THE PAPER CRITICALLY REVIEWS NINE EMPIRICAL STUDIES OF HIGHWAY NOISE AND PROPERTY VALUES. THESE STUDIES, CONDUCTED SINCE 1974, USE CROSS-SECTIONAL HOUSING DATA CONCERNING CITIES IN CANADA AND THE USA. A NUMBER OF ASSUMPTIONS THAT UNDERLIE THE PRICE MODEL ARE DISCUSSED, AND ALSO HIGHWAY NOISE MEASUREMENT FUNDAMENTALS ARE REVIEWED. THE RESULTS OF THE SURVEYS ARE SUMMARISED IN THE FORM OF A NOISE DEPRECIATION SENSITIVITY INDEX WHICH IS THE RATIO OF THE PRICE OF QUIET TO THE PRICE OF AN AVERAGE PROPERTY. THE RANGE OF VALUES FOR THIS INDEX PROVIDES A MEANS OF EVALUATING THE CONSISTENCY OF THE STUDIES AND OF THEIR RESULTS. EMPIRICAL STUDIES RECEIVED EMPLOY A VARIEY OF TRAFFIC NOISE MEASURES AND MODEL SPECIFICATIONS. THE EVIDENCE REVIEWED SUGGESTS THAT HIGHWAY NOISE DOES NOT LEAD TO DELAYS IN SELLING PROPERTY AND SHOULD NOT THEREFORE REDUCE RESIDENTIAL MOBILITY. (Author/publisher).
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