Hum! Tentative statement number one : unpleasant or disturbing sounds, especially if unnecessary and loud constitute noise.
Re-Hum! Tentative statement number two : cars make more noise than bicycles and shoes do.
Except that electric cars manage to make so little noise that they are potentially equiped to make some for security purposes.
Why? Driving requires attention ; not to draw attention on oneself but to exert attention. ( Please refer to this earlier post. )
Anyway, I’ll let that last one go for now. Add tentative statements one and two and get yourself a non-sensical question : Why are there noise classes for cars?
I mean, seriously, why? That trucks could be separated in say three categories in reference to noise production, OK, sure! You can account for mass differences from 3+ to over 12 tons. And if some have a specific use, they can be moved in the upper one. I’m wildly guessing that most of you, were you ever to rent a light bulldozer to redo their basement or landscape would understand that you’re not supposed to use it to go to the mall or the convenience store or even art gallery. Nah, not guessing even, more like hoping! *sigh* So the trucks fine but what about cars?
What sense does it make to limit the noise according to car classes/categories? If you don’t believe
me, find an example above of the EU latest in such legislation. Isn’t that nice and cute? 8 classes!
Why 8 different car categories?
How about just one? Things that are authorized to use the streets in urban or road settings to move people and some associated stuff below 9 passengers and 5 metric tons?
I mean darn, if I am walking on a sidewalk, I’m not supposed to turn around and check what class of car the approaching noisemaker is driving, right? On a given street in a given town, I should expect a given amount of total noise. More if the street is a boulevard and less in a small one-way street, that makes sense. 100 cars, a hundred sources of noise; twenty cars, twenty sources and so on. Still, there is no reason for differences on that matter. The noise limit should be based on the level of noise that generated by one vehicle perturbs one passerby. Average to average by the way works both ways and if there are noises classes for automobiles why not classes for the victims? If my serenity is endangered by the slightest silk ruffle, is there a Pedestrian equivalent of the Motor Vehicle Office where I can get tested? It would be so nice to tell the SUV owner next to me that I have a class one street noise receiver permit and that he has to take a detour by broadstreet to avoid a ticket. 😀
But no, no categories for the individuals on the receiving end so why should there be any for the emitters. Let’s save a whole lot of money to the government and make it one class only and as long as we’re going since it varies in the above table from 77 to 68 on-road limits, in five years, all vehicles under 65 dB and that’s all folks!
Let me just get back to our electric cars now and say this : why would they have to generate noise to be safe? Do we ask well-maintained bicycle owners to put playing cards in their spokes to be safe?
Which brings us to the ridiculous ranting part of today’s post, should cars be limited in the amount of mechanical noise they produce at all?
Yeah because you can easily get a lot of sound out of a non-moving car. Modern cars’ standard stereo equipment reaches our 65 db limit easily and 100, 125 or even 170 db ones are to be found around. Like around the corner waiting for the GF and pumping the volume? Like around the block in the bar zone of the city on week-ends? Isn’t it classy to bother everyone with your favorite jinga-boom-boom on a soft breezy day when they’re dreaming of a nap on a far away beach. Isn’t it interesting that the more disgracious the music, the louder one seemingly has to play it … probably in order not to suffer alone or that specialist end up recommending to buyers to “just wear earplugs and turn it up to feel the vibrations beat you up“? No sound control when one buys the contraption, that, it seems, federal govt cannot do and towns, cities have to enforce noise production themselves. Ludicrous!
Doesn’t it come down to this : that we have to have classes for the cars because it can’t be expected from people to show some?
Example below, case closed. Tay.
*For unbelievers, another peek : Here.
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P.S. Do remember to find links below highlight”ed” text to the original documents mentioned. Just click’em! 😀
Definitive Lapse of Reason 