A mobile society generates noise
For several decades, the volume of transport has been rising with economic growth and the expansion of international trade and private consumption. This results in generally high noise levels. However, technological advances have reduced the noise generated by each vehicle, plane or train. Road traffic is the most important source of noise in Norway. Although noise from aircraft and railways has been reduced since 1999, this improvement has been outweighed by rising noise levels from road traffic.
Various noise reduction measures have been introduced over the years, and calculations show that people who were exposed to noise in 1999 reported somewhat lower levels of noise annoyance in 2007. However, more people are moving to areas where noise levels are high, and this combined with general population growth and increasing road traffic means that more people are being exposed to noise.
Action plan for noise reduction
Norway’s targets are as follows:
to reduce noise annoyance caused by exposure to outdoor noise near people’s homes by 10 per cent by 2020 compared with the 1999 level, and to reduce the number of people exposed to levels of indoor noise above 38 dB by 30 per cent by 2020 compared with the 2005 level. Norway’s action plan for noise reduction for the period 2007–11 describes the measures that must be introduced to achieve these targets.
In recent years, facade insulation and noise screens have been introduced for residential buildings where outdoor noise levels are high. However, to achieve the targets, noise levels must also be reduced at source. The level of noise from road traffic depends on the type of road surface and on the types of vehicles and tyres used.
There is a need for substantial research and international cooperation to achieve the potential for reducing noise from these sources.