Traffic noise is not just a nuisance; it’s a health hazard. Anecdotally, I know plenty of people living next to highways (in particular) who claim they don’t mind the literally constant...
Traffic noise is not just a nuisance; it’s a health hazard.
Noise, defined as unwanted sound, can be dangerous. Over 40 years ago, The Office of Noise Abatement and Control, a now-defunct office within the Environmental Protection Agency, estimated that one-half of our nation’s population was exposed to sound levels that were deemed harmful to human health […]. In urban environments, in particular, the constant and seemingly inescapable soundtrack of planes, trains, automobiles, motorcycles, idling heavy trucks, sirens, and horns clock in much louder than 55 dB [the safe baseline studied]. Personally and anecdotally, in communities that are near major roads and interstates, for example, levels can consistently be at 70-80 dB or more, even at night. Decibels are on a logarithmic scale, and that 15-20 dB increase above “what should be” is quite noticeable – a 10 dB change roughly doubles perceived loudness.
The health impacts associated with higher noise levels are brutal. They can limit the quantity and quality of our restorative sleep and disrupt our mood so profoundly that our body activates a flight-or-fight response. In other words, each and every fiber of your being is coordinating to keep you alive during a situation it believes can potentially kill you. Your heart rate and blood pressure increase, you start to sweat, you become tense, and you may start trembling. Over time, this consistent stimulation in response to noise can lead to the manifestation of serious health outcomes ranging from hypertension to cardiovascular-related mortality.
Anecdotally, I know plenty of people living next to highways (in particular) who claim they don’t mind the literally constant overwhelming noise. More of them have hypertension than I think is statistically typical.
Intuitively, every part of what this researcher is saying makes sense: the natural world is generally rather quiet. To our primitive ancestors, a 70–80 dB noise is like a lion growling an inch from their face and about to eat them [disclaimer: my own unscientific remark]. It makes sense that our bodies are designed to go into “AGHSGDHAGAHGDHA” mode when they hear loud noises. And given the relative lack of constant, overwhelming noise in most natural environments—the only common static-ish feature that might come close is a waterfall, but prehistoric humans would not have had 24/7 exposure to that kind of noise—it also makes sense that sustained exposure is a health hazard.
This article annoyingly stops short of proposing specific infrastructure and policy changes to reduce noise pollution. But from my general knowledge, something most cities could do off the bat is construct more noise barriers next to highways, or ideally cap them altogether. They could maintain rail infrastructure better in order to reduce the screech of steel-on-steel contact around track curves. They could enforce lower speed limits in residential (and other) areas, which would have the added benefit of directly reducing traffic deaths. Obviously, these things all cost money—but it’s probably worth it if people’s health is on the line. (Not to mention the probable social benefits of, like, being happier with your surroundings.)
I recently spent some time in Switzerland, which has a culture of peace and quiet. Noise ordinances are strict and very strictly enforced—like, the neighbors will call the police if you’re being rowdy too late in the evening, and the police will come, and they will fine you, apparently even in the city. Mowing the lawn at 7am is unheard of (literally). A Swiss friend remarked that while his country “is not always the most forward-thinking place, these rules do lead to a very peaceful existence.”
While I’m more interested in policy and infrastructure than… the police, perhaps the United States and other places could learn a thing or two. To some extent, implicit acceptance of harmful noise levels is a cultural behavior—one that can be changed.
I'd rather hear the white noise of traffic than neighbors stomping around above me, or hearing TV/music next door while I'm trying to fall asleep. Noise (from neighbors, car horns, emergency...
I'd rather hear the white noise of traffic than neighbors stomping around above me, or hearing TV/music next door while I'm trying to fall asleep. Noise (from neighbors, car horns, emergency vehicle sirens, etc) is towards the top of why I refuse to live in an urban setting.
And, not or! These are separate problems with separate solutions. In any case, I agree. Most new construction in the US is supposed to be rated at a sound transmission class of 50+ per the...
And, not or!
