HARLEY-Davidson motorbikes are known for their noisy exhausts – with many owners in Frankston fined over the past year for breaching the peace.
They were collared under the Environment Protection Act 1970, which makes it an offence for owning a motorbike which exceeds prescribed noise standards.
EPA data released last week shows motorbikes made up about 12 per cent of the 5000 noisy vehicle notices issues since January 2014, with Harleys topping the list.
A total of 465 Harley Davidson owners were required to have their bikes noise tested and to make any required modifications.
Yamaha, Honda and Kawasaki were the other bikes to receive more than 20 notices.
Frankston – with 276 complaints – was third among the top 10 Victorian local government areas where noisy vehicle owners reside, the EPA said.
Other offenders were Casey (506), Greater Dandenong (398) and the Mornington Peninsula (136).
The EPA’s regulatory practice and strategy executive director Chris Webb said community feedback showed motorbikes were as big a noise pollution problem as cars – despite making up a much smaller percentage of road users.
He said statistics backed up this perception: motorbike owners received 12 per cent of the noise notices yet were only 4 per cent of vehicles.
Owners receiving noise notices by an EPA officer or a police officer must take their bike to an EPA-approved noise tester.
They then need to make any repairs or modifications as required to ensure their motorbike is compliant before being retested.
EPA notices require the bike owner to lodge a certificate of compliance, which can only be obtained from an approved noise tester. The EPA can suspend a vehicle’s registration if a certificate is not provided.
