Drivers could be fined £400 for having noisy cars

A London borough is hoping to fine drivers £400 for being as loud as helicopters taking off.

Cars being revved in Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) could even have an impact on neighbours’ health.

Special acoustic cameras installed across the borough have caught 289 motorists driving at more than 100 decibels (dB), according to the Sunday Times.

One Lamborghini was even recorded at 112.9dB – as loud as a rock concert. Exposure to more than 85dB for extended periods can cause permanent hearing loss.

Kensington and Chelsea councillor Johnny Thalassites, secured a Public Spaces Protection Order so that drivers could be fined.

He tweeted: “Acoustic cameras have resulted in hundreds of fines across RBKC and zero repeat offenders. Some vehicles surpass 100dB – the volume of a helicopter at take off.

“We want FPN tariffs to rise to £400, so that other boroughs can use cameras to enforce against noisy vehicles.”

Between June 2021 and February 2022, nearly 10,000 vehicles triggered the cameras at four spots in RBKC with BMW drivers being the biggest offenders.

Lamborghini drivers were the next loudest, followed by Mercedes, Ferrari, Audi and Land Rover drivers.

Emergency vehicles are not fined and neither are drivers with reasonable excuses, such as honking their horn to avoid a collision.

Trevor Cox, professor of acoustic engineering at the University of Salford, told the Sunday Times: “If you were exposed to these noise levels for a long time in the workplace you would be asked to wear ear defenders.”

He added: “Noise has not killed as many people as air pollution but there’s increasing documentation of the health effects this creates, with thousands of deaths by cardiovascular disease in the UK each year attributed to chronic stress created by chronic noise problems.”

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