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Effectiveness of Short Solid Barriers to Reduce Noise Generated by Different Types of Highway Vehicles
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2024-12-01
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[PDF-4.45 MB]
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Abstract:Tall highway noise barriers have served as an effective noise abatement strategy. However, it comes with the high cost and limited adoption in diverse environments. The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility and reasonableness of short safety barriers as a highway noise abatement strategy. Through purposeful selection, five out of ten potential sites with pre-existing short concrete barriers around Maryland highways were investigated. At-grade and elevated roadways with short concrete barriers were included in the study. Sound level meters were used to measure the sound at different distances from the nearest roadway. Traffic counts and speed were gathered concurrently. The study adopted seven distinct sound propagation models. These models included custom models created for the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the Traffic Noise Model (TNM) versions 2.5 and 3.2. The results indicated that, in some conditions, short noise barriers— generally 2.5 to 3 feet tall—can markedly diminish noise levels. These barriers achieved noise reductions of 3 to 5 decibels (dB) for at-grade roadways at typical residential setbacks from highways. Noise reductions of up to 9 dB were observed in scenarios involving elevated highways. This suggests that shorter solid barriers may be nearly as effective as taller ones in some situations. The research identified discrepancies between empirical data and prevalent models like TNM 2.5 forecasts, highlighting the necessity for model improvements and supplementary observations. Short concrete barriers can be feasible and reasonable as they can provide 3 to 5 dB of reduction.
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