Noise surveys 2007 - Sources of noise
Road traffic noise
Road traffic noise is the main noise source affecting the Victorian community. This is due to its prevalence and high noise levels. It annoys, disturbs sleep and interrupts reading, relaxing and quiet activities.
Residential noise
Residential areas far from industry and transport noise are the quietest. However, the social survey found that neighbour noise is second only to road traffic noise in the level of annoyance across Victoria. If construction noise coming from homes is also considered, the level of disturbance from residential activities is comparable to traffic.
Annoyance from neighbour noise comes from more than just the noise itself (its volume, pitch or duration). For those annoyed, a main factor is lack of consideration shown by the noisemaker. Neighbour noise is seen as largely preventable through a neighbour’s actions and that allowing the noise to occur shows a lack of respect for others.
Neighbour noise also tends to be irregular or unpredictable. This means it is less likely to become part of the background noise, which after a while many people become accustomed to and not notice. Also, people are more likely to adapt to noise that has a purpose or function. For example, people generally appear to be less annoyed by a regular and functional noise source such as passenger trains compared to a neighbour’s television, music or parties.
Other main noise sources
Alarms and construction noise also annoy and disturb a substantial proportion of Victorian residents, with residential building/renovations and burglar alarms being the most prevalent.
Industrial noise was found to be quieter overall than road traffic noise, and impacts upon far fewer people, with 10% of Victorian residents hearing industrial noise at their homes. However, industries located near dwellings can dominate the noise experienced particularly at night and can impact significantly on those local residents.
The following table indicates the level of annoyance for the top five noise sources of concern for the Victorian community.
| Source of noise | Proportion of respondents who hear the noise | Proportion of respondents moderately to extremely bothered, annoyed or disturbed by noise source |
|---|---|---|
| Road traffic noise | 70% | 20% |
| Neighbour noise | 57% | 15% |
| Audible Alarms | 48% | 8% |
| Construction activities | 34% | 8% |
| Aircraft noise | 61% | 6% |
Sound from sites
Below are links to recordings from different homes near noisy sites across Melbourne. These are near a main road during the day, near an industrial site at night and near a waste depot during the day.
It can be heard that traffic noise is present at all the locations, but local noises can dominate when close to industry or commercial sites.
- Listen to sounds from near a main road (MP3 audio file, 316KB - 40 seconds in length)
- Listen to sounds of a commercial site (MP3 audio file, 71KB - 40 seconds in length)
- Listen to sounds of an industrial site (MP3 audio file, 316KB - 23 seconds in length).
Find out about the changes and comparisons of noise over time.