Thursday, July 10, 2008 Malig: San Fernando’s lead By Jun A. Malig Cognition
LET me start by thanking City of San Fernando Administrator Fer Caylao for his letter to the editor which appeared on page 5 of this paper’s issue last Tuesday.
I appreciate that he bothered finding the time to clarify that the City Government, through the initiative of the City Council, has been doing something about the nerve-wracking noises being produced by some “adulterated” motorcycles.
I guess what many local officials, including the honorable ones in my hometown Mabalacat, fail to notice - despite pervasive complaints from the larger percentage of the populace - was already noticed by City of San Fernando officials. And what is laudable is the fact that they did something about it.
Congratulations to the legislative and executive officials of the capital city for not having deaf ears. Unlike their counterparts in some other localities, the CSF officials heard not only the loud and irritating noise of open or free-flow exhaust pipes of motorcycles and tricycles but also the complaints of their constituents.
Sensitivity to public opinions and concerns is a virtue all public servants should possess.
Based on the documents sent to me by the good city administrator, the CSF Council has unanimously passed Ordinance No. 2006-06 which imposes limit to the noise that can be produced by scooters, motorcycles, and tricycles.
The measure was passed by the Council on March 1, 2006 and signed into an ordinance by Mayor Oscar Rodriguez nine days later.
Under the ordinance, all motorcycles, motorbikes, and tricycles operating within the city should produce noise not exceeding 90 decibels, which is the maximum tolerable motorcycle sound level for persons with normal sense of hearing. (In some countries the permissible noise level for motorcycles is only 84 decibels maximum).
By the way, a decibel or dB is the basic measurement unit for sound. It is being used to measure sound level - its power, pressure or intensity.
Of course, it would be pretty easy to pinpoint the motorcycles that violate the maximum 90-dB rule. If it produces noise that hurts your ears, especially during acceleration or abrupt twisting of the gas grip, then it is not allowed to be driven or operated anywhere in the City of San Fernando.
The ordinance mandates the inspection and conduct of regular tests on mufflers and exhaust pipes of all two or three-wheeled vehicles in the city. Under the local statute, violators will be fined P300 for the first offense, P500 for the second, and P1,000 or P1,500 for the third offense. The driver’s license of the offender may also be confiscated.
Tricycle drivers who would violate the rule for the third time will face revocation of their operator’s permit.
The ordinance considers as violation the use of tampered and altered mufflers. (A muffler or silencer is a device used to reduce the amount of noise emitted by a vehicle. Manufacturers are required to equip motorcycles and other vehicles with mufflers).
This provision is consistent with the recent guidelines issued by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) that prohibits the modification of any part of the original design of a motorcycle or scooter without approval from the agency and the Department of Trade and Industry. Violation of this LTO rule would result in a P2,000 penalty.
Obviously, the CSF officials did not sleep on their job. And undoubtedly, residents of the capital city are fortunate for having local officials with unimpaired sense of hearing.