These are separate problems with separate solutions. In any case, I agree. Most new construction in the US is supposed to be rated at a sound transmission class of 50+ per the International Building Code (IBC), which muffles most noise. But 55–60 is where true quietness sets in. I think it would be useful for the government to require stricter STC adherence for new construction.
Technically there is no reason you cannot upgrade an urban condo to meet a very high STC class. It costs money, but I shouldn’t think this precludes urban living.
It’s also worth noting that a lot of sound bleed happens through old or poorly fitting windows. Adding a second pane and caulking gaps goes a long way!
I live somewhere between an urban and suburban setting (not urban, but not suburban either?) and the combination of the noise outside my window every day (children screaming bloody murder while...
I live somewhere between an urban and suburban setting (not urban, but not suburban either?) and the combination of the noise outside my window every day (children screaming bloody murder while playing at the church next door, cars who rev their engines for fun or play the loudest bass you've heard, or neighbrs across the street playing their music so loud it sounds like it's coming from my kitchen) and the noise of my neighbors (upstairs neighbors shouting all day or stomping around or playing their music/tv so loudly I can hear every little thing that's said, next door neighbors putting their sound system on a shared wall with us so we can hear their bass in their living room in our bedroom across several closed doors and walls, or the kids running up and down all the hallways in our buildling at 11pm, to dogs barking and setting ours off because they're just puppies trying to say hi) at all hours of the day while I'm working or trying to concentrate on making art or just resting or trying to read a book drives me up the wall.
My health has definitely gotten worse because of the incessant noise pollution I've been experiencing. I'm already mobility challenged, ever since these new neighbors moved in next to and above us, it's gotten worse. Since the world started opening back up, the noises have gotten worse. I used to live literally down the street from where I am now, but on the main roadway. Before covid, the noise pollution from the cars wasn't as bad. What changed in the cars people are owning now that is making the noise even worse? I'm set further back from the main road now than I was before moving here.
For a while I was living in a downtown area of a fairly populous city and experienced much of the same. The worst were the asshats who modded their cars and motorcycles to be as loud as possible...
For a while I was living in a downtown area of a fairly populous city and experienced much of the same. The worst were the asshats who modded their cars and motorcycles to be as loud as possible (which were often also blaring music) driving by in the middle of the night. There was also the whole thing with the upstairs neighbors always walking around like elephants and the guy downstairs looping game music on his subwoofer into the late hours (do you know how loud a subwoofer has to be for your upstairs neighbor to hear it?!)
And the kicker is that this apartment complex was newly built with double pane windows and everything. Still, constant noise.
The experience was part of what drove me to buy a freestanding house that’s a good distance away from any main thoroughfare. It has no yard to speak of and is maybe 6ft away from the neighboring house, but that’s fine, just not sharing walls with anybody has done wonders for bringing peace and quiet.
My problem with these "newly built double paned windows" is that they're build so cheaply and there is no noise mitigation that has been done because cheap. Sound-proofing and insulation are so...
My problem with these "newly built double paned windows" is that they're build so cheaply and there is no noise mitigation that has been done because cheap.
Sound-proofing and insulation are so easy to do, but no one wants to.
Double-paned windows are pretty standard, in any case. We live in a newly-built apartment building in Berlin and our windows are triple-paned and have shockingly good soundproofing. We live near...
Double-paned windows are pretty standard, in any case. We live in a newly-built apartment building in Berlin and our windows are triple-paned and have shockingly good soundproofing. We live near (but not directly on) some major roads/a highway, so it's def important to have. Our last place was near a much less busy road, but the windows were old and the road was cobblestone, and the road noise there was really disruptive.
We're also pretty luck with our soundproofing between apartments. Our upstairs neighbor is a violinist (came down to us to warn us about it when they moved in) and I can barely hear it when he plays. Only adjacent neighbors drilling to mount something (fortunately only an occasional thing now) is really disruptive, luckily.
A canard I love to spam is that anyone who brushes off calls for strict noise regulation in building codes is fundamentally unserious about reducing car dependency through dense living.
