Representative Exposure–Annoyance Relationships Due to Transportation Noises in Japan

This paper focuses on clarifying the relationship between noise exposure and the prevalence of highly annoyed people due to transportation noise in Japan. The authors accumulated 34 datasets, which were provided by Socio-Acoustic Survey Data Archive and derived from the other surveys conducted in Japan. All the datasets include the following micro-data: demographic factors, exposure, and annoyance data associated with specific noise sources. We performed secondary analyses using micro-data and established the relationships between noise exposure (Lden) and the percentage of highly annoyed people (%HA) for the following noise source: road traffic, conventional railway, Shinkansen railway, civil aircraft, and military aircraft noises. Among the five transportation noises, %HA for the military aircraft noise is the highest, followed by civil aircraft noise and Shinkansen railway noise. The %HA for conventional railway noise was higher than that for road traffic noise. To validate the representativeness of the exposure–response curves, we have discussed factors affecting the difference in annoyance. In addition, comparing the Japanese relationship with that shown in the “Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region,” we revealed that Japanese annoyance is higher than the WHO-reported annoyance.

Study on Possible Application of Rubber Granulate from the Recycled Tires as an Elastic Cover of Prototype Rail Dampers, with a Focus on Their Operational Durability

This study is an attempt to investigate possible applications of rubber granulate SBR (styrene-butadiene rubber) produced from recycled waste tires as an elastic cover for prototype rail dampers, which are aimed at reducing the level of railway noise emitted in the environment. The authors present laboratory procedures and discuss the results of several experimental tests performed on seven different SBR materials with the following densities: 1100, 1050, 1000, 850, 750, 700 and 650 kg/m3. It is proven that rubber granulate SBR produced from recycled waste tires, can be used as an elastic cover in steel inserts in rail dampers, provided that the material density is not lower than 1000 kg/m3. In the conducted tests, samples of the materials with high densities exhibited good static and dynamic elastic characteristics and had sufficient operational durability.

A Novel Circular Plate Acoustic Energy Harvester for Urban Railway Noise

To harvest acoustic energy from urban railways, a novel and practical acoustic energy harvester is developed. The harvester consists of a piezoelectric circular plate and a Helmholtz resonator. Based on the field test data of urban railways, the resonance frequencies of the piezoelectric circular plate and the Helmholtz resonator are near 800 Hz. The Helmholtz resonator is designed to amplify the sound pressure. Thus, a lumped parameter model is established. The piezoelectric circular plate is used to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. The simulation results show that the output power of the harvester is approximately 25 μW and the maximum voltage is 0.149 V under the excitation of urban railway noise. The experiment device is also developed. The maximum output power of the harvester is 8.452 μW, and the maximum voltage is 0.082 V. The experimental and the numerical results are in good agreement and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed acoustic energy harvester.

Residential exposure to transportation noise in Denmark and incidence of dementia: national cohort study

Objective To investigate the association between long term residential exposure to road traffic and railway noise and risk of incident dementia. Design Nationwide prospective register based cohort study. Setting Denmark. Participants 1 938 994 adults aged ≥60 years living in Denmark between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2017. Main outcome measures Incident cases of all cause dementia and dementia subtypes (Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, and Parkinson’s disease related dementia), identified from national hospital and prescription registries. Results The study population included 103 500 participants with incident dementia, and of those, 31 219 received a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, 8664 of vascular dementia, and 2192 of Parkinson’s disease related dementia. Using Cox regression models, 10 year mean exposure to road traffic and railway noise at the most (L den max) and least (L den min) exposed façades of buildings were associated with a higher risk of all cause dementia. These associations showed a general pattern of higher hazard ratios with higher noise exposure, but with a levelling off or even small declines in risk at higher noise levels. In subtype analyses, both road traffic noise and railway noise were associated with a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease, with hazard ratios of 1.16 (95% confidence interval 1.11 to 1.22) for road L den max ≥65 dB compared with <45 dB, 1.27 (1.22 to 1.34) for road L den min ≥55 dB compared with <40 dB, 1.16 (1.10 to 1.23) for railway L den max ≥60 dB compared with <40 dB, and 1.24 (1.17 to 1.30) for railway L den min ≥50 dB compared with <40 dB. Road traffic, but not railway, noise was associated with an increased risk of vascular dementia. Results indicated associations between road traffic L den min and Parkinson’s disease related dementia. Conclusions This nationwide cohort study found transportation noise to be associated with a higher risk of all cause dementia and dementia subtypes, especially Alzheimer’s disease.

Characterizing noise barriers: SOPRANOISE half-term progress report

SOPRANOISE targets simplified assessment of the in-situ intrinsic acoustic performances of road / railway noise barriers. This paper presents its half-term progress. The research is divided in 5 Work Packages, the scientific ones being WP2 to WP5.WP2 is about establishing a state of art (SoA) of the intrinsic performances characterization: it is now finished and presented in 2 other papers by Conter and Fuchs. WP3 is about in-situ inspection tools: based on a review / questionnaire, an inspection protocol has been developed allowing simplified assessments mainly based on visual inspections and characterization of possible defects; WP3 is now in its final testing phase. WP4 is about designing a brand new "quick and safe methods" that could take place "in between" the inspection tools and the standardized EN1793-5 and 6; the research and development phases of WP4 are now finished, while its validation along highways is now scheduled. Finally, WP5 is about the use of noise barriers in the European market and the final report: a synthesis on the physical behavior of noise barriers and the physical significance of the test methods has been done, as well a SoA on the effective use of noise barriers; the results will be presented.

Land development policy as related to real estate influenced by railway noise in the context of allowable indicators that have been recently modified in Poland

The paper deals with the problem of rail noise pollution in cities in the context of legal amendments. This aspect is often neglected in the process of spatial planning. The authors were motivated to undertake this analysis both by legal changes permitting higher levels of acceptable noise thresholds, which were introduced and legalised in October 2012, and by the intensified levels of investment in areas neighbouring railways. On selected examples of residential areas in Warsaw, Poland (the city districts of Ursus, Białołęka and Ursynów), relevant land development sites were analysed against the course of isophones showing permissible noise levels. The analysis was based on data taken from acoustic maps for Warsaw from 2012 and 2017, planning studies, the Topographic Objects Database (BDOT10k) and the current state of land development. Using ArcGis software, 22 features, three study areas, and corresponding quantitative indicators were assessed. The authors presented the level of railway noise pollution set against the general spatial development. The analysis demonstrated that the changes in legislation have resulted in the “acoustic release” of land near railways; i.e., in these areas new, less-restrictive regulations on noise pollution have become permissible. In turn, the number of buildings that were considered at risk of noise pollution before 2012 has fallen. The aforementioned regulatory changes may unfavourably impact residential areas neighbouring railways and this has even provoked a wider discussion at the European Union level.