Owners of high-end motorcycles manufactured by Harley-Davidson, Triumph, Ducati and the Royal Enfield are in for sum bumpy ride. Transport authorities in Bengaluru are cracking the whip on such motorcycles for causing noise pollution, reports The Economic Times.
The authorities have found a lot of motorcycles having modified exhaust create noise beyond permissible levels.
While the city regulations allows for a maximum of 80 decibels for bikes, these motorcycles (also referred to as superbikes or premium bikes) exceed it and actually go up to 200 decibels.
The report claims that the Joint Commissioner of Transport (Enforcement) Narendra Holkar has begun a drive against such bikes, which interestingly are being sold in large numbers.
Initially, the suspected motorcycle will be fined, but a repeat offence will lead to the bike being seized by the authorities.
It is ironic that such motorcycles are sent for homologation before launch and have to pass the mandatory test of the Union government. As such, the drive to penalise after the vehicles have passed stringent norms has invited criticism on automobile forums.
Holkar, however, has indicated he means business. "We will intensify the drives after the civic polls. Issuing notices to bike manufacturers is not on our agenda, because we do not have time for legal battles. We have a strong weapon called enforcement (and) that is enough," he told the daily.
A dealer for the Tusker Harley-Davidson showroom in the city has also wondered how the bikes could be penalised. "We don't know why the transport department is booking our bikes for noise pollution. It is not clear as to what they are trying to promote, because no bike is sold without statutory approvals," he said.
