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Highway Traffic Noise
change significantly during the project development process, and updated abatement designs may need to be considered.
Effects on Health and Wildlife
Another hot topic identified by the TRB Transportation- Related Noise and Vibration Committee is highway traffic noise-related health effects. Although recognized by the WHO and many European researchers, the United States has done little to verify or build on understanding the ad- verse health effects related to highway traffic noise. Under- standing this would help to inform highway traffic noise decisions and abatement design. A related concern, the ad- verse effects of highway traffic noise on wildlife, also merits further investigation. There are serious concerns about noise interfering with wildlife communication, migration, and re- production. Many highway projects travel through wildlife areas, and most practitioners do not have the adequate tools to evaluate related impacts and abatement.
Biosketches
Judy Rochat is a principal consultant at ATS Consulting, Inc., Pasadena, CA, after working as a physical scientist for the US Department of Transportation. She has extensive experience in trans- portation noise and vibration, including highway-, rail-, and aircraft-related proj-
ects. Her experience includes software development, envi- ronmental impact assessments, data collection and analysis, mitigation design, and standards development. In addition, she is a certified instructor for the National Highway Insti- tute course “Highway Traffic Noise.” Judy held/holds lead- ership roles on the Transportation Research Board and at the Institute of Noise Control Engineering. She received her PhD and MS in acoustics at The Pennsylvania State Univer- sity, University Park.
Darlene Reiter is vice president of en- gineering at Bowlby & Associates, Inc., Franklin, TN, where she has worked for nearly 23 years. She has extensive expe- rience in transportation noise analyses including modeling, abatement design, training, policy development, and re-
search. She has managed large-scale highway traffic noise studies for numerous state highway agencies. She is a cer- tified instructor of the National Highway Institute course “Highway Traffic Noise” and coinstructor of Bowlby & As- sociates “Traffic Noise Model” and “Traffic Noise Funda- mentals” training courses. Darlene received her PhD in civil engineering from Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, and her BS and MS in civil engineering from Villanova Univer- sity, Villanova, PA.
References
Anderson, G. S., Lee, C. S.Y., Fleming, G. G., and Menge, C. W. (1998). FHWA Traffic Noise Model, Version 1.0 User’s Guide. Report No. FHWA-PD-96-009. 2004 updates for Version 2.5, prepared by the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, US Department of Transporta- tion, for the Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC. Available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/noise/traffic_noise_model/. Ac- cessed September 1, 2016.
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). (2009). HUD Noise Guidebook. Prepared by Environmental Planning Division, Office of Environment and Energy, Department of Housing and Urban Devel- opment, Washington, DC. Available at https://www.hudexchange.info/ resource/313/hud-noise-guidebook/. Accessed September 1, 2016.
Donavan, P., Reyff, J., and Pommerenck, A. (2012). Quiet Pavement Pilot Program: Progress Report 3. Report No. 577, prepared by Illingworth & Rodkin, Inc., Petaluma, CA, for the Arizona Department of Transporta- tion, Phoenix, AZ. Available at http://acousticstoday.org/ntl. Accessed September 5, 2016.
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) (2011). Highway Traffic Noise: Analysis and Abatement Guidance. Report No. FHWA-HEP-10-025, Fed- eral Highway Administration, US Department of Transportation, Wash- ington, DC. Available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/noise/ regulations_and_guidance/analysis_and_abatement_guidance/. Accessed September 1, 2016.
Hanson, C. E., Towers, D. A., and Meister, L. D. (2006). Transit Noise and Vibration Impact Assessment. Report No. FTA-VA-90-1003-06, prepared by Harris Miller Miller & Hanson, Inc., Burlington, MA, for the Federal Transit Administration, Washington, DC. Available at http://acousticstoday.org/manual. Accessed September 1, 2016.
Knauer, H. S., Pedersen, S., Lee, C. S. Y., and Fleming, G. G. (2000). FHWA Highway Noise Barrier Design Handbook. Report No. FHWA-EP-00-005, prepared by Environmental Acoustics, Inc., Catseye Services, and Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, US Department of Transporta- tion, for the Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC. Available at http://acousticstoday.org/design. Accessed September 1, 2016.
46 | Acoustics Today | Winter 2016