The day'in the city without my car': effects on urban noise

摘要

Since 1998, the French Ministry of Environment organises an annual day "In the city without my car?". This day is aimed to encourage citizens to travel in the city without their car and to use transport means which are more respectful of the environment. It is a unique opportunity to carry out noise assessment in ordere to test the potentialities of noise reduction by actions on the traffic in urban areas. This article presents the resutls of the noise assessment carried out in 1998 and 1999. It shows that the reduction of noise is very dependant on the type of street and of the presence of pulic transport means. The subject of "urban background noise" and of the changes in the acoustical is also addressed, and it shows that some unpleasant sounds often emerge, and that if could be necessary to think about those sources.