Shanghai clamps down on noise pollution

This street is in the downtown area near the Bund. This wide boulevard has beautiful flowerbeds and shrubs and rows of trees lining the sidewalks. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

In a bid to combat noise pollution in the city, Shanghai authorities on Dec 1 started to issue summons for motorcycles that generate more than the permitted level of noise – 80 decibels.

A man surnamed Jiang was the first to be fined 200 yuan ($29) and had three license points deducted after his motorcycle was found to have generated 117 decibels.

After further investigation, the man was found to have committed more serious traffic violations, including running red lights, using a fake vehicle plate and illegally modifying his motorcycle.

As a result, he was sentenced to a 15-day administrative detention, fined a total of 6,500 yuan and had 39 points deducted from his records. His vehicle and license plate were also confiscated.

According to the new regulation, motorcycles that generate more than 80 decibels of noise are banned from the roads between 9 pm and 7 am.