"We know it is a beautiful day ... because before our alarm goes off we are jarred (out of bed) by the sound of motorcycles" rolling past her East Second Street home, resident Robin Stanton told the council members. "Sometimes it shakes the house."
The discussion arose while the council considered its position on a pending state law requiring smog checks for motorcycles. The council ultimately voted to support the legislation if it is amended to focus only on smog rather than after-market systems that make bikes louder.
The legislation, which addresses air pollution, also would require checks for after-market exhaust systems that may make bikes louder than regulated factory standards.
Benicia Mayor Elizabeth Patterson said she raised the issue because the bill would address smog. But later Patterson said she wanted to give residents a chance to speak out about "noise pollution" on quiet Benicia streets.
Tony Shannon, a First Street business owner, told council members that packs of loud motorcycles disrupt his Web design business -- even when his doors and windows are shut to block out the noise and exhaust.
Shannon questioned the argument raised in the motorcycle community that louder bikes save lives by alerting motorists of their presence.
"It is not OK to annoy everyone just to be a little safer," Shannon said.
A representative of the American Motorcycle Association, Wayne Phillips, testified that his group supports making motorcycles cleaner and quieter. But Phillips, an Orinda resident, said that the proposed state law would create an "uneven playing field" because it would require muffler checks for motorcycles but not for cars.
"The (association) is against the bill because it should go after (engine) performance, not mufflers," Phillips said.
Patterson suggested that the Benicia Police Department could crack down on excessively loud bikes by enforcing noise laws. The noise limit for most motorcycles in California is 80 decibels.
Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli, however, said that the state's law is vaguely written and lacks specific direction on how to measure noise. Noise citations that officers hand out could therefore be overturned in court, Spagnoli said.
About two noise citations a month are issued, police said.
Police identified the Military corridor and E. Second Street as especially prone to loud traffic because both roads are connected to freeway entrances.
Patterson said that some California cities have outlawed motorcycle traffic on certain roads -- a measure that Phillips said his group strongly opposes.
The legislation -- SB 435 by state Sen. Fran Pavely, D-Agoura Hills, narrowly passed the Senate last month. It is now in the Assembly.
Contact staff writer Tony Burchyns at tburchyns@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6831.
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