Costing the benefit of low noise surfacing

Low noise pavements are an important mitigation measure in the drive to minimise the impact of traffic noise on all our lives. The benefit provided by such surfaces is an important element of any associated life cycle cost analysis. There are existing methodologies for monetising the relative noise reductions from quieter pavements in terms of the societal cost of the associated health benefits. However, this approach requires input data on the potential reduction in exposure to traffic noise. For a particular road scheme such data are often derived from a detailed noise model, but this is not possible when considering potential benefits at a regional or national level. This paper examines potential approaches in estimating the comparative reduction in traffic noise exposure between different surface types at this strategic level. This includes methods for considering population density, noise exposure and the extent to which a low noise surface will impact the surrounding sound environment.