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People have been dealing with road noise for centuries. In ancient Rome, they were bothered by the clickety-clank of iron wheels on cobblestone pavement. In 17th century England, people complained about the rumble made by wagons with iron-tyred wheels as they drove over granite block streets.
Today, the complaints about road noise come from people who live close to busy highways.
Communities have tried everything from planting trees and shrubs along highways to adding barrier walls to keep noise levels down and improve the quality of life for people who live near busy roads.
But the Federal Highway Administration said in 2001 that the average cost of putting up a noise wall is $1.2 million per mile. But they only protect people near and below the walls, said Wayne Jones, a field engineer at the Asphalt Institute.
Jones has been studying road noise for four years and points out that the best solutions he has found so far are the variety of quiet pavement technologies offered by asphalt.
"By its nature, asphalt is more flexible than the rigid concrete pavements," he says. "As a result, less noise is generated over all and there's even evidence that as the sound resonates from the tire, less is reflected off the surface."
To demonstrate the noise reduction, the Asphalt Pavement Alliance developed a Web site called QuietPavement.com. It has a game that lets people design a neighborhood to see how to cut noise.
Cutting down on road noise is important because, over time, exposure to loud noises can lead to hearing loss and permanent damage, the group says.
"Using quiet pavement technology, asphalt pavements often measure 7 to 9 dB lower than concrete," said Jones.
From Internet Broadcasting Systems
Today, the complaints about road noise come from people who live close to busy highways.
Communities have tried everything from planting trees and shrubs along highways to adding barrier walls to keep noise levels down and improve the quality of life for people who live near busy roads.
But the Federal Highway Administration said in 2001 that the average cost of putting up a noise wall is $1.2 million per mile. But they only protect people near and below the walls, said Wayne Jones, a field engineer at the Asphalt Institute.
Jones has been studying road noise for four years and points out that the best solutions he has found so far are the variety of quiet pavement technologies offered by asphalt.
"By its nature, asphalt is more flexible than the rigid concrete pavements," he says. "As a result, less noise is generated over all and there's even evidence that as the sound resonates from the tire, less is reflected off the surface."
To demonstrate the noise reduction, the Asphalt Pavement Alliance developed a Web site called QuietPavement.com. It has a game that lets people design a neighborhood to see how to cut noise.
Cutting down on road noise is important because, over time, exposure to loud noises can lead to hearing loss and permanent damage, the group says.
"Using quiet pavement technology, asphalt pavements often measure 7 to 9 dB lower than concrete," said Jones.
From Internet Broadcasting Systems
