Urban sound planning - the SONORUS project

Urban sound planning is still insufficiently considered in most urban planning processes resulting in unsatisfactory sonic environments that might even present health risks to citizens. No matter how complex and challenging the planning project might be, the creation or preservation of the sonic environments is possible and should be part of the urban regeneration plan. To support this process, SONORUS project developed a holistic approach and showed its benefits with practical test cases. By incorporating state of the art urban sound planning tools, research and urban policies, it is possible to improve the sonic environments. This paper will present an overview on the state of the art solutions available to the urban sound planner. The goal is to facilitate the integration of sonic planning in an earlier stage of the planning process by combining different approaches in order to achieve healthy and supportive sound scenarios.