.

Wayne Patterson’s Motorcycle Centre owner Wayne Patterson said a loud exhaust was one of the things that protected motorcyclists from other motorists.

‘‘If you were into rock bands and they weren’t allowed to turn up the volume you wouldn’t get much of a crowd,’’ he said.

‘‘The thing is bike riders have a passion for riding bikes in all kind of conditions and sometimes the dangerous side of motorcycle riding is where the motorists just don’t see or hear the bike coming.

‘‘So a bike rider needs a few tricks up his sleeve and maybe one of those is a bit more volume.’’

Southwest Harley-Davidson owner Paul Morrissey said the saying ‘‘loud pipes save lives’’ had always been around motorcycling communities.

‘‘I had an incident just recently where I was riding a quieter bike and someone cut in front of me and I thought that if I rode a louder one he would’ve known I was there,’’ he said.

‘‘But there is a difference between a nice sounding bike and an obnoxious sounding bike.

‘‘There’s weight to the argument, but riders know to ride defensively as well.’’

The legal noise limit for motorcycles is 94 decibels and 90 decibels for cars.

Supt Panaia — a motorcyclist himself — said legal noise levels were enough to warn motorists.

‘‘The extra they put on gets them nothing,’’ he said.

‘‘My bike certainly doesn’t sound like that.’’

The fine for those who break the sound limit or who have non-conforming mufflers is $100 and riders will also given a compliance notice to change the vehicle to conform with regulations.

Supt Panaaia said while police monitored motorcycle noise, they also checked cars and trucks.

‘‘I think it’s important to monitor the noise,’’ he said.

‘‘I’m all for the regulating and you do hear when it’s not right.’’