A state of the art review was commissioned by Main Roads Western Australia in May 1997 to provide a comprehensive overview of current practice in the area of night-time road noise levels, with an emphasis on worldwide practice, mitigation, human response and sleep disturbance and potential for the revision of existing noise control objectives and guidelines and the inclusion of noise control in the land use planning process. Emphasis has been placed on opportunities and constraints within the existing legislative and industry framework to accommodate change in noise control practices in Australia. The review discusses some of the major themes associated with night-time noise levels, with a major focus on road transport noise, although many of the themes are universal and are certainly applicable to other forms of transport noise such as rail and aircraft. A comprehensive range of literature was reviewed and respected academics and professionals in the field of noise control were contacted to solicit their opinions and reactions on this issue. The report concludes that based upon the extensive review of past and current research by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other organisations and individuals involved in transport acoustics, the issue of night-time noise is reaching a critical momentum in Australia, particularly with respect to sleep disturbance and its potential impacts on community health and welfare. (A)
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