Item - 2024.EC10.3

The Economic and Community Development Committee forwards the item to City Council without recommendations.

The Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards gave a presentation on Follow Up on 2024.EC9.5: Stationary Decibel Levels for Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles.

On January 11, 2024, the Economic and Community Development Committee adopted, with amendments, 2024.EC9.5: Implementation Review of the Noise By-law.

A key recommendation in the staff report was to implement Council direction to add a noise decibel limit for stationary motor vehicles, in addition to limits currently in place for motorcycles at idle. The proposed limits align with industry standards and associated test procedures and were recommended in consultation with an acoustical engineering firm. The Committee referred this specific change back to Committee and requested staff report back to the February 20, 2024, Economic and Community Development Committee meeting on options for reduced decibel levels for motorcycles and motor vehicles.

This supplementary report provides the Committee with further information regarding proposed motorcycle and motor vehicle noise decibel limits, including additional details on how decibel limits are measured and the importance of the distance a measurement is taken (as sound levels vary depending on one’s distance from the noise source).  

After additional consideration, staff recommend keeping the decibel limits as proposed in 2024.EC9.5. The proposed limits are the lowest decibel limit range identified for implementation by the acoustical engineer, respond to Council direction to implement a Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) standard, and are consistent with those that have been implemented and enforced in other Ontario municipalities. In addition, the proposed approach has been endorsed by Toronto Police Service (TPS) staff, whose Board requested that MLS consider enforceable decibel limits above idle. If and when updated limits are approved, TPS staff have confirmed their support in conducting periodic joint enforcement initiatives with MLS to address excessive vehicle noise and illegally modified vehicles.

The goal of implementing decibel limits for motorcycles and motor vehicles is to target excessively noisy vehicles with modified emissions systems, not to inadvertently capture the use of normally operating motorcycles or other motor vehicles in the City. Introducing decibel limits as proposed in 2024.EC9.5 would accomplish this policy goal.