Pflugerville/Austin, Texas: A Cesspool of Auditory Chaos

Chapel Hill: Pflugerville, Texas and Austin, Texas have won this month’s Noisy Dozen award from Noise Free America: A Coalition to Promote Quiet for tolerating an avalanche of noise from motor vehicles.

Jerry Johnson, a Pflugerville resident, notes that Pflugerville has the distinction of being home to numerous gangster-type, high-powered Dodge Chargers, Ford Mustangs, and other vehicles with roaring muffler systems.  He states that “these vehicles are proudly paraded about our city streets with tinted windows. Then we have numerous smaller vehicles with ‘buzzing’ mufflers that entertain us with an obnoxious sound of a burping infant. And then there are the ever-present Ninja motorcycles which scream down our streets with no regard for traffic laws.”

“The drivers of these vehicles,” said Johnson, “have turned our once-quiet farming community and our state Capitol of Austin into a toxic cesspool of auditory chaos.  They have made a direct contribution to a worsening of mental health, including increased stress, heightened  anxiety, and an inability to concentrate. The once-abundant fauna in our community (consisting of deer, squirrels, birds of many species, rabbits, possum, and the endangered Texas armadillo) are not seen very often anymore, as they have the intelligence to fly or trot off to the countryside, where peace and quiet is more likely.”

According to Johnson, “These drivers have shown blatant and total disregard for the law, by their actions in speeding and blasting away as they roar down our roadways.  This was demonstrated recently by the driver of a late model and very high-powered Chevy Camaro, which was screaming down our main boulevard. His auto was wrapped in a camouflaged design resembling a military vehicle as he sped in excess of 100 miles per hour.”

Speaking directly to the noisemakers, Johnson stated, “All of you individuals who disrespect our environment, and the citizens of my community, and the beloved capitol of Texas, need to know that the forces of good are at work to end your hate-filled quest to destroy our environment and the tranquility of Pflugerville and Austin. Members of Noise Free America: A Coalition to Promote Quiet, along with our congressional representatives, are working hard to pass H.R. 4892 (the Quiet Communities Act of 2021) and give the EPA the authority and funding it needs to bring about change. Also, our law enforcement officers have you in their sights.”

Johnson concluded, “As of now, not only is the sound of your obnoxious vehicles in the air, but as you shall soon find out, the sound of change is coming sooner than you think.”

Noise Free America: A Coalition to Promote Quiet is a national citizens’ organization devoted to noise reduction. Previous “winners” of the Noisy Dozen award include Sanger, Texas; Seagoville, Texas; and Pharr, Texas.