Can noise from a main road be more annoying than from a highway? An environmental health and soundscape approach

摘要

Background: In an early TNO-report (Miedema 1993) different exposure response curves were reported for highways and other road traffic. Other road traffic noise exposure showed less annoyance than noise from highways - but higher than railway noise exposure. In the later exposure response curves associated with the EU noise directive no separate account is made for other road traffic. Methods: Intensive traffic modeling, noise and survey information from two large studies in alpine valleys was used to generate enhanced exposure response curves. Further analyses were carried out by means of multiple logistic regression to explore the importance of modifying factors. Results: We found no uniform exposure response curves in the two valleys. Most important modifying factors were the relative position of the main road to the valley topography, settlement patterns, indicators of fluctuation/emergence, the number of heavy trucks and combined exposure (vibration, air). Conclusion: In complex situations (alpine topography, open settlement patterns, high signal to noise ratio) the accumulation of factors can in some cases lead to higher annoyance from main roads than from highways in a univariate perspective. Applying standard curves for Environmental health impact assessments may lead to misleading results. More inclusive approaches (soundscape, environmental health) are needed.