A canard I love to spam is that anyone who brushes off calls for strict noise regulation in building codes is fundamentally unserious about reducing car dependency through dense living.
"These are the sounds of other humans." Ok, great. Would you like a gold sticker for putting up with them? Could you solve the problem already?
In the handful of apartments I've lived in (it's been over a decade since I've lived in one), I don't remember being bothered by car noise, though. It's always been neighbors. And for this reason,...
In the handful of apartments I've lived in (it's been over a decade since I've lived in one), I don't remember being bothered by car noise, though. It's always been neighbors. And for this reason, you could never convince me to move into another shared-wall living arrangement again. I'd sooner live in a tent in the woods before renting another apartment. I guess some people aren't bothered by that kind of noise, but I'm not one of them.
I find this perspective interesting because in all the apartments I've lived in, traffic was by far the most annoying noise—mostly heavy delivery trucks coming in every single morning, sometimes...
I find this perspective interesting because in all the apartments I've lived in, traffic was by far the most annoying noise—mostly heavy delivery trucks coming in every single morning, sometimes large buses, and sometimes sirens.
I'm thinking of one unit in particular which was near a nightclub. The neighbors within the building may as well not have existed. I guess it had good insulation, or just solid stone walls? You could really hear a pin drop... as long as it wasn't Thursday through Saturday. There were like four different panels per window (a series of incompatible renovations), none of which created a seal, so you could hear literally everything from the street. The occasional drunken ramblings from the denizens of the club could be annoying, but I don't know – emanating muffled music didn't stop me from sleeping, the hot rods with their stupid modified engines did; and the nightclub certainly didn't wake me up at 6am, the delivery trucks did. The horrible machinic clunking of a heavy-duty vehicle, over and over again, down an alleyway: awful. Even worse was the detestable whirring they emitted when unloading into the businesses below (I assume; I cannot fathom what other purpose would create such a monstrous noise), a sound I regularly mistook for a jackhammer.
When I lived one block away from a major US interstate I could practically feel my blood curdling if I had the windows open, or walked outside. I don't think any amount of human activity can compare to the constant, unabated suffering I felt there. When I was a university student I was briefly a Resident Assistant. That was by far the most "human noise" I have experienced in my life. Rowdy bunch of kids at any time of night: music, games, shouting, smashed bottles, whatever else. Yet honestly I would take it over living next to that God-forsaken highway again, no questions asked.
For point of reference I grew up in a very small town, so acclimating to any amount of "human noise" was a culture shock. The traffic was still more unpleasant than the people in that little town too though.
Your perspective is different for me as well. I've never lived in a large city, or at least not one that was large enough to be near a noisy highway. None of my apartments were close enough to...
Your perspective is different for me as well. I've never lived in a large city, or at least not one that was large enough to be near a noisy highway. None of my apartments were close enough to anything commercial for me to hear delivery trucks, but I do recall having to hear the garbage truck slam my apartment's dumpster around every week. I wish I had the same luck with apartments as you did, though. I guess I had bad luck with neighbors.
Goes to show the importance of tackling the different facets of this issue! This thread is framed as a traffic externality, but you're completely right that noise comes in plenty of forms. The...
Goes to show the importance of tackling the different facets of this issue!
This thread is framed as a traffic externality, but you're completely right that noise comes in plenty of forms. The solution to allow for proper urban living is thus to enforce stricter sound transmission/insulation codes within buildings, including both shared walls and windows, to limit "human noise" – perhaps also incentivizing landlords to renovate existing units – as well as building sound-dampening infrastructure (or maybe not building at-grade highways through cities) to limit traffic noise.
Just a couple days ago I got irrationally furious at a passing car because it was a luxury sportscar that was revving deafeningly loudly. By "irrationally furious" I mean I immediately made...
Just a couple days ago I got irrationally furious at a passing car because it was a luxury sportscar that was revving deafeningly loudly. By "irrationally furious" I mean I immediately made assumptions about the kind of person who would own and drive such a car and revv it this loudly, and I did not hold back in expressing myself using colorful language. I would be mad about any kind of car being this loud, but I think the fact that it was a luxury car just made it at least 10x more obnoxious.
