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Trucks Out of Control. Attn: Harry B


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The trucks in our community are out of control with their screaming  engine brakes, it's everywhere, continually. The noise sounds like a jack hammer at rapid speed. Coming into town from the airport way, it begins at 4 am and goes all day long, right down into Chapala. Same down the libramento.. I know many of the residents there are fed up as well. 

Harry B .....is there anything you can do to get this in front of our local government?? It's ruining the tranquility if our community. 

It's everywhere lakeside and many local Mexican residents are also fed up and talking about it. It's understood that there is alot  of building going on, but these truck drivers are ignorant and disrespectful of our community. There is no need to be using engine brakes in developed areas. 

What can be done other than moving out if the area? 

 

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I live two blocks from the #2 Chapala Haciendas entrance.

Yes, I occasionally hear trucks and I do mean occasionally, but I never get my panties in a twist over this.

The hill between Ixtlahuacan and Chapala  is steep enough that when I used to drive a regular passenger van I had to downshift AND apply my brakes frequently to keep the vehicle at a safe speed. Accidents in all areas on both sides of this hill happen so often as to serve as a warning to those who travel this carretera to slow down. The same is true of the Libramiento.

Personally, whatever these trucks must do to keep from having having or causing a major traffic incident is okay with me. They and only they know what is necessary for their truck. I NEVER believe they are deliberately making unnecessary noise. If it bothers you so much (you complain often, so I assume so) now is a great time to sell and move somewhere on the flats. New area, new noises, but maybe you'll be happier.

 

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The noisiest place for me is anywhere on the carretera from Chapala to SJC.

The truck traffic and narrowness of the road through Ajijic amplifies the noise to such a degree conversation is nearly impossible.

As with the trucks on either hill the OP mentioned, the drivers can't be faulted. They're doing their job and I can decide if I want to visit Ajijic or not.

 

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5 hours ago, chapalence said:

I live two blocks from the #2 Chapala Haciendas entrance.

Yes, I occasionally hear trucks and I do mean occasionally, but I never get my panties in a twist over this.

The hill between Ixtlahuacan and Chapala  is steep enough that when I used to drive a regular passenger van I had to downshift AND apply my brakes frequently to keep the vehicle at a safe speed. Accidents in all areas on both sides of this hill happen so often as to serve as a warning to those who travel this carretera to slow down. The same is true of the Libramiento.

Personally, whatever these trucks must do to keep from having having or causing a major traffic incident is okay with me. They and only they know what is necessary for their truck. I NEVER believe they are deliberately making unnecessary noise. If it bothers you so much (you complain often, so I assume so) now is a great time to sell and move somewhere on the flats. New area, new noises, but maybe you'll be happier.

 

Many truckers are driving dangerously and with excessive speed on the Carretera west of Ajijic. And yes they are applying jake brakes unnecessary, apparently to make noise. There are many responsible truckers not doing this. This is on the flats. When I was travelling with my motorhome, staying at truck stops, I found Mexican truckers to be the best and most polite I had encountered in North America so I don't know what's up with this local sloppy driving. 

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IMO  It never ceases to amaze me how people can make a determination about what another person's motives are without even speaking to them. Or, making statements about an area that they don't even live in and could not have any idea what actually goes on, day to day.     Do you want the police to position themselves on these roads with a noise meter all day and all night to issue a warning to the driver's?  You will be able to stop the noise from the trucks the same time you will be able to stop dogs barking continually, music being played too loudly by a neighbor and so on.

Examples:

...screaming  engine brakes, it's everywhere, continually    REALLY? AND HOW WOULD YOU KNOW IT IS EVERYWHERE CONTINUALLY?

...applying jake brakes unnecessary, apparently to make noise.     HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY KNOW IF IT IS NECESSARY OR NOT? WHAT WOULD BE THEIR MOTIVE TO "MAKE NOISE"?

...Coming into town from the airport way, it begins at 4 am and goes all day long   DO YOU SPEND THE DAY MONITORING THIS HIGHWAY?  WE LIVE IN BRISAS NEAR THE ENTRY, CAN SEE THE CARRETERA FROM OUR PATIOS. WE HEAR TRUCKS USING THESE BRAKES ABOUT ONCE OR TWICE A WEEK, NEVER AT 4:00am.  

 

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It DOES start at 4:00 am on the Libramiento and continues on all day.  Ask any resident in any one of the numerous fraccs and businesses on this stretch of highway.  

The topes were meant to slow traffic and it has so I don’t see the use of jake brakes as a safety issue at all.  This isn’t a steep hill.

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"applying jake brakes unnecessary, apparently to make noise.     HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY KNOW IF IT IS NECESSARY OR NOT? WHAT WOULD BE THEIR MOTIVE TO "MAKE NOISE"?"

