Transportation noise annoyance: Testing of a probabilistic model

This analysis extends the development and testing of a probabilistic model of noise annoyance proposed in an earlier paper [1]. In the model, noise, measured as the level and number of specific events, leads to annoyance through its interference with activities. Testing of the model is based on noise and survey data collected at 56 sites around Toronto International Airport. Logit analysis is used to estimate equations to predict the probabilities of activity interference and annoyance due to road traffic noise and aircraft noise at each site. From these equations, probabilities of high annoyance are predicted and are compared with the proportion of respondents at each site reporting being highly annoyed. For this comparison, the sites are grouped on the basis of having the same 24 hour L_eq. Both predicted and reported annoyance values are consistently higher for aircraft noise than for road traffic noise at the same 24 hour L_eq. The results support the underlying argument of the model that previously reported source differences in dose-response relationships can be explained by using a model based on single event rather than daily average noise measures.     

A path model of aircraft noise annoyance

This paper describes the development and testing of a path model of aircraft noise annoyance by using noise and social survey data collected in the vicinity of Toronto International Airport. Path analysis is used to estimate the direct and indirect effects of seventeen independent variables on individual annoyance. The results show that the strongest direct effects are for speech interference, attitudes toward aircraft operations, sleep interruption and personal sensitivity to noise. The strongest indirect effects are for aircraft L_eq(24) and sensitivity. Overall the model explains 41% of the variation in the annoyance reported by the 673 survey respondents. The findings both support and extend existing statements in the literature on the antecedents of annoyance.     

Effect of background noise levels on community annoyance from aircraft noise

A study of community annoyance caused by exposures to civil aircraft noise was carried out in 20 sites around Gimpo and Gimhae international airports to investigate the effect of background noise in terms of dose-effect relationships between aircraft noise levels and annoyance responses under real conditions. Aircraft noise levels were mainly measured using airport noise monitoring systems, B&K type 3597. Social surveys were administered to people living within 100 m of noise measurement sites. The question relating to the annoyance of aircraft noise was answered on an 11-point numerical scale. The randomly selected respondents, who were aged between 18 and 70 years, completed the questionnaire independently. In total, 753 respondents participated in social surveys. The result shows that annoyance responses in low background noise regions are much higher than those in high background noise regions, even though aircraft noise levels are the same. It can be concluded that the background noise level is one of the important factors on the estimation of community annoyance from aircraft noise exposure.     

考虑噪声烦恼度的机场飞机噪声收费模型和应用研究

随着我国民航运输业的飞速发展,机场噪声影响问题日趋严重。通过向航空公司或旅客收取噪声费来进行治理,是民航发达国家的普遍做法,也是我国未来的发展方向。该文在国外机场飞机噪声收费模型的基础上,提出了基于飞机噪声特性、噪声烦恼度、噪声治理投入费用和资金回收周期等因素的机场噪声收费模型。模型将机场噪声治理费用通过合理的回收周期按一定比例分配到各年度,再根据飞机噪声特性、噪声烦恼度将每年噪声收费分配到每架次飞机(或每位旅客)。飞机噪声特性根据ACI的机场噪声分级R1～R8来确定,噪声烦恼度借助Mamdani模型构建。应用表明,该收费模型关键因素考虑全面,计算方法先进简洁,费率合理。对于噪声较高飞机,夜间起飞收费为1219.06元/架次,客均收费10.16元;对于噪声很低的飞机,昼间着陆收费为66.10元/架次,客均收费仅0.15元。费率确定符合国际民航组织倡导的以支定收原则,有助于形成航空公司/旅客减噪激励机制同时又不致抑制机场航空业务增长。     

Trends in aircraft noise annoyance: the role of study and sample characteristics

Recently, it has been suggested that the annoyance of residents at a given aircraft noise exposure level increases over the years. The objective of the present study was to verify the hypothesized trend and to identify its possible causes. To this end, the large database used to establish earlier exposure-response relationships on aircraft noise was updated with original data from several recent surveys, yielding a database with data from 34 separate airports. Multilevel grouped regression was used to determine the annoyance response per airport, after which meta-regression was used to investigate whether study characteristics could explain the heterogeneity in annoyance response between airports. A significant increase over the years was observed in annoyance at a given level of aircraft noise exposure. Furthermore, the type of annoyance scale, the type of contact, and the response percentage were found to be sources of heterogeneity. Of these, only the scale factor could statistically account for the trend, although other findings rule it out as a satisfactory explanation. No evidence was found for increased self-reported noise sensitivity. The results are of importance to the applicability of current exposure-annoyance relationships for aircraft noise and provide a basis for decisions on whether these need to be updated.     

