Excessive noise from Tank Hill traffic continues to be a source of exasperation for some Salmon Arm residents.
For a number of years, city council has received written complaints from residents on Highway 1, from roughly the 30th Street NE intersection, down Tank Hill and into the downtown. Despite the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, at council's request, installing signage advising truckers to avoid using engine brakes, and reminding them that excessive noise is prohibited, the issue persists.
Resident's Heather and Tony Yip have written B.C. Transportation Minister Rob Fleming, urging action to mitigate noise and ensure safety in the community. The couple, who work from home, said the constant use of engine brakes seriously affects their quality of life.
"This noise occurs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and is unacceptable," write the Yips, noting that "in addition to the more than 1,500 transport trucks that pass through town, they also have to endure "loud motorcycles and noisy RVs."
"If we could afford to move, believe me we would," said the Yips, adding they're also concerned with the safety implications of the heavy truck traffic passing through town.
"There was recently an incident where a truck failed to stop in time at the traffic lights and went onto the pedestrian sidewalk, causing damage. Although no one was hurt, it highlighted the risk to public safety. This is the route many children take to school, and this could have been devastating!"
At its Aug. 26 meeting, city council received another letter regarding the noise from highway traffic. The writer mentions a plan of a 琉璃神社 councillor to have the province bring an automated noise camera program to that city. These cameras use a microphone to capture excessively loud vehicles, take a photograph and audio recording with the driver receiving a ticket in the mail.
鈥淭hese are cameras situated in road corridors where they pick up traffic noise that exceed our bylaws and the motor vehicle act,鈥� explained Coun. Gord Lovegrove.
The letter writer asked that Salmon Arm council research this technology, "with a view to using it in Salmon Arm."
Speaking to the letter, Coun. Sylvia Lindgren sympathized, explaining she recently moved back to Salmon Arm and now lives above the highway.
"I knew what I was getting into when I moved in there," said Lindgren. "However, there is occasionally, more often than I wish鈥� very excessive noise from a suped-up car, there鈥檚 one in particular. There鈥檚 also one motorcycle in particular that races up and down that area in the night. But also excessive, really excessive noise from engine breaks, from semi trucks coming down.
"They start at the police station and they don鈥檛 turn them off until they鈥檙e past Alexander Street, and it is so loud that the people that live in my neighbourhood cannot talk to each other in their back yards while those vehicles are going by, and they go by 24-hours a day."
Lindgren waited until after a presentation by city RCMP Staff Sgt. Scott West to ask what could be done to address the issue. West said he would contact the Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement (CVSE) and the RCMP Highway Patrol. First though, he shared some of the challenges around enforcement, including having a safe place to pull commercial vehicles over.
West said since the engine brakes sign was installed, he had seen a reduction in their use. He explained some trucks are using them but their exhaust systems are "baffled correctly and they don鈥檛 make much noise." He guessed about a third of the trucks are like this and not creating a problem.
"They are, in fact, trying to not get in a collision at the bottom of the hill with overheated breaks," said West. "Some of the drivers are being very responsible about it, both with the way they use them and the equipment that they鈥檙e using. The ones that are being irresponsible are the ones we鈥檙e discussing right now and deserve our attention."
Lindgren said she'd already contacted the CVSE about the matter.
With files by Gary Barnes, 琉璃神社.
