Fines will increase fivefold to combat Boise’s downtown cruise. Here’s when and how much
The Boise Police Department announced that it’s cracking down on downtown noise complaints and speeding, and officials are not messing around.
Boise Police and city officials have long battled with downtown cruisers, a group that spends spring and summer nights loudly revving car engines and racing through the streets of downtown Boise. Cruisers often have modified exhaust systems that amplify the sound of their vehicles when they accelerate.
Officers would hand out $67 citations to those who broke the Motor Vehicle Noise Ordinance, which initially stated that excessive noise was anything above 92 decibels when measured from a distance of more than 20 feet.
The Boise City Council recently adjusted the ordinance to determine excessive noise as any noise that can be heard from 50 or more feet away. The fine for violating the ordinance will jump to $356 starting this weekend.
“There’s no insurance penalty, say, for like a regular speeding citation or a reckless driving citation,” Boise Police Department Sgt. Matt Konvalinka told the Idaho Statesman in 2022. “And a lot of people are willing to accept a $67 fine for what their vehicle has equipped.”
The updated ordinance will also allow police to issue the $356 citations for “excessive fumes, smoke or exhaust” and for vehicles with exhaust systems that pop loudly and sound like gunfire.
Boise Police also announced they would begin evening patrols on eastbound Interstate 184, also known as the Connector, starting this weekend. The department said that drag racing and excessive acceleration have been seen along the Connector and in downtown Boise.
“Vehicles coming into downtown Boise on I-184 are often observed at over 100 mph and routinely 20 mph over the posted speed limit of 60 mph,” Boise Police Cpt. Mike Ruffalo said in the Thursday news release. “We have found that stopping racing and reckless driving on I-184 lessens similar behaviors that occur later in the downtown core.”
This story was originally published April 13, 2023 at 2:12 PM.
