An Investigation of Community Response to Urban Traffic Noise (original) (raw)
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The main objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of traffic noise on exposed owners and employees of businesses near to road edge. To achieve this objective, a field survey in Amman, Jordan was performed. The survey consisted of collecting data on equivalent noise levels and evaluating the perception of exposed individual at the evaluated locations. The results of the study indicated that about 81% of the interviewed people working around the major streets in Amman are annoyed by traffic noise, and their daily routine activities are interfered by this noise. Also, the results indicated that higher income and education level of the interviewed individuals directly related to their annoyance level and awareness about the health impact of traffic noise. Martial status and gender were also found to be significantly affecting annoyance by traffic noise. At the same equivalent noise level, single individuals reported to be more annoyed than married individuals. Single females were found to be more annoyed by traffic noise than single males. While for married individuals, female were found to be less annoyed than males.
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As a part of the joint study program with Muroran Institute of Technology, Japan, and the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, social surveys of community responses were performed in residential areas heavily exposed to road tragic noise in three cities in Hokkaido, Japan. Personal interviews with a standard questionnaire were made with 146 persons randomly selected from official registers. After the interviews, 24hour noise measurements were made at the area reference points in the three cities. Noise exposures at all respondents' houses were estimated by measuring relative noise levels to the respective area reference points. Regression analyses were performed on annoyance due to road traffic noise and noise exposure defined by Equivalent Noise Level (LA-), Day-Night Average Sound Level (LDN) and Maximum Noise Level (MNL). The regression models could not explain a large part of the variation in the annoyance responses. A path analysis was performed to explain the annoyance responses by nine exogenous and two endogenous variables obtained via the personal interviews. The path model explained about half of the variation in the annoyance responses. The model confirmed the strong effect of sleep disturbance to road tragic annoyance. It also showed important effects of hearing disturbance, satisfaction with the area, employment status and the self-reported sensitivity to annoyance due to road traffic noise.
Forty-five years of surveys on annoyance from road traffic noise
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The Miedema & Vos curve for predicting road traffic noise annoyance was based on 18 different surveys conducted over a period of 9 years. The curve was developed using a statistical regression technique. An extended analysis comprising 46 surveys conducted between 1969 and 2013 yields a very similar dose-response relationship. This analysis was based on the CTL method (Community Tolerance Level). There are no obvious temporal trends, and contrary to claims by other researcher the prevalence of highly annoyed residents exposed to road traffic noise today is the same as 45 years ago.