Hoons in Sydney’s Wollongong and Bayside are warned, noise cameras will soon be installed.
The state Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has been preparing to install the microphone cameras for months, and they will be installed before the new year.
Microphones pick up noisy vehicles and a camera will capture accompanying images.
Announcing the start of the testing program earlier this year, NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said cars were being “put on notice”.
Although the technology is used in London and New York, the Singapore government found that it was too difficult to attribute the source of the noise to a specific vehicle due to interference from surrounding traffic and other sources.
In a statement, the EPA said work leading up to the installation of the cameras had been underway for months, including community consultation on preferred locations.
More than 2,500 people suggested to the government where they thought the cameras should be placed.
The department said it was working with Transport for NSW, police, councils, an electrical engineer and energy suppliers to finalize the locations.
The state’s Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has been preparing to install the noise cameras, and the technology will be trialled in Wollongong and Sydney Harbour.
The technology has a microphone that will pick up sounds above a set decibel limit within 15 meters of the camera. The sound turns on the camera which then records the accompanying footage.
The cameras will be installed on a trial basis to evaluate the effectiveness and accuracy of the equipment.
The trial will take place this year in the Bayside and Wollongong municipal areas.
In New South Wales, cars less than 20 years old cannot exceed 90 decibels, which is about the same noise as a hair dryer, blender or power tool. Motorcycles less than 40 years old cannot exceed 94 decibels.
However, an offending passenger or driver can only be fined $600 once authorities perform a noise reading while the vehicle is stationary.
CCTV footage from the New York mayor’s office shows three lanes of traffic crawling along a one-way street when a black van appears, accelerates loudly, and what is presumably AI locates the noisy offending motorist with a red dot. .
Last year, the Singapore government abandoned plans for the acoustic chambers.
“Acoustic cameras… still have a limited ability to detect noise violations from individual vehicles accurately and reliably,” the Minister of State for Transport said in parliament.
The EPA has purchased four of the cameras for $198,000 in total.
