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SUBJECTS › LEGAL › NUISANCES › Noise Nuisances - Public Disturbance Noise
Updated 01/08

Noise Nuisances - Public Disturbance Noise

Contents

Audio Devices

Construction Noise

Some jurisdictions regulate construction site noise by establishing designated hours for permitted construction for certain zones, such as in or near residential areas. Others regulate construction noise through a provision in their general noise control ordinance.

Motor Vehicle Noise

When adopting noise control ordinances relating to the operation of motor vehicles, cities and counties should be aware of state laws regulating commercial and private motor vehicles, and state administrative regulations on these subjects. The DOE has established motor vehicle noise performance standards and maximum permissible noise levels on public highways in Chapter 173-62 WAC. 

  • Backfiring
  • Compression Brakes

Compression brakes are legal equipment under chapter 46.37 RCW, and the noise resulting from certain emergency uses may not be a violation of local noise ordinances.  State provisions were amended by Ch. 320 Laws of 2005 ( 15 KB) to require that a driver of a vehicle equipped with compression brakes may not use the device unless the vehicle also contains an operational muffler and exhaust system. This system must maintain the noise level at 83 decibels or less for vehicles manufactured after January 1, 1979, and 80 decibels or less for vehicles manufactured after January 1, 1988.  If a vehicle does not contain a muffler and exhaust system that meets these standards, the driver may still use compression brakes if the driver reasonably believes that an emergency exists that requires the use of the device to:

  • protect against an immediate threat to the physical safety of the driver or others;
  • protect against an immediate threat to property; or
  • reduce the speed of the vehicle on a downhill grade.

A person violating these requirements is subject to a $250 monetary penalty for the first violation, a $500 monetary penalty for the second violation, and a $750 monetary penalty for each subsequent violation. Local jurisdictions are allowed to adopt more restrictive ordinances regarding the use of compression brakes. The Washington State Patrol is to adopt rules for law enforcement agencies to enforce these requirements. (From Final Bill Report) 

Most of the sample ordinances contain an exception for use of compression brakes in emergency situations. See RCW 70.107.030(2)(b) and WAC 173-62-030(3). Information about compression brake noise and a "heads-up" on the use of signs that use the words "Jake Brakes" appears on the Jacobs Vehicle Systems Web site Noise Concerns.

  • Motorcycles
  • Scooters, Off Road Vehicles
    • Off Road Vehicles - RCW 46.09.120(e) requires mufflers and sets decibel limits.  See also RCW 46.09.180
      Regulation by local political subdivisions or state agencies.
    • Covington Municipal Code Section 8.20.020 (2)(j) The creation of sounds from gas-powered motorized foot scooters between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. or during any “hours of darkness” as that phrase is defined in RCW 46.04.200. For purposes of this section, the times of sunset and sunrise shall be those times designated in a newspaper of local circulation including the King County Journal, the Seattle Times or the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. (Ordinance 21-04)
  • Squealing, Screeching Tires

      Machinery

      • Heat Pump and Air Conditioners  - Heat Pumps and air conditioners are generally regulated by the building and zoning codes.
        • Lynnwood Municipal Code, Section 21.42.400 - Accessory Structures and Uses .... C. Heat Pumps.
        • Pasadena, California Municipal Code, Section 9.36.100 - Machinery, equipment, fans and air conditioning
      • Power Blowers, Lawn Mowers, etc.

      While hand and power tools and tools such as power blowers are viewed as labor saving devices, they can be viewed as a nuisance because of the noise, dirt blown into the air, and in the case of gasoline powered devices contribute to air pollution. Many cities have regulated the times in which they may be used. A number of California cities have placed bans on the use of gas powered blowers.

      • Rock Crushing, Gravel Operations - Generally noises from manufacturing and extraction are regulated through performance measures.
        • Jefferson County Code 18.20.240(2)(f)  - Mineral extraction, mining, quarrying and reclamation - Performance Standards - Noise.
        • Thurston County Code, Section 17.20.110 - Noise. (Excerpt from Mineral Extraction Code)

      Miscellaneous

      • Bell Ringing
      • Loading Transportation Noise
      • Locomotive Horns (Train Whistles)

      Under the Swift Rail Development Act of 1994 (49 U.S.C. § 20153), the Federal Railway Administration (FRA) proposed regulations governing the use of locomotive horns at highway-rail grade crossings.  FRA issued a Final Rule for the "Use of Locomotive Horns at Highway-Rail Crossings" on August 17, 2006.  The rule requires that locomotive horns be sounded as a warning to highway users at public highway-rail crossings.   Although the federal rule will preempt state and local laws governing the same subject matter, the rule allows local governments to create "quiet zones," provided that certain safety improvements are in place.  For Pre-Rule Quiet Zones and Pre-Rule Partial Quiet Zones, the public authority must submit a Notice of Intent by February 24, 2008 and a detailed plan for quiet zone improvements by June 24, 2008, in order to prevent the resumption of locomotive horn sounding on June 24, 2008.  For more information on the  final rule and guidance on the creation of quiet zones, see the FRA Web Site

      Existing state law already authorizes local whistle bans. RCW 81.48.015  authorizes cities and counties to enact ordinances limiting or prohibiting the sounding of locomotive horns, provided the ordinance applies only at crossings equipped with supplemental safety measures.  It would appear that, if a local ordinance authorized by RCW 81.48.015 that limits or prohibits the sounding of locomotive horns or whistles creates a "quiet zone" in accordance with the FRA rule, there would be no preemption issue.

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