# Assessment of Road Noise Pollution in Urban Residential Areas--A Case Study in Pitesti, Romania
###### Abstract  
The paper addresses the problem of urban road noise, in the context of the European legislative requirements regarding noise pollution. The second noise mapping in Pitesti city, revealed that despite the proposed action plan after the first noise mapping, the noise pollution increased instead of decreasing. Considering that the proposed measures were insufficient to control road noise in the conditions of the estimated increase in road traffic, the authors developed complex research to identify how the road noise level is determined by the way of regulation of road traffic at intersections of the residential zone. Thus, noise and traffic measurements are made at the main road intersections in the central part of the city, determining the most relevant noise indicators for the specifics of urban traffic and residential areas. The results obtained lead to the conclusion that roundabouts bring a reduction in noise pollution compared to traffic light intersections only if the speed of vehicles in the roundabout is predictable: on preselected lanes and with speed timing. Keywords:road traffic noise; traffic regulation; roundabout intersection; traffic light intersection; sustainable mobility +
Footnote †: journal:  
Thus, the possibilities of identifying road noise sources are studied based on measurements made at various points in the road network [11], according to the concept of \"reverse engineering\". The possibility of obtaining an accurate description of traffic noise by relying on measurements of road noise from a few monitoring stations appropriately distributed over the area of interest is being evaluated [12; 14]. There are proposed methodologies for dynamic noise mapping relies on a sound source emission and propagation model that is periodically updated based on sound level measurements, which can be performed both by fixed or by mobile measurement stations [13]. Maximum estimation errors are estimated at 1.5 dB [12]. One direction to study the possibility of reducing road noise in residential areas is to regulate road traffic at intersections. Thus, the comparative analysis between traffic light intersections and roundabouts, under the same road traffic flows, reveals a reduction of noise pollution by 1-2 dB in the case of traffic regulation in the roundabout [16]. However, these results are obtained by simulation: with specialized noise prediction software LimA using modified static noise calculation method RLS 90 [16] or using NMPB-Routes 96 [17] and in the conditions of a homogeneous road traffic. In this paper the research will be based on the measurement of road noise in various intersections, in which road traffic is either homogeneous or composite (light and heavy vehicles). Although new vehicles models are becoming quieter, the increasing traffic volume of road traffic increases the noise emitted. Many of the city's central streets have reached traffic saturation, almost daily congested and with slower speeds throughout the day [18; 19; 20; 21; 22]. As can be seen from the results obtained by noise mapping in 2012 [22; 23] and 2018 [24; 25], this problem also exists in the city of Pitesti, where the number of people exposed to ambient noise (exceeding the limit values of noise indicators-maximum 70 dB for L\({}_{\text{den}}\), respectively, maximum 60 dB for L\({}_{\text{n}}\)) has increased in recent years. Thus, according to the latest noise mapping, of the 175,653 inhabitants of Pitesti, 34,013 are exposed to environmental noise that exceeds the limit value of L\({}_{\text{den}}\), and 39,528 are exposed to environmental noise that exceeds the limit value of L\({}_{\text{n}}\) so about 20% of the city's population!