Anyway... I have a pair of these cute ear plugs. I'm not sure if they might be overpriced for what they are, but they're cute and they work for me. They come with a tiny case that fits in my wallet, so I bring them with me everywhere. Really helpful because I generally can't control the noise level of my surroundings when I go out, and I feel like I'm more sensitive to noise than the average person. I'm not sure! I just feel like when I'm at events and I find the sound system very loud, I seem to be the only person bothered by it. 🤷🏻♀️
I think there's also a way to get custom-fit ear plugs made by a doctor? And I might also look into that option in the future.
I use those earplugs for social gatherings too! Im autistic, and get a bit overstimulated at most events, and those things are perfect, they mute everything a little bit while still letting me...
I use those earplugs for social gatherings too! Im autistic, and get a bit overstimulated at most events, and those things are perfect, they mute everything a little bit while still letting me hear when people talk to me.
A great article on the whole and a much needed reminder that noise pollution is as much a health hazard as other environmental pollutants but I take issue with what the author insinuates at the...
A great article on the whole and a much needed reminder that noise pollution is as much a health hazard as other environmental pollutants but I take issue with what the author insinuates at the end of the article:
Environmental injustices never took a break. History gives me the confidence to say that this was neither random nor unintentional
Of course, poorer neighborhoods are hit harder by traffic noise because richer people can and will live somewhere else but the author here is directly addressing fireworks being set off during The Great Quiet. Residents doing this to their own communities is neither environmental injustice or systematic or intentional. Yes, there are institutional and historical problems that need to be addressed but I feel like champions of these causes often stray too far and start to see structural reasons everywhere for why people are oppressed when, in this case specifically, there is no system that is forcing these people to set off fireworks
Traffic noise is not just a nuisance; it’s a health hazard.
Anecdotally, I know plenty of people living next to highways (in particular) who claim they don’t mind the literally constant overwhelming noise. More of them have hypertension than I think is statistically typical.
Intuitively, every part of what this researcher is saying makes sense: the natural world is generally rather quiet. To our primitive ancestors, a 70–80 dB noise is like a lion growling an inch from their face and about to eat them [disclaimer: my own unscientific remark]. It makes sense that our bodies are designed to go into “AGHSGDHAGAHGDHA” mode when they hear loud noises. And given the relative lack of constant, overwhelming noise in most natural environments—the only common static-ish feature that might come close is a waterfall, but prehistoric humans would not have had 24/7 exposure to that kind of noise—it also makes sense that sustained exposure is a health hazard.
This article annoyingly stops short of proposing specific infrastructure and policy changes to reduce noise pollution. But from my general knowledge, something most cities could do off the bat is construct more noise barriers next to highways, or ideally cap them altogether. They could maintain rail infrastructure better in order to reduce the screech of steel-on-steel contact around track curves. They could enforce lower speed limits in residential (and other) areas, which would have the added benefit of directly reducing traffic deaths. Obviously, these things all cost money—but it’s probably worth it if people’s health is on the line. (Not to mention the probable social benefits of, like, being happier with your surroundings.)
I recently spent some time in Switzerland, which has a culture of peace and quiet. Noise ordinances are strict and very strictly enforced—like, the neighbors will call the police if you’re being rowdy too late in the evening, and the police will come, and they will fine you, apparently even in the city. Mowing the lawn at 7am is unheard of (literally). A Swiss friend remarked that while his country “is not always the most forward-thinking place, these rules do lead to a very peaceful existence.”
While I’m more interested in policy and infrastructure than… the police, perhaps the United States and other places could learn a thing or two. To some extent, implicit acceptance of harmful noise levels is a cultural behavior—one that can be changed.
I'd rather hear the white noise of traffic than neighbors stomping around above me, or hearing TV/music next door while I'm trying to fall asleep. Noise (from neighbors, car horns, emergency vehicle sirens, etc) is towards the top of why I refuse to live in an urban setting.
