Drivers with roaring engines are being hit with $250 tickets in Newport, Rhode Island, thanks to new “noise cameras” that detect vehicles exceeding the city’s decibel limit and automatically flagging them for fines. The technology, which is set to be expanded to numerous states across the country, is targeting cars and motorcycles that exceed noise laws with revving engines, blaring stereos, or modified muffler exhausts. “Folks have reached their boiling point,” said City Councilor David Carlin, describing the frustration that drove the city to deploy the devices after years of complaints about the noisy engines that rattle windows and ruin summer evenings. The city’s high-tech solution is two new Dutch-made Sorama noise cameras, which are fitted with 64 microphones that pinpoint the exact source of a sound. Linked to license plate reader technology, the system can identify a single offending vehicle in a crowded street. Other states to employ the device include Hawaii, Iowa, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee.
