Traffic (Operational Phase)

 

Good Practice - Continued page 3.

Noise Reduction

Noise is covered in detail in its own section, where the focus is on noise being generated from within the site. This section is concerned with reducing noise from vehicles travelling outside the site.

Noise from lorries has a number of different sources including silencer, brakes, poor suspension and body slap. Silencers should be well maintained and replaced if they begin to get noisy. Vehicles should ideally be fitted with disc brakes which not only enhance braking efficiency but also minimise brake squeal. In order to minimise noise and impact on the road surface, the best operators use air suspension rather than traditional leaf springs.

 

Rubber bushes can be fitted between the trailer bodies and chassis in order to prevent the loud body slap which can occur (Photograph 21). However, a more effective method may be to use body clamps which clamp the body to the chassis. These are relatively cheap, but their weight reduces the payload of the vehicle and so they are not widely used at present. The noise from exhaust and breaking systems may also be significant for vehicles travelling at night and so time conditioned voluntary speed restrictions may play an important role in the control of noise during these periods. The use of an exit and entry slip road into a site can minimise the need for rapid acceleration or breaking of lorries, which can cause significant noise. The surface of these and other roads on site should be well maintained so that no irregularities are allowed to remain, creating increased noise.
		Photograph 21. Rubber bushes between the body and the frame to prevent body slap.

 

It is worth undertaking traffic noise surveys to ensure that excessive noise is not being generated by the vehicles travelling to and from the site (Photograph 22).
		Photograph 22. Traffic noise survey.

Vehicle Identification

As part of the monitoring and enforcement of planning conditions and agreed practice, all vehicles should be marked clearly with an identification number on the side and tailgate. This would enable any drivers contravening the agreements to be identified easily by the operator or members of the public and for action to be taken.

Transport Charter

Some companies provide a Transport Charter which sets out the operating practices that are implemented as part of their Environmental Policy. This needs to be monitored through regular environmental audits and spot checks, but can be a helpful tool in communicating the high standards being set.

 

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