Cary, NC Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)

Section 22-108 of the Cary Code of Ordinances reaches both the person driving and anyone who lets the vehicle be used that way, because it covers whoever may 'operate or allow the operation' of a motor vehicle in the town. An owner who hands the keys to someone else is within the wording.

The section contains separate prohibitions. Subsection (1) targets the vehicle's own operation: engaging in operations which create unreasonably loud and disturbing noises. The quoted text sets no decibel figure and no distance for this part, so the question is whether the noise is unreasonably loud and disturbing.

Subsection (2) targets sound equipment. It lists a radio, tape player, compact disc player, or other sound-making device or instrument, played from within the motor vehicle. The test here is concrete: the sound cannot be plainly audible 30 feet away from the vehicle. The distance runs from the vehicle itself, and the standard is what can be plainly heard, so this part of the Cary rule does not depend on a meter reading.

Cary allows a narrow exception for business or political vehicles that use sound equipment in their normal operations. That equipment is capped at 60 dB(A), measured at the edge of the pavement. The exception is tied to business or political use, so a personal car stereo stays under the 30 foot audibility test.

Section 22-108 sits in the Town's noise article, and Sec. 22-112 supplies the consequences. The penalty is civil and escalates with repeat violations.