The relationship between civil aircraft noise and community annoyance in Korea

Studies of community annoyance caused by civil aircraft noise exposure were carried out in 18 areas around Gimpo and Gimhae international airports in order to accumulate social survey data and assess the relationship between aircraft noise levels and annoyance responses in Korea. WECPNL, adopted as the aircraft noise index in Korea, and the percentage of respondents who felt highly annoyed (%HA) have been used to assess the dose-response of aircraft noise. Aircraft noise levels were measured automatically by airport noise monitoring system, B&K type 3597. Social surveys were carried out to people living within 100 m of noise measurement points. The Questionnaire used in the survey contained demographic factors, noise annoyance, interference with daily activities and health-related symptoms. The question relating to the aircraft noise annoyance was answered on an 11-point numerical scale. The randomly selected respondents who were aged between 18 and 70 years completed the questionnaire by themselves. In total, 705 respondents participated in the questionnaire. The results show that WECPNL, noise metric considering characteristics of event and intrusive noise, is more reasonable than L_dn, noise metric considering total sound, to assess the effects of aircraft noise on health. It is also shown that the annoyance responses caused by aircraft noise in Korea seems higher than those reported in other countries.     

Relationship between low-frequency aircraft noise and annoyance due to rattle and vibration

A near-replication of a study of the annoyance of rattle and vibration attributable to aircraft noise [Fidell et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 106, 1408-1415 (1999)] was conducted in the vicinity of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP). The findings of the current study were similar to those reported earlier with respect to the types of objects cited as sources of rattle in homes, frequencies of notice of rattle, and the prevalence of annoyance due to aircraft noise-induced rattle. A reliably lower prevalence rate of annoyance (but not of complaints) with rattle and vibration was noted among respondents living in homes that had been treated to achieve a 5-dB improvement in A-weighted noise reduction than among respondents living in untreated homes. This difference is not due to any substantive increase in low-frequency noise reduction of acoustically treated homes, but may be associated with installation of nonrattling windows. Common interpretations of the prevalence of a consequential degree of annoyance attributable to low-frequency aircraft noise may be developed from the combined results of the present and prior studies.     

An assessment of certain causal models used in surveys on aircraft noise annoyance

The causal relationships which have so far been proposed between aircraft noise exposure, annoyance and certain “psycho-social” variables (fear of aircraft crashing, general attitude towards aviation, etc.), are re-analysed, and it is demonstrated that by using correlational analysis one can arrive at contradictory results. From the sociological surveys undertaken to date, one can derive only an ordered sequence of verbal reactions to aircraft noise, and not a causal sequence between these verbal reactions: the only clear cause of annoyance is the noise itself.It is suggested that future surveys on noise annoyance should include personality tests and health questionnaires, if one wishes to establish reliable causal sequences.     

Prediction of noise levels and annoyance from aircraft run-ups at Vancouver International Airport

Annoyance complaints resulting from engine run-ups have been increasing at Vancouver International Airport for several years. To assist the Airport in managing run-up noise levels, a prediction tool based on a Green's function parabolic equation (GFPE) model has been consolidated, evaluated, and applied. It was extended to include more realistic atmospheric and ground input parameters. Measurements were made of the noise-radiation characteristics of a CRJ200 jet aircraft. The GFPE model was validated by comparing predictions with results in the literature. A sensitivity analysis showed that predicted levels are relatively insensitive to small variations in geometry and ground impedance, but relatively sensitive to variations in wind speed, atmosphere type, and aircraft heading and power setting. Predicted noise levels were compared with levels measured at noise monitoring terminals. For the four cases for which all input information was available, agreement was within 10 dBA. For events for which some information had to be estimated, predictions were within 20 dBA. The predicted annoyance corresponding to the run-up events considered ranged from 1.8% to 9.5% of people awoken, suggesting that noise complaints can be expected.     

