The French capital has turned on its first sound radar seeking to put in place a system that would automatically identify and fine loud motorcycles and cars, British news portal The Guardian reports.
The device placed high on a street lamp-post in the 20th district in eastern Paris is able to measure the noise level of moving vehicles and to identify their licence plate. «Too much noise makes people sick,» reasoned David Belliard, the Paris deputy mayor. «For our health and quality of life … this first sound radar’s aim is to automatically issue fines for vehicles that makes too much noise.»
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Over the course of spring, the city will test whether the radar can accurately identify the number plates of roaring motorcycles or cars, after which the equipment will have to be officially approved by authorities by the end of 2022.
The French capital aims to start issuing fines from early 2023, while the government deploys more sound radars in other French cities and tests out procedures for automating the fines as part of a 2019 mobility law. According to the existing legislation, authorities can already sanction the owners of noisy vehicles, but police need to have the necessary equipment and catch the driver in the act, The Guardian reports.
Paris to fight traffic noise with sound radars
