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Dear Noise Project Supporter,
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Sorry to send you yet another e-mail related to noise cameras so soon after the last one, but you can blame the Rhode Island Senate Judiciary Committee for that: They just scheduled the hearing on Senate Bill 2898, “Noise Limits for Motor Vehicles,” on Thursday, April 25.
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As you may remember, S-2898 — and an identical companion bill in the Rhode Island House of Representatives — are necessary to allow RI cities and towns to deploy noise cameras to address excessive and illegal volume levels from motor vehicles, especially deliberate noise produced by modified mufflers and over-amplified audio systems.
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As we mentioned in our previous message, the data that Providence residents provide the Noise Project through our Community Noise Survey and contact form indicate that over 90% of them are exposed to unhealthy and unnecessary vehicle noise — making it the single most prevalent source of noise in the city.
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So we’re asking folks who support noise cameras as a means of addressing mobile noise sources to testify in favor of the bill — either in person (preferred) or by e-mail. The hearing takes place immediately after the full-Senate session, at approximately 4:30 p.m. (what’s known in Assembly-speak as the “rise of the Senate”), in Room 313 of the State House at 82 Smith Street in Providence. Leave time to get through security and walk to the hearing room.
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To testify in person, contact Judiciary Committee Clerk Lindsay Bazile at (401) 222-2381 or SenateJudiciary@rilegislature.gov, or when you arrive. Written testimony must be submitted to Ms. Bazile at that e-mail address prior to 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 25, in order for it to be provided to the members of the Committee and included in the official hearing record.
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As we suggested to those testifying in favor of the House version of the noise-camera bill, your statement is a chance to educate RI legislators about the following talking points:
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- Your experience of vehicle noise — Tell them how often you hear it, the times of day (e.g., overnight / early in the morning), and how it disrupts your sleep and / or other quiet enjoyment of your homes, including outside. If you have to pause your conversation or what you're watching until the loud muffler or stereo goes by, tell them.
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Noise cameras offer a way to address vehicle noise — They are essentially the same as the speed cameras and red-light cameras already in use in many Rhode Island cities and town, and are far less intrusive than the license-plate readers in use in Providence. This means the Assembly should not deny RI cities and towns the right to decide for themselves if they want to use them, as Newport and Providence plan to do.
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- Noise cameras obviate the need for additional police officers or diverting existing ones from other enforcement efforts — Again, like speed cameras and red-light cameras, they represent a more cost-effective way for RI cities and towns to address a significant and long-term public health and safety issue, while saving taxpayer money.
- Noise cameras do nothing unless they’re triggered by noise that exceeds legal levels, so they are in no way intrusive when the noise itself is not. By contrast, the status quo — i.e., deliberate noise from a relatively small cohort of vehicles (including many from other states) that disrupts the health and well-being of residents throughout the state on a daily basis — is far more intrusive than reasonable efforts to curtail it.
- Noise cameras can actually serve to reduce claims of biased enforcement of motor-vehicle regulations — Like speed cameras and red-light cameras, the use of technology eliminates opportunities for bias based on drivers’ appearance, types of vehicles, or types of sound by relying solely on sensors that measure decibel levels.
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If you cannot attend the hearing in person but would like watch it remotely, it will be broadcast by Capitol Television on cable channels 15 and 61 (high definition) on Cox, and channel 34 on Verizon. Live streaming over the Internet will be available at https://capitoltvri.cablecast.tv.
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UPDATE: We apologize that the link we provided to RSVP for the separate vehicle noise event from 6:30–8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 24 in Room 375 of the Brown University School of Public Health did not work. Here’s a more direct link: tinyurl.com/pvdnoise-event. And according to the organizers, there should be plenty of capacity even if you don't register.
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The all-volunteer Noise Project recently created a Vehicle Noise working group to address mobile noise sources in the city, and welcomes residents who want collaborate in that effort.
If you’re interested in helping to implement or promote any of the strategies described above — or devising alternative ones — please let us know using the volunteer form on our website.
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We appreciate your support for reducing noise in the city, and for the Noise Project’s
efforts to make our community a quieter and healthier place to live and work.
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“Noise is the new smoking”
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