And, not or!
These are separate problems with separate solutions. In any case, I agree. Most new construction in the US is supposed to be rated at a sound transmission class of 50+ per the International Building Code (IBC), which muffles most noise. But 55–60 is where true quietness sets in. I think it would be useful for the government to require stricter STC adherence for new construction.
Technically there is no reason you cannot upgrade an urban condo to meet a very high STC class. It costs money, but I shouldn’t think this precludes urban living.
It’s also worth noting that a lot of sound bleed happens through old or poorly fitting windows. Adding a second pane and caulking gaps goes a long way!
I live somewhere between an urban and suburban setting (not urban, but not suburban either?) and the combination of the noise outside my window every day (children screaming bloody murder while playing at the church next door, cars who rev their engines for fun or play the loudest bass you've heard, or neighbrs across the street playing their music so loud it sounds like it's coming from my kitchen) and the noise of my neighbors (upstairs neighbors shouting all day or stomping around or playing their music/tv so loudly I can hear every little thing that's said, next door neighbors putting their sound system on a shared wall with us so we can hear their bass in their living room in our bedroom across several closed doors and walls, or the kids running up and down all the hallways in our buildling at 11pm, to dogs barking and setting ours off because they're just puppies trying to say hi) at all hours of the day while I'm working or trying to concentrate on making art or just resting or trying to read a book drives me up the wall.
My health has definitely gotten worse because of the incessant noise pollution I've been experiencing. I'm already mobility challenged, ever since these new neighbors moved in next to and above us, it's gotten worse. Since the world started opening back up, the noises have gotten worse. I used to live literally down the street from where I am now, but on the main roadway. Before covid, the noise pollution from the cars wasn't as bad. What changed in the cars people are owning now that is making the noise even worse? I'm set further back from the main road now than I was before moving here.
For a while I was living in a downtown area of a fairly populous city and experienced much of the same. The worst were the asshats who modded their cars and motorcycles to be as loud as possible (which were often also blaring music) driving by in the middle of the night. There was also the whole thing with the upstairs neighbors always walking around like elephants and the guy downstairs looping game music on his subwoofer into the late hours (do you know how loud a subwoofer has to be for your upstairs neighbor to hear it?!)
And the kicker is that this apartment complex was newly built with double pane windows and everything. Still, constant noise.
The experience was part of what drove me to buy a freestanding house that’s a good distance away from any main thoroughfare. It has no yard to speak of and is maybe 6ft away from the neighboring house, but that’s fine, just not sharing walls with anybody has done wonders for bringing peace and quiet.
My problem with these "newly built double paned windows" is that they're build so cheaply and there is no noise mitigation that has been done because cheap.
Sound-proofing and insulation are so easy to do, but no one wants to.
Double-paned windows are pretty standard, in any case. We live in a newly-built apartment building in Berlin and our windows are triple-paned and have shockingly good soundproofing. We live near (but not directly on) some major roads/a highway, so it's def important to have. Our last place was near a much less busy road, but the windows were old and the road was cobblestone, and the road noise there was really disruptive.
We're also pretty luck with our soundproofing between apartments. Our upstairs neighbor is a violinist (came down to us to warn us about it when they moved in) and I can barely hear it when he plays. Only adjacent neighbors drilling to mount something (fortunately only an occasional thing now) is really disruptive, luckily.
A canard I love to spam is that anyone who brushes off calls for strict noise regulation in building codes is fundamentally unserious about reducing car dependency through dense living.
In the handful of apartments I've lived in (it's been over a decade since I've lived in one), I don't remember being bothered by car noise, though. It's always been neighbors. And for this reason, you could never convince me to move into another shared-wall living arrangement again. I'd sooner live in a tent in the woods before renting another apartment. I guess some people aren't bothered by that kind of noise, but I'm not one of them.
I find this perspective interesting because in all the apartments I've lived in, traffic was by far the most annoying noise—mostly heavy delivery trucks coming in every single morning, sometimes large buses, and sometimes sirens.
