A large majority of European motorcyclists (74%) do not believe that it makes sense that roads are closed for motorcyclists when motorcycle noise leads to complaints. Simply banning motorcycles from the road is not the answer to perceived nuisance by passing motorcycles.

In several European countries (like Germany and the Netherlands) more and more roads are closed for motorcycles, partly due to complaints about excessive motorcycle noise. With a short survey FEMA wanted to find out how motorcyclist think about this subject, so that our member organizations are aware of the sentiments of their individual members and/or online followers.

‘Simply banning motorcycles from the road is not the answer to perceived nuisance by passing motorcycles’.

Motorcycle sound, the perceived nuisance by passing motorcycles and road closures as a result of complaints about motorcycles are mainly a national matter. The geographical and cultural differences between countries are so great that a collective, European approach is not easy to extract from the results of the survey. National motorcyclists’ associations can work together with national, regional and local authorities to address the issues of road closures and enforcement of sound limits.

Wim Taal, FEMA’s communications officer: “On a European level, the results of the survey strengthen us in our opinion that there is no justification for stricter legal sound limits for new motorcycles. A large majority of European riders use legal exhaust systems and more stringent rules and regulations do not solve anything. It is FEMA’s believe that there is a lot to gain by constructive co-operation between the authorities and riders’ groups. Raising awareness among motorcyclists might be a much better way forward than simply banning bikes or considering new laws.”

Click here to see the results of the survey.

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