TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taichung police are carrying out a “Silent City” initiative, conducting roadside spot checks of loud vehicles suspected of having illegal mufflers and other exhaust system modifications.

Taichung Police Department Fifth Precinct said from January to August, it received 13,000 citizen complaints associated with motor vehicles being excessively noisy, the most complaints among all police precincts in Taiwan. Since the beginning of the year, 73 fines have been issued for illegal modifications, with 388 incidents of unlicensed drivers, per CNA.

Police patrolling Wenxin Road recently pulled over a motorcyclist on a Yamaha R6 with a loud modified exhaust pipe. The rider, surnamed Lin (林), said the exhaust was altered for a competition, and he had forgotten to reinstall the factory-issued exhaust system.

In another incident on the same road, the driver and passenger were 17 years old, under the government-mandated age of 18 to operate a vehicle. The police issued fines on the spot.

Provincial Highway 8 in Taichung’s Heping District is the main road leading to Guguan Scenic Area. A total of 23 vehicles were stopped on Saturday evening (Aug. 24), with one vehicle fined NT$3,600 (US$113) for a modified exhaust system leading to excessive noise.

During the crackdown, police also found one motorist with a canceled license plate, which resulted in an NT$5,400 fine per the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act. The license plate was confiscated, the car was impounded, and the driver’s license was temporarily suspended.