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Two councillors also suggested an education campaign could be effective, but only if it does what Australia’s successful campaign did: question the size of a man’s “appendage” when he thinks he needs to attract attention through loud vehicles.

“That’s the place where we have to go,” said Henderson.

Ward 6 Coun. Scott McKeen said he’ll be inundated with noise complaints again as soon as the ice melts and motorcycles start to race along Groat Road, Jasper Avenue and the High Level Bridge. But it’s not just motorcycles, he said. He’s seen more cars and trucks with mufflers purposefully modified to create more noise.

People in the Queen Alexandra neighbourhood, south of the river, also get woken repeatedly during the night by people racing with loud mufflers, sometimes down Calgary Trail, said Kim Clegg, co-chair of the community league’s neighbourhood development and planning committee.

He pushed for much higher fines at night.

“People install them in their vehicles intentionally to have loud-sounding vehicles. It’s like a fetish or something,” Clegg said. “They have some sort of complex; they need people to pay attention to them.”

Uber enforcement

On Wednesday, councillors also heard Edmonton has stepped up enforcement against Uber drivers who illegally accept street hails. Ridesharing drivers only have permits to accept pre-arranged rides.

Several taxi drivers said they’re not seeing any enforcement, especially outside late-night bars. But city officials said staff are now trained up and working on it.

Their undercover team spent 72 hours on the streets in 2017, working for three to four hours each sting, often into the early morning hours. Twelve Uber or other ridesharing drivers agreed to the street hail and were fined $1,000 each. Nineteen people turned down the offer.

It’s hard to catch them, said Grant Blaine, acting director for the peace officer section. “Timing is a big part of it. … It’s quick,” he said, saying they target high-traffic locations, but the cars don’t stay in any one spot for long.

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