Engines revving in West Campus may quiet down in the upcoming months after the Austin City Council passed a new ordinance prohibiting excessive vehicle engine noise.
The addition to the city code of ordinance, passed at the council’s Feb. 26 meeting, will regulate engine noise above 85 decibels in the city. The ordinance will be enforced by the Austin Police Department at officers’ discretion based on factors such as the proximity of the noise to residences and the time of day after previous warnings to a driver. Violating the ordinance would be considered a Class C misdemeanor, which is punishable with a fine of up to $500.
“The goal is to provide an additional tool to respond to repeated quality-of-life complaints and reduce disruptive engine noise in impacted areas,” wrote Zohaib “Zo” Qadri, city council representative for District 9, in an email.
The amendment follows years of complaints by residents, particularly those who live by Ranch to Market Road 2222, of excessive vehicle engine noise not only during the day, but also into the late night and early morning hours.
In West Campus, residents have also complained of excessive vehicle engine noise. Journalism junior Abigail Becka said she has struggled to sleep since a young age, and the engine revving has only made it worse.
“In the middle of the night, I’ll get woken up by these super loud cars revving their engines,” Becka said. “Then, I can’t go back to sleep, and it will genuinely impact my performance throughout the next day.”
For Austin residents, the issue has been growing in recent years, particularly for those who live in dense neighborhoods and entertainment districts, wrote Qadri, who represents West Campus and the University.
“As Austin has grown, more people are living closer to high-traffic corridors, and quality of life concerns related to late-night vehicle noise have become more prominent in community conversations,” Qadri wrote.
Resident Lisa Capps spoke in favor of the ordinance, saying at the council meeting loud engine noises are “not merely an extreme nuisance … but a significant safety hazard to many Austin residents.”
City Council member Mike Siegel, who represents District 7, said there was a subjective aspect to the standard of what officers could consider “offensive” vehicle engine noise. He proposed an amendment he said would require “knowledge or intent” for someone to violate the ordinance.
Despite the amendment, how the new ordinance will be enforced is still in question.
“I’m going to be honest, I don’t even know what 85 decibels is,” international relations sophomore Kaden Khoury said. “That’s gonna be hard to control.”