Going up slight incline. Brap, Brap. Been around lots of truckers and trucks my whole life. As noted see examples of responsible driving in same zone. Incredibly, I can recognize when someone is driving too fast. Mind boggling isn't it?

'apparently'

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I am frequently up by 4 am and occasionally around 4:30- 5:00 I  do hear a truck passing CH using their brakes. This isn't every day, this isn't a constant, never ending barrage of noise, this is something that quickly becomes virtually unnoticeable unless you have made a decision to sit on every cactus in the desert of life.

So what they make noise? These are working people and the 30 seconds to maybe.... maybe a minute I hear this noise is far less bothersome than another national out of work, looking for a way to feed their family. 

This is just another case of "gringos" (I ain't one!) making a BFD outta nothing.

 

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Jake brake/engine brakes are only a switch on the dash that engages automatic engine braking when off the throttle and best left on for safety. This is from a guy that got spooked the spooky way running out of air pressure after tapping the brake intermittently coming down not too steep slopes off a mountain when I hadn't thrown the swith on the jake brake. For safety reasons is why their jake brakes are on. It doesn't take much to drain the brake air pressure and since the engine is idling coming down a slope it takes longer to recharge air tanks meaning holy heck if brakes are needed. Why the big trucks don't have hydraulic brakes I don't know but maybe it's hydraulic lines to trailers don't work good having to be reconnected off and on adding pressure failure really making a condition for no brakes possible. 

Some towns especially German towns erect sound deadening walls. Some of those walls are designed so plants can grow on them increasing the noise stopping quality.

It doesn't take much to run a trucks air brakes out of pressure. Working to tell them to stop using jake brakes sends a deadly problem down the hill.

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14 hours ago, Figoush said:

It DOES start at 4:00 am on the Libramiento and continues on all day.  Ask any resident in any one of the numerous fraccs and businesses on this stretch of highway.  

The topes were meant to slow traffic and it has so I don’t see the use of jake brakes as a safety issue at all.  This isn’t a steep hill.

This is a very steep hill, try going down in neutral and see how quickly you speed up. It is why so many accidents occur at the end. If you think the topes will slow down a truck think again, they wont even stop your car.

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I think that it is actually called Jake braking.  Also it's my opinion that sound is much worse 'up the mountain' from the carretera than it is right at it.  

And I know that we are talking about Mexico and not the US, but..... many (most?) communities in the US have laws against using Jake braking where highways come through the town. Highly enforced in my area. Probably others also.  AND I'm guessing that the incidents of truck crashes are not higher because of these laws. But then there are actually law enforcement personnel in the US who actually patrol the streets handing out tickets to those who break the traffic laws, something that rarely happens in Mexico. 

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Perhaps part of the problem is that the brakes on many Mexican truck are not in good repair.  As is true with much of the rest of the truck  There are no widespread roadside truck inspections so tires, brakes, lights and mud flaps  etc. are left up to the discretion of the driver.

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Hearing them like crazy and we live about 1/2 mile from Walmart intersection, where most of the noise seems to  be coming from.  It woke us up especially on Thursday morning, starting about 5-5:30 am.

Doubtful that little if anything can/will be done by local govt on the noise!   Noise is a way of life for Mexicans who either like it or can easily endure it as a way of life here -- it is a cultural thing, where they love their music loud all the time.  Not being negative, just factual !!

Little came from the old NAFTA agreement which was supposed to enforce better standards for trucks ( ie. safer brakes, etc) for MXN trucks entering the US.  I would be surprised if the govt. would interfere to do anything regarding, noise , safety, emissions or anything familiar to NOB.  Just not their way of life!     

 

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This outrageous truck noise only started around 2 years ago during the pandemic when a lot of businesses were closed, but construction projects went ahead because they could work outdoors.  The trucks are here because now there is way too much building going on, most of these trucks carry heavy rocks or other construction materials or rubble, making them a danger on the roads as well.  Some serious even fatal wrecks have happened because the truck brakes failed!  They were driving around without having their brakes inspected! 

Yes, they are very noisy and I live over 3 blocks from the Carretera.  I can't chat with the shopowners downtown much now because of this noise, we have to cover our ears when the trucks go by.  And yes, there  are plenty Mexicans who are also sick of the noise around here, (I speak Spanish and talk to them!) although other sources (loud bars and eventos) went way down during the pandemic so it has been abnormally quiet around here for that time and the noise is just getting started up again.  I notice that people who live in the far flung fraccs think we in town "complain" too much.  You would too if you were forced to hear what we hear.  

I don't know the solution to the truck noise problem but be aware it started when all the excess construction started here, new buildings everywhere, and the infrastructure here can't handle it.

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