The menace of modified bikes

Could the desire to move like the wind be behind the spurt in modified sports bikes? While zipping around on these modified machines might be enjoyable, the rider often forgets that these bikes, which are devoid of silencers, produce such a ruckus that residents lose their sanity and sleep.

Just recently, the residents of Jogeshwari and Vikhroli Link Road were left sleepless due to a such an incident.

“They create chaos in others people’s peaceful life. They buzz around like snakes the entire night,” complains 50-year-old Mandakini Shide, who is tired of the racket bustling through Marine Lines.

Mala Mahambre, a resident of Ghatkopar, agrees to being startled by the loud noise produced by these modified bikes. “I was coming out of the mall and a bike passed by. It made such a loud noise that it scared the guard and me,” she says. So what kind of bikes produce such a loud noise? While sports bikes might be the usual suspects, Mohit Ahuja, owner, KTM Bike store in Andheri, says that sports bikes are pre-certified by the Automotive Regulatory Authority of India and aren’t the ones producing noise. “Noisy bikes are the ones that have been modified by bike owners,” he confirms.

Modified silencer of sports bike

Mohammad Safiq, owner of a sports bike garage, explains how it works. “Bike owners bring the silencers to us and ask us to remove the metallic net that stifles sound,” he shrugs.

Sandhya Patwa, a resident from Mulund, believes that it is the parents’ responsibility to monitor the actions of their children. “Parents should avoid buying such machines for their children. They should know what their child is up to,” says Sandhya. Neha Bahuguna, who is a member of a biker’s club, feels the same. “Adults are showing off with sports and vintage bikes, but they do not realise that there are proper rules to follow. Sensitivity is highly missing in the youth,” she rues.

But where parental control fails to work, aren’t there laws to salvage the situation? Amit Gawande, who rides one such modified sports bike, says, “I don’t think there are enough regulations in place. The traffic police has been able to control drunk driving, but not enough measures have been taken to stop this.” Neha echoes this thought. “You can pay money and twist the law, nobody pays attention. Most of the time lawmakers’ sons themselves break the rules. We can’t leave it on the authorities alone. We have to be responsible too,” she adds.

Meanwhile, authorities have come in full force and are taking the required action. “We have identified the areas where these modified bikes ply. We have also started counselling parents on the same,” says Amitesh Kumar, joint commissioner of police, traffic. In fact they have asked residents to inform them of any further inconvenience. “We are asking residents to inform us about their grievances regarding this matter so that we can take adequate measures,” he concludes.