Context sensitive noise impact mapping

Apartments that are exposed to the same level of road traffic noise on front of the most exposed façade often have very different neighbourhood soundscapes. In the first part of this paper, a neighbourhood soundscape adjusted exposure indicator, NALden, is derived. NALden-values are designed to be used as input to traditional exposure–effect relationships to improve annoyance impact estimates. In the second part, generic spatial procedures are developed and implemented. These produce map presentations in the form of contiguous neighbourhood quality areas. The quality of each neighbourhood is determined from the predicted annoyance impacts for residents. Noise impact maps provide experts, politicians, and the public with high-level impact visualizations of condensed status, “what-if” and scenario information. Results and illustrations are based on data from the Norwegian socio-environmental survey database, and a comprehensive national noise mapping effort. The methodology should work well for mapping Europe’s “black” and “grey” areas.