Perth Amboy, NJ Noise Ordinances: Decibel Limits (2026)

Noise emissions are item (8) of the performance standards in § 430-60K of the Perth Amboy City Code. The item says noise shall not exceed the maximum sound levels in a table titled Noise Level Restrictions, measured in dBA. Two rows apply. Residential districts are held to 55, measured on or beyond the neighboring use or lot line. All other districts are held to 65, measured on or beyond the district boundaries.

The asterisk on the residential figure adds a night limit. In any residential district the A-weighted sound levels shall not exceed forty-five (45) decibels during the hours of 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. The note also settles conflicts at the edge of a district: whenever a residential district abuts any other district, the most restrictive of the limitations shall apply. A business or industrial use next to a residential zone is therefore measured against the stricter residential figures.

The measuring point differs by district. For a residential use, the meter goes on or beyond the neighboring use or lot line, so the question is what reaches the next property. For every other district, the reading is taken on or beyond the district boundaries, not at each lot line inside the district.

The same subsection sets a matching night protection for ground vibration. Vibration levels shall not exceed a particle velocity of five-hundredths (.05) inch per second in any district, and during the hours of 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. in residential districts the limit drops to two hundredths (.02) inch per second, measured at the points of maximum vibration intensity on or beyond adjacent lot lines or neighboring uses, whichever is more restrictive.

The Zoning officer administers and enforces the zoning provisions under § 430-101C(1), and any person can file a written complaint with the administrative official under § 430-108.