Research and analysis

Roadside vehicle noise measurement: study, enforcement and technology

Research into the methods and equipment for the detection of excessively noisy road vehicles and enforcement of noise regulations.

• From: Department for Transport
• Published: 8 June 2019
• Last updated: 2 August 2021 — See all updates

Documents

Roadside vehicle noise measurement: phase 1 study report and technology recommendations

PDF, 2.49 MB, 103 pages

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Roadside vehicle noise measurement phase 2: final report

PDF, 4.77 MB, 70 pages

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Details

Research into the methods and equipment used to detect excessively noisy road vehicles and enforce noise regulations.

This research was completed in the following 2 phases:

• Phase 1, published in June 2019, was a desk-based study that reviewed the:
  • existing approaches of tackling excessively noisy vehicles
  • technologies that could be applied for the identification of excessively noisy vehicles
• Phase 2, published in August 2021, performed trials of a prototype acoustic camera to detect from the roadside excessive vehicle noise, including assessing the:
  • prevalence of excessively noisy vehicles
  • ability of the acoustic camera to measure and assign pass-by noise levels to individual vehicles

The findings of this study will inform the next phase which will include, with the aim of enabling more effective noise enforcement in the UK, the assessment of:

• potential vehicle noise thresholds for enforcement
• the suitability of acoustic cameras for enforcement

This study was announced in September 2019.

Published 8 June 2019
Last updated 2 August 2021 + show all updates

1. 2 August 2021

   Added phase 2 research into trials of a prototype acoustic camera to detect excessive vehicle noise from the roadside.

2. 8 June 2019

   First published.