Switzerland is a hardcore country when it comes to regulating noise.
Most Swiss municipalities enforce "quiet hours" from 10 PM to 6 AM and many at lunchtime too. During quiet hours, excessive noise is prohibited both indoors and outdoors - this includes lawnmowers and drilling and hammering. Motor racing circuits have been banned since the 1950s. And while it's an urban myth that flushing toilets after midnight is illegal, it's clear the Swiss place a high priority on civic virtue. Noise regulation is a central part of that ethos.
So it's no surprise that the Swiss government has taken a firm stance on the issue of noisy cars on public roads. When asked, "How loud is too loud?" their unequivocal answer is 82 decibels - which is among the lowest trigger thresholds we've come across here at General Noise. It highlights Switzerland's proactive stance on extreme noise pollution and presents a potential model for other countries, including the UK, to follow.
Switzerland's Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) is now considering penalties for vehicles exceeding noise limits, following a successful pilot test in Geneva, where the French Hydre noise radar system monitored and flagged noisy vehicles.
Switzerland's Decibel Trigger Limits: A Model of Strict Enforcement
The Geneva pilot project demonstrated yielded some useful data:
Vehicles emitting noise above 80 decibels were flagged
Daily capture rate: 100 to 200 vehicles
Offender breakdown: 70% motorcycles, 17% cars, 13% trucks/buses
Highest recorded levels: 117 decibels (car), 110 decibels (motorcycle)
The noise trigger "threshold" is the volume at which a camera switches on to dispense a ticket. The FOEN's recommendations include setting a threshold at 82 decibels. FOEN found that one in 200 vehicles in urban areas would exceed this limit. While the legal framework is still under development, the pilot's conclusion indicates a robust future for noise enforcement in Switzerland.
Comparing Swiss Enforcement to the UK
As of July 2024, the UK Government is being advised to adopt far more lenient thresholds far louder than Switzerland's 82 dB. Atkins Realis' study into noise cameras on behalf of the UK Government recommended 95 decibels for enforcement.
This 15dB difference between Switerzland and the UK is highly significant: 95 decibels is perceived as nearly twice as loud to the human ear compared to 80 decibels (if our math seems off, remember that the decibel scale is logarithmic, not linear).
Naturally, lower thresholds means more vehicles caught. The 80 db threshold contributed to a daily capture rate of 100 to 200 Swiss vehicles - compared to the 2-3 vehicles per day modelled by the Atkins Realis study. While the two studies may not be entirely comparable in terms of traffic volumes and road types, it's clear that the Swiss approach is more likely to result in a self-financing revenue model for noise cameras. Without such a model, questions may arise about UK public money being spent to catch relatively few offenders.
Noise Camera Decibel Thresholds Around the World
Country | Noise Camera Trigger Threshold | Penalty |
UK | 95 dB(A) recommended | Currently £100; potentially £1000 for non-payment |
USA | 85 dB (New York City trial) | $800 first offence, rising to $2500 |
86-90 db, depending on road type; tolerances for wind, rain; higher fines for repeat offenders, modified vehicles | NT$1,800 to NT$3,600 (US$65 to US$130), with a possible additional fine of between NT$3,000 and NT$30,000 if illegally modified. | |
France - Vallée de la Chevreuse, France | 72 dB | $135 |
Germany | 86 dB, on roads with average speed of 44kmh | Currently data-gathering only |
Belgium | 95 dB | 90 Euro |
95 dB | £420 - plus modified exhausts get 12 points and 30 days vehicle impound |
In addition to the above, General Noise believes there is public support for higher fines for offences at night, near schools, densely populated areas and in National Parks/AONB; arguably the fine should be a sliding scale by dB, as with speed offences.
The profusion of dB limits underlines that noise is cultural and political: there is no globally-accepted limit. That means politicians must decide whether to go hard or soft relative to other countries. If they go soft, the noise camera industry may never take off. That'd be a shame for British residents, but also for British firms: the UK is already a world leader and exporter in this field - NYC's cameras are British, for example.
Conclusion
The Swiss government's initiative sets a powerful example for other countries grappling with noise pollution. Swiss traffic authorities haven't shied away from the trade-off at the heart of the issue, namely that a nation cannot have peaceful homes and extremely loud cars - we must choose one or the other.
Switzerland arguably thinks a lot harder about its civic environment than the UK, contributing to the Alpine country consistently ranking in the top 5 of the Happiest Places to Live Index. By adopting stringent decibel trigger limits, Switzerland is showing that its citizens value tranquility. UK citizens value it too: 90% of Kensington residents approve of the borough's noise camera scheme. UK policymakers take note!
By the way, Switzerland still loves loud cars. Although there are no motorsport circuits, Switzerland hosts the world's best motorsport hillclimb competitions, such as the terrifying and magnificent St-Ursanne-Les Rangiers, which sees thrillingly-loud cars metres away from houses next to public roads (do check that YouTube link: it's hard to believe your eyes). General Noise sees no contradiction in the Swiss government allowing loud hillclimbs while also coming down hard on road vehicle noise. A government that restricts noise to the right time and place has room to allow infrequent noise by niche interest groups. That's a healthy, pluralist democracy, not a joyless bureaucracy. Again, UK policymakers take note!
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