I'm thinking of one unit in particular which was near a nightclub. The neighbors within the building may as well not have existed. I guess it had good insulation, or just solid stone walls? You could really hear a pin drop... as long as it wasn't Thursday through Saturday. There were like four different panels per window (a series of incompatible renovations), none of which created a seal, so you could hear literally everything from the street. The occasional drunken ramblings from the denizens of the club could be annoying, but I don't know – emanating muffled music didn't stop me from sleeping, the hot rods with their stupid modified engines did; and the nightclub certainly didn't wake me up at 6am, the delivery trucks did. The horrible machinic clunking of a heavy-duty vehicle, over and over again, down an alleyway: awful. Even worse was the detestable whirring they emitted when unloading into the businesses below (I assume; I cannot fathom what other purpose would create such a monstrous noise), a sound I regularly mistook for a jackhammer.
When I lived one block away from a major US interstate I could practically feel my blood curdling if I had the windows open, or walked outside. I don't think any amount of human activity can compare to the constant, unabated suffering I felt there. When I was a university student I was briefly a Resident Assistant. That was by far the most "human noise" I have experienced in my life. Rowdy bunch of kids at any time of night: music, games, shouting, smashed bottles, whatever else. Yet honestly I would take it over living next to that God-forsaken highway again, no questions asked.
For point of reference I grew up in a very small town, so acclimating to any amount of "human noise" was a culture shock. The traffic was still more unpleasant than the people in that little town too though.
Your perspective is different for me as well. I've never lived in a large city, or at least not one that was large enough to be near a noisy highway. None of my apartments were close enough to anything commercial for me to hear delivery trucks, but I do recall having to hear the garbage truck slam my apartment's dumpster around every week. I wish I had the same luck with apartments as you did, though. I guess I had bad luck with neighbors.
Goes to show the importance of tackling the different facets of this issue!
This thread is framed as a traffic externality, but you're completely right that noise comes in plenty of forms. The solution to allow for proper urban living is thus to enforce stricter sound transmission/insulation codes within buildings, including both shared walls and windows, to limit "human noise" – perhaps also incentivizing landlords to renovate existing units – as well as building sound-dampening infrastructure (or maybe not building at-grade highways through cities) to limit traffic noise.
Hell, I'd sooner live in the woods than on the beach. Let alone in an apartment.
Just a couple days ago I got irrationally furious at a passing car because it was a luxury sportscar that was revving deafeningly loudly. By "irrationally furious" I mean I immediately made assumptions about the kind of person who would own and drive such a car and revv it this loudly, and I did not hold back in expressing myself using colorful language. I would be mad about any kind of car being this loud, but I think the fact that it was a luxury car just made it at least 10x more obnoxious.
Anyway... I have a pair of these cute ear plugs. I'm not sure if they might be overpriced for what they are, but they're cute and they work for me. They come with a tiny case that fits in my wallet, so I bring them with me everywhere. Really helpful because I generally can't control the noise level of my surroundings when I go out, and I feel like I'm more sensitive to noise than the average person. I'm not sure! I just feel like when I'm at events and I find the sound system very loud, I seem to be the only person bothered by it. 🤷🏻♀️
I think there's also a way to get custom-fit ear plugs made by a doctor? And I might also look into that option in the future.
I use those earplugs for social gatherings too! Im autistic, and get a bit overstimulated at most events, and those things are perfect, they mute everything a little bit while still letting me hear when people talk to me.
A great article on the whole and a much needed reminder that noise pollution is as much a health hazard as other environmental pollutants but I take issue with what the author insinuates at the end of the article:
Of course, poorer neighborhoods are hit harder by traffic noise because richer people can and will live somewhere else but the author here is directly addressing fireworks being set off during The Great Quiet. Residents doing this to their own communities is neither environmental injustice or systematic or intentional. Yes, there are institutional and historical problems that need to be addressed but I feel like champions of these causes often stray too far and start to see structural reasons everywhere for why people are oppressed when, in this case specifically, there is no system that is forcing these people to set off fireworks