Road Traffic Noise: Interventions – Healthy Cities Toolkit

Description

Traffic noise refers to environmental noise (rolling, propulsion) associated with the use of roads [General Multilingual Environmental Thesaurus].

Evidence from published studies has shown that excessive noise can cause annoyance and negatively impact health and well-being [Ouis 2001] and can affect work performance [Stansfeld 2003; Vreman 2023].

However, there are no legal limits to road noise [gov.uk]. Therefore, it is imperative that interventions to reduce exposure to excessive noise be instituted to reduce the risk of adverse health outcomes.

Impact

Interventions to reduce exposure to road traffic noise have the potential to improve health outcomes. High-quality evidence is required to better understand and estimate the impacts.

Results

Three reviews, including a total of 93 studies, were identified.

One review assessed the impact of transport noise interventions on health [Brown 2017]. Interventions assessed included source interventions (e.g., change in emission levels of sources, time restrictions on source, ), path interventions (e.g., change in the path between source and receiver, path control through insulation of receiver’s dwelling), use of new/closed infrastructure (e.g., opening of a new infrastructure noise source, or closure of an existing one), other physical interventions (e.g. changing physical dimensions of neighbourhoods), and education/communication interventions (e.g., promoting behavioural change to reduce exposures, community education).

A second review examined the effectiveness of speed cameras in preventing road traffic injuries and deaths [Wilson 2010]. The third review investigated the impact of porous asphalt on reducing road traffic noise and increasing road capacity [Elvik 2005].

Outcome: Mental health and wellbeing

Traffic noise interventions were associated with fewer sleep disturbances and cognitive development in children [Brown 2017].

Outcome: Cardiovascular

Traffic noise interventions were associated with improvements in cardiovascular outcomes [Brown 2017].
There is little evidence assessing the long-term effects of the interventions intended to benefit health outcomes [Brown 2017].

Outcome: Road traffic injuries

The use of speed cameras was associated with reductions in fatal and serious injury crashes [Wilson 2010].
The effect of porous asphalt on road traffic noise and road capacity is unclear [Elvik 2005].

Strength of the Evidence

The quality of evidence was low to high in one review [Brown 2017], low to moderate in another review [Wilson 2010], and low in the third review [Elvik 2005].

Resource Implications

None of the reviews reported information on resource implications, but the ability to redesign roads and reduce noise requires moderate to high resources.

Recommendations

More studies of a scientifically rigorous and homogenous nature are necessary to assess the impact of traffic noise exposure or interventions on health outcomes.

Policymakers need to be informed about the existence of the change effect associated with interventions, especially as situations in which noise levels increase because of infrastructure changes are likely to be controversial.

Related Resources

Ouis 2001. “Annoyance from road traffic noise: a review.” J. Environ. Psychol. Volume 21, Issue 1, March 2001, Pages 101-120.
Stansfeld 2003. “Noise pollution: non-auditory effects on health.” British medical bulletin vol. 68 (2003): 243-57. doi:10.1093/bmb/ldg033.
Vreman 2023. “The Effectiveness of the Interventions to Reduce Sound Levels in the ICU: A Systematic Review.” Critical care explorations vol. 5,4 e0885. 27 Mar. 2023, doi:10.1097/CCE.0000000000000885.

Reference to Reviews

Brown 2017. “WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region: A Systematic Review of Transport Noise Interventions and Their Impacts on Health.” International journal of environmental research and public health vol. 14,8 873. 3 Aug. 2017, doi:10.3390/ijerph14080873.

Wilson 2010. “Speed cameras for the prevention of road traffic injuries and deaths.” The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 10 CD004607. 6 Oct. 2010, doi:10.1002/14651858.CD004607.pub3.

Elvik 2015. “Road safety effects of porous asphalt: a systematic review of evaluation studies.” Accident Analysis & Prevention Volume 37, Issue 3, May 2005, Pages 515-522.