Police to use noise meters to put brakes on loud boy racers

BOY racers revving their car engines and using modified exhausts are set to be targeted by police officers in Edinburgh with hand-held noise meters.

The meters will allow officers to monitor decibel levels and decide whether vehicles are creating a public nuisance.

Drivers who fit souped-up exhausts will leave themselves open to a £30 fine and could even face having their cars confiscated under antisocial behaviour laws.

Officers are likely to target so-called "cruising" hotspots, such as Meadowbank retail park, as well as responding to complaints from residential streets.

Police receive dozens of complaints about modified cars causing noise pollution in the Capital.

The use of noise meters was piloted in East Lothian, where officers were able to crack down on boy racers terrorising local communities. The devices were later deployed in Midlothian and West Lothian, and are now set to be rolled out across the city.

So-called boy racers often favour vehicles such as the Peugeot 106 and 206, Vauxhall Corsa, VW Golf and Renault Clio, and many attach exhaust boxes costing as little as £50.

Sergeant David Hynd, from the force's road policing branch, said: "Many of us know how irritating it can be to be woken up by the sound of a noisy exhaust at 1am.

"We're waiting for Edinburgh Sheriff Court to sign off its approval so we can make reports to the procurator fiscal. We're hoping to have the meters operating in Edinburgh by spring.

"If, for instance, you take a Ford 1.3-litre car with a decibel level of 70 and attach a back box to the exhaust, that could increase the level to 80. I'm told that represents a doubling of the volume. Drivers would then be liable for a £30 fine if they are stopped, because these alterations give a negligible increase in performance."Cars with these exhausts often give the perception they are speeding, because of the noise, when they may be inside the limit. That can cause alarm for pedestrians.

"The meters have proved very effective in the other force areas. Haddington in East Lothian had a particularly bad problem with modified exhausts. I understand from colleagues that the meters have contributed towards quite a dramatic decrease."

Drivers could be given a warning under antisocial behaviour laws if they "fail to desist" by not removing the modified exhaust despite being fined.

Antisocial behaviour laws allow officers to confiscate vehicles from drivers causing a persistent nuisance, including revving their engines excessively. Officers issue a warning on the first occasion, then, after a second notice, the car is seized and placed in an impound lot.

The noise meters will form part of a wider road safety strategy aimed at cutting accidents involving young motorists. Young men aged between 18 and 25 have been involved in a spate of serious and fatal accidents in the Lothians in recent years.

Neil Greig, policy chief with the AA Motoring Trust in Scotland, said: "These exhausts cause a lot of irritation to people in their homes and other drivers on the roads. I can't see many people objecting to the police taking these steps against them."