ST JAMES, Jamaica — Director at the Road Safety Unit in the Ministry of Transport and Mining, Kenute Hare, is cautioning motorcyclists against removing the silencer (muffler) from their motorcycle exhaust systems, as doing so could result in hearing loss.

The silencer is a device used to reduce the noise from the engine, but cyclists often remove it to allow for loud revving of the motorcycle.

Hare said that the noise level produced by bikes with removed silencers can lead to permanent hearing loss for riders over time.

“If you remove the silencer from your [exhaust] that is a recipe for disaster, deafness is a must. Many [motorcyclists] are suffering today because poor seeds were sown. Put your money down to buy hearing aids, and rest assured that the shops do not sell eardrums. Use wisdom… If you took out the silencer, put them back now,” he advised.

“Do not waste your hard-earned money buying hearing aids to try to fix your eardrums [in the future]; put back the silencers,” he emphasised.

Hare was addressing the National Road Safety Council (NRSC) Motorcycle Outreach and Training Programme at the Petersfield Vocational Training Centre in Westmoreland recently, under the theme ‘I am a safe biker. Life matters’.

He also warned the motorcyclists in attendance against riding under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

He said that operating a motorcycle while impaired “causes your reaction time to be slower; your reflexes are slower; your vision gets impaired. Because your central nervous system comes under pressure, your concentration, comprehension and your coordination – your eyes, your hands and your feet, are negatively affected”.

Some 48 motorcyclists from Westmoreland participated in training sessions held over two days in the areas of road safety, motorcycle operations, motorcycle procurement among other topics.

Facilitators included representatives from the Jamaica Constabulary Force and the NRSC.