St. Martin Parish, LA Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)

Sec. 26-38 lists the noise sources that escape the article's operational performance standards, the decibel limits in Sec. 26-37. Item (9) covers sound from the locomotion of properly muffled motor vehicles on a public right-of-way, and the code defines properly muffled as the use of a device to minimize the emission of sound rather than to maximize the emission of sound. The exemption is written for muffled vehicles moving on a street, road, highway, sidewalk, alley or servitude controlled by a governmental entity. It does not mention stereos, horns or engine brakes, and a vehicle that is not properly muffled falls outside item (9).

Sec. 26-39 adds vehicle-specific standards that apply notwithstanding Sec. 26-37. Under item (4), a commercial truck with refrigeration units cannot operate within 200 feet of any residential property between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. on weekdays or between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. on weekends. Sec. 26-34 defines a weekday as beginning Sunday at 8:00 p.m. and ending Friday at 6:00 p.m., so the later weekend restart begins Friday evening. Under item (6), an exterior burglar alarm or fire alarm on a building or motor vehicle must stop within five minutes if the sound is emitted without interruption and within ten minutes if it is emitted intermittently, and the Sec. 26-37(a) decibel limits do not apply to the alarm.

Item (8) of the same section covers self-contained, portable, handheld music or sound equipment such as music boxes, radios and stereos. Used on a public space or public right-of-way, that equipment cannot be plainly audible at 100 feet in any direction from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., or at 50 feet from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. The item is written for handheld devices, not for a stereo installed in a car. Sec. 26-36 limits the whole article to sound originating from or received by property in the unincorporated areas of St. Martin Parish.