West Haven, CT Noise from Specific Sources: Car Alarm Limits (2026)

West Haven's Noise Control Ordinance, Chapter 154 of the city code, was adopted by the City Council on 10-14-2003 and approved by the State of Connecticut's Department of Environmental Protection in December 2003. It replaced a 1996 ordinance that the state had declared invalid because it was never submitted for review.

Car alarms are handled inside the exclusions list in § 154-5D. Sirens, whistles and bells lawfully used by emergency vehicles, and alarm systems used in an emergency situation, fall outside the decibel standards. The same paragraph then sets a time cap on intrusion alarms: 10 minutes when the alarm is attached to a vehicle, and 15 minutes when it is attached to a building or structure. An alarm that keeps sounding past those limits loses the exclusion and is measured against the § 154-5B standards like any other noise. The paragraph is printed as a fragment, so read it together with its last sentence, which is the clear part: repetition of activation of an audible signal due to malfunction, lack of proper maintenance, or lack of reasonable care shall be considered excessive noise. An owner whose alarm keeps re-triggering is therefore treated as a repeat offender even if each single blast is short.

The standards that apply once the exclusion is lost are printed in § 154-5B. Noise at a residential receptor is capped at 45 dBA during nighttime hours, which § 154-3 defines as 10:01 p.m. to 6:59 a.m. Separately, § 154-6A bars any driver from sounding a horn or other audible signal device of a motor vehicle unless it is necessary as a warning to prevent or avoid a traffic accident. Motor vehicle noise rules in § 154-7 are enforced by the Chief of Police and his designated subordinates, while the Director of Health can inspect and measure noise sources under § 154-9.