Focused Study on the Quiet Side Effect in Dwellings Highly Exposed to Road Traffic Noise

Timothy Van Renterghem and Dick Botteldooren
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Timothy Van Renterghem: Acoustics Research Group, Department of Information Technology (INTEC), Ghent University, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 41, Gent B-9000, Belgium
Dick Botteldooren: Acoustics Research Group, Department of Information Technology (INTEC), Ghent University, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 41, Gent B-9000, Belgium

IJERPH, 2012, vol. 9, issue 12, 1-19

Abstract: This study provides additional evidence for the positive effect of the presence of a quiet façade at a dwelling and aims at unraveling potential mechanisms. Locations with dominant road traffic noise and high Lden-levels at the most exposed façade were selected. Dwellings both with and without a quiet façade were deliberately sought out. Face-to-face questionnaires (N = 100) were taken to study the influence of the presence of a quiet side in relation to noise annoyance and sleep disturbance. As a direct effect, the absence of a quiet façade in the dwelling (approached as a front-back façade noise level difference smaller than 10 dBA) leads to an important increase of at least moderately annoyed people (odds-ratio adjusted for noise sensitivity equals 3.3). In an indirect way, a bedroom located at the quiet side leads to an even stronger reduction of the self-reported noise annoyance (odds-ratio equal to 10.6 when adjusted for noise sensitivity and front façade Lden). The quiet side effect seems to be especially applicable for noise sensitive persons. A bedroom located at the quiet side also reduces noise-induced sleep disturbances. On a loud side, bedroom windows are more often closed, however, conflicting with the preference of dwellers.

Keywords: road traffic noise; noise annoyance; quiet side; noise-induced sleep disturbance; noise sensitivity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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