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Noise Management
Noise barriers on the M25 help reduce traffic noise to acceptable limits in residential area.
Issue
Traffic noise is a major concern for communities living close to our road network and tackling traffic noise is a high priority for the Agency. Noise from construction and maintenance work can also cause nuisance.
Objective
To take practical steps to minimise noise and disturbance. This includes providing appropriate highway designs and making more use of noise reducing technologies. The Agency will also aim to increase the awareness of contractors about the importance of this issue. In addition we will encourage our partners in the vehicle, tyre and construction industries to play their part.
Actions will include:
- Ensuring that the most appropriate noise reducing surfaces are used where noise is a particular concern whenever a road needs to be resurfaced.
- Specifying quieter surfaces as a matter of course where new roads are to be built or existing roads improved.
- Identifying sites for the provision of noise mitigation on existing roads.
- Researching tyre/road noise in partnership with vehicle standard authorities and the tyre industry.
- Working towards improved performance in noise control during construction/maintenance activities.
This graph shows how the change in surfacing will eliminate the noisiest trunk roads and reduce the average noise level at the hard shoulder of a typical motorway by three decibels.