A first-principles model for estimating the prevalence of annoyance with aircraft noise exposure

Numerous relationships between noise exposure and transportation noise-induced annoyance have been inferred by curve-fitting methods. The present paper develops a different approach. It derives a systematic relationship by applying an a priori, first-principles model to the findings of forty three studies of the annoyance of aviation noise. The rate of change of annoyance with day-night average sound level (DNL) due to aircraft noise exposure was found to closely resemble the rate of change of loudness with sound level. The agreement of model predictions with the findings of recent curve-fitting exercises (cf. Miedma and Vos, 1998) is noteworthy, considering that other analyses have relied on different analytic methods and disparate data sets. Even though annoyance prevalence rates within individual communities consistently grow in proportion to duration-adjusted loudness, variability in annoyance prevalence rates across communities remains great. The present analyses demonstrate that 1) community-specific differences in annoyance prevalence rates can be plausibly attributed to the joint effect of acoustic and non-DNL related factors and (2) a simple model can account for the aggregate influences of non-DNL related factors on annoyance prevalence rates in different communities in terms of a single parameter expressed in DNL units-a "community tolerance level."     

车辆噪声烦恼度的音色表达

烦恼度作为评价噪声对人影响的重要指标,受到广泛重视并获得应用。通过主观评价实验和数据统计分析,从音色角度对城市典型车辆噪声烦恼度进行建模并给予物理解释。研究发现:(1)车辆噪声烦恼度音色空间由四个维度构成;(2)利用多元线性回归方法给出的车辆噪声烦恼度模型与声样本烦恼度拟合较好;(3)烦恼度空间维度与特定频谱特性具有较高的相关性。研究结果为车辆噪声烦恼度建模及降噪设计提供了新的思路。     

Aircraft noise annoyance estimation: UK time-pattern effects

An improvement appears to be possible in estimating UK aircraft noise annoyance. This is based on a more detailed analysis and modelling of the data supporting the present UK aircraft noise policies. There is empirical evidence that people’s real-life annoyance at aircraft noise is in part determined by its time-patterns. People benefit from Heathrow’s regular and predictable alternation cycles on westerly operations, equivalent to an effective dB(A) Leq value for that operational mode some 2-dB less than the measured dB(A) Leq. This correction is statistically controlled for people whose work/business is connected with Heathrow. The implications of a time-pattern correction would be significant for UK airport noise contours.     

Comparing the relationships between noise level and annoyance in different surveys: A railway noise vs. aircraft and road traffic comparison

Annoyance expressed in a railway noise survey is compared with that in two road traffic and three aircraft surveys in order to determine whether responses to various environmental noises are similar or are source-specific. Railway noise is less annoying than other noises at any given high noise level. Railway noise annoyance increases less rapidly with increasing noise level. At high noise levels this gap in reactions averages about 10 dB but ranges from 4 dB to more than 20 dB. Comparisons between the findings in the different surveys can be made only after considering differences in noise index calculation procedures, human response measurement procedures and annoyance moderating conditions. The methodology for comparing surveys is examined. It is found that methodological uncertainties lead to imprecise comparisons and that different annoyance scales give different estimates of intersurvey differences.     

Aircraft noise annoyance modeling: Consideration of noise sensitivity and of different annoying acoustical characteristics

Noise annoyance due to aircraft flyover noise was assessed under laboratory conditions. The main objectives of the study were: (i) to identify influential acoustical features of noise annoyance, (ii) to propose noise indices to characterize these acoustical features and (iii) to enhance annoyance models including influential acoustical and non-acoustical variables. Therefore, a verbalization task was performed by the participants of the experiment to collect their whole impression concerning the aircraft flyover noises for which they rated annoyance. This verbalization task highlights that noise annoyance was influenced by three main acoustical features: (i) the spectral content, (ii) the temporal variation and (iii) the perceived sound intensity. Four combinations of noise indices were used to propose multilevel annoyance models, in combination with the individual noise sensitivity. Noise sensitivity was found to highly contribute to annoyance models and should therefore be considered in future studies dealing with noise annoyance due to aircraft noise. Different combinations of noise indices coupled with noise sensitivity were found to be promising for future studies that aim to enhance current annoyance models.     

Synthesis of social surveys on noise annoyance.

Since noise was first recognized as a serious environmental pollutant, a number of social surveys have been conducted in order to assess the magnitude of the problem and to develop suitable noise ratings, such that, from a measurement of certain physical characteristics of community noise, one could reliably predict the community's subjective response to the noise. Recently, the author has reviewed the data from social surveys concerning the noise of aircraft, street traffic, expressway traffic, and railroads. Going back to the original published data, the various survey noise ratings were translated to day-night average sound level, and an independent judgment was make, where choice was possible, as to which respondents should be counted as "highly annoyed." The results of 11 of these surveys show a remarkable consistency. It is proposed that the average of these curves is the best currently available relationship for predicting community annoyance due to transportation noise of all kinds.