Unnecessary, intentionally aggravated vehicle noise is a significant quality of life issue. Interrupted sleep is the most significant effect from very early morning work commuting vehicles that start, idle and drive through residential communities. Evenings and night hours are rife with racing and speeding vehicles on main roads, which can be heard for miles. These particular nuisances become most deleterious at times when nice temperatures are conducive to having open windows for fresh airflow. The next health concern is simply the stress-inducing element of noise, especially that which is preventable, and is nothing less than intentional and aggressive. My last comment is one to point out, anecdotally, that the most egregious violators are vehicles that are registered and tagged out-of-state, often do not meet VA safety and inspection standards, and consistently violate other safe driving laws like speeding, wrong way driving, failure to stop. In my 32 years as a homeowner in Fairfax, the intentional vehicle noise issue has never been so prominent as it has been of late. I'm very glad that this is receiving legal/legislative attention and hope it's within this body's willingness and capability to SOLVE this problem. Thank you.

I live in a neighborhood in Fair Oaks VA, at a major intersection. It's a relatively new (2019) townhome community, and we are tormented by incredibly loud cars, day and night. Montgomery County, MD is piloting noise cameras to finally put an end to this antisocial trend. The acoustic camera technology is now very mature, and is in use in places like NYC, Canada, UK, etc. Recreationally loud vehicles serve no useful social function, and create lasting detrimental health impacts for tax paying citizens. These vehicles traumatize pets, autistic children and adults, sleeping infants, veterans with PTSD, and others. Since at least 2013, the hobby of driving "warzone-level loud cars" has become such a epidemic in Fairfax and elsewhere, it seems like the acoustic equivalent of "Red Light Camera" enforcement is now the right solution at the right time. Quality of life here would drastically improve if Fairfax County were allowed to establish noise cameras at our intersection. I have spoken with the police, and they simply cannot keep up with this problem, due to the volume, and the operational requirements of ad hoc manual enforcement. Noise cameras can bring residents peace, and they make the county a good deal of money, while also significantly reducing the administrative call load for the FCPD. We all have the same rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness--and we cannot freely pursue our own peace and happiness if a small minority of our antisocial neighbors are allowed to continue intermittently making 110dB airplane and race car sounds outside our houses, whenever they like. All major real estate sites now include "noise maps" which buyers factor into their buying decisions. Drivers with loud cars raise the average noise level of an area, and so they also can effectively lower the property values of areas where this practice is tolerated. This bill is a win/win for peaceful residents, and for VA municipalities. At least 95% of those I have interacted with online, despise these drivers, and despise this insane and selfish hobby. Opposing it, and supporting this bill--or any bill designed to enforce basic environmental noise norms for these captive residents of overpriced residential areas--would be a very a politically advantageous, and very bipartisan and wise choice.

I support "HB 2550 Noise abatement monitoring systems; counties in Planning District of (No. Va.) to place, etc." This bill is very much required to help address the abuse of vehicle Exhaust System Purposeful Violations such as from automobiles, motor cycles, tractor trailers and dump trucks with the intent to create a harassing and abusive powerful loud affects on people in outdoor environments, inside their homes, schools, businesses, other drivers in vehicles obeying the speed limit and/or general intent to intimidate. The modification of exhaust engine stacks on Tractor Trailers and dump trucks by privately owned rigs and even some companies that allow this is turning the vehicle into a "WEAPON OF ACOUSTICAL HARASSMENT" intentionally . From my meeting with highly experienced State Police officers on the Mobile Inspection Team of Virginia that inspect tractor trailers for violations, and from speaking with retired tractor trailer drivers this exhaust stack modification is done so that when the tractor trailer ENGINE BRAKE (also known as a JAKE BRAKE) is applied it creates a VERY loud blast wave of sound that is both vibrationally felt as well as heard by humans and animals. It is a sudden jarring experience that can add to another driver loosing control of their vehicle, or purposely done to intimidate people in their homes along roads and highways like Rte 17 who have used our political system to address the speeding on Rte 17 to get under more serious control, where truckers make MORE money when they speed to deliver cargo. It has been my experience of having this done to me on Rte 17 in Fauquier County many times when a tractor trailer driver gets within just feet of my vehicle bumper because I am obeying the posted 55mph speed limit and then applies its ENGINE-JAKE BRAKES in conjunction with the exhaust system modification that creates the BOOMING sound and vibrational attack on me and millions of other people EACH year. Engine Brakes are NOT illegal to use, but were designed for emergency steep downhill mountain roads to prevent their regular quiet brakes from burning out with a heavy load. The engine brake is used as a standard braking system also because it DOES NOT wear out as fast a a quiet standard brake does on a tractor trailer. From tractor trailer models 2005 to 2025 the Engine Brake has been upgraded so as NOT to add to this problem of being as loud, however all previous years back to the 1960s still have the original design. The crux of this problem is the illegal modification, and this bill will increase the fine from its very low $25 to $100 fine to help stop it. Tractor trailers also have a law that protects them from harassment, however they are being allowed to harass everyone else in this way and that is where this bill is needed to defend everyone else from the truckers who do abuse us. Not all tractor trailers do this but many do. With the increase huge growth construction expansion of the ports of Virginia now able to handle the largest cargo ships on the Eastern Seaboard, this is bringing a influx of even more tractor trailers to deliver the cargo with trucker models from 1960s to 2025. Automobile exhaust systems are also modified to sound like GUN SHOTs and this is disrupting schools to go into emergency action mode thinking it is another school shooting taking place. I have this happen along our roads and it sounds like rapid gun fire and not just a single exhaust back fire. Its is BAD.