It's like a speed camera for noise.
If you read Tuner Fan, there's a pretty good chance your car makes more noise than stock, and, as you probably know, an excessively loud exhaust could land you a ticket, assuming there's a cop nearby that thinks you're above the limit. Now, the city of New York is taking the human factor out of the equation by issuing loud exhaust tickets using a new automated system of cameras and hidden microphones.
Issuing the new exhaust tickets is the New York Department of Environmental Protection, which is sending violation notices via mail. One such notice, as posted to social media, informs a BMW M3 owner that their vehicle "was recorded by a camera that takes a pictures of the vehicle and the license plate. In addition, a sound meter records the decibel level as the vehicle approaches and passes the camera."
The notice goes on to say that the owner can bring their vehicle in for "noise testing," thus providing "an opportunity to bring the vehicle into compliance with City and State law." Failure to appear for testing could land the owner a fine of $875. If the owner continues to ignore the violation after that, further penalties may be applied.
Per an email from the New York Department of Environmental Protection sent to Road & Track, the violation notice is the result of a new pilot program launched last September aimed at cracking down on loud exhaust systems. The program works similar to speed cameras, which automatically issue tickets using radar and visual cameras. However, rather than catching speeders, this new program is designed to catch loud exhausts using visual cameras and microphones.
Of course, there are a few different ways enthusiasts could interpret this. The first is obvious - hidden microphones and automated systems certainly seem insidious, giving those targeted very little recourse when it comes to fighting potentially erroneous violation notices. What if the microphone wasn't calibrated correctly, or somehow recorded the wrong decibel levels through some weird, temporary reverberation? Maybe the sound was deflected off a passing truck, making it sound louder than it really is? Unfortunately, all that doesn't matter to the individual targeted by the system - they still have to show up and prove their exhaust is within the limits.
There's another way to look at this as well. Traditionally, the police officers that issue a ticket for a loud exhaust do so through their own judgement, rather than with some instrument that measures sound levels. As such, the folks that receive said ticket are forced to go to a referee, who then uses a machine to test whether or not the exhaust is within the acceptable range. Seems a bit like "guilty until proven innocent," no? Perhaps with a microphone already in place, the potential for erroneous sound tickets actually decreases.
According to the New York Department of Environmental Protection, the pilot program will be reevaluated in June. Assuming it goes well for the state (that is, brings in revenue), we're willing to bet the program will be implemented elsewhere in the near future. Stay tuned.
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