Go Chicago...

http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20131217/downtown/noisy-motorcycles-draw-ire-of-downtown-alderman-residents

A Downtown alderman is revving up his campaign against noisy motorcycles.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) has submitted a proposal to ease enforcement and increase maximum fines for violators to $1,000, which he trumpeted in a newsletter emailed to constituents Tuesday.

He called the persistent problem "a major quality-of-life issue" in his River North and Downtown ward.

According to Reilly, "many motorcyclists alter their mufflers to be much louder than legal decibel levels, which contributes to noise pollution throughout Chicago, especially in Downtown Chicago's skyscraper canyons."

But Reilly's ordinance would not necessarily target loud motorcycles, such as Harley-Davidsons, by decibel levels, but instead takes aim at those with altered mufflers.

That approach, he said, allows the City Council to streamline current regulations so local police would not have to work with State Police to issue tickets, as is required now by city law.

The new ordinance enables Chicago cops to issue tickets to motorcyclists with any exhaust pipe "lacking a muffler," which he said "would allow the Chicago Police Department to more easily enforce the law with a simple visual inspection."

Reilly said he has received "hundreds of complaints," especially in warmer months, about the loud bikes. Most recently, at a Downtown community-police meeting in September, Loop and Lakeshore East residents like David Klinger called loud motorcycle noise in the early hours of the night "an ongoing problem" in the neighborhood.

Officer Mary Panick agreed and said the Chicago Police Department's midnight team in the neighborhood was working to address it.

"Once they're on the move on Lake Shore Drive, they will run from the police," Panick said at the September meeting. "We have a new no-pursuit policy on them."

Reilly's new ordinance doesn't address that problem, but instead aims at laws police can enforce.

Reilly introduced the muffler ordinance at last week's City Council meeting, and it was sent to the Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety. It would increase the maximum fine from $100 to $1,000.

Ok so a motorcycle with after market pipes technically HAS mufflers.  They are louder than stock, but still more "muffled" than they'd be without them.  How does that play into it?  A Harley with "Screaming Eagle" pipes is FAR louder than my ZX-14 with Two Brothers.  How will they differentiate?  Not sure I'm a fan of new legislation...

Calm down -- this is the alderman who force the horses that drag carriages around for tourists to coo over  to wear diapers so his constituants won't step in their exhaust products.

He brings up the bike thing every year.

And it sinks without a stone, every year.

Last time, the criteria was DOT embossing on the can.

And it sank without a trace.

Mostly because it was motorcycles only, and the city's legal begals told em what would happen ;-}

He's an attention whore (but he's a politician, you say, are you not repeating yourself) that accomplishes very little . . . . .

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Quote from: Squareman357 on December 18, 2013, 12:59:46 PM

Ok so a motorcycle with after market pipes technically HAS mufflers.  They are louder than stock, but still more "muffled" than they'd be without them.  How does that play into it?  A Harley with "Screaming Eagle" pipes is FAR louder than my ZX-14 with Two Brothers.  How will they differentiate?  Not sure I'm a fan of new legislation...

Reading the article it focused on bikes with no mufflers at all. Visually easy for police to spot(well..and hear!)..

But as Bomber stated likely to be nothing but chest thumping political wet dreams..

Yea but newer bikes have the little mini-muffler under the center of the bike and not a long one running along side the bike.

And Denver already has a similar ordinance. $450 for the first offense, $1000 for the second (I think it's $995 so it doesn't hit some other law).

Carl

I didn't know Chicago had a no-chase policy.  I've filed this fact away for future reference.

 My muffler has not been altered in any way. It is exactly as it was when it left the Two Brothers factory.

Quote from: Scottzilla on December 18, 2013, 05:32:01 PM

I didn't know Chicago had a no-chase policy.  I've filed this fact away for future reference.

They won't know you are running on your KLR.   

Clay's on a roll tonite! 

Straight piped bikes of any brand are obnoxious.

This might be what all the hoopla's about. I've noticed a lot more inner city sportbike riders, the type who 10 years ago might be furry stuntaz, run their bikes with the end can removed or replaced by short megaphones. The doppler effect when they fly past at 85+ on the freeway is quite the shock.

Quote from: Veefer800canuck on December 18, 2013, 08:57:00 PM

Straight piped bikes of any brand are obnoxious.

This might be what all the hoopla's about. I've noticed a lot more inner city sportbike riders, the type who 10 years ago might be furry stuntaz, run their bikes with the end can removed or replaced by short megaphones. The doppler effect when they fly past at 85+ on the freeway is quite the shock.

As obnoxious as it is, the real danger in Chicago with the stunters is groups blasting down the Ike at 3 in the morning with impunity and turning into a fine red paste with regularity.  Start enforcing that and we can talk about pipes.

As Bomber said, we see it every year.  River North is pretty hoity-toity and there's pearls being clutched over it per annum.