The question asked of survey respondents was "Are you satisfied with the present alignment of the Trans Canada Highway with regard to the noise it generates as it runs through Medicine Hat?"
According to the literature, minimum sample size for social science research should be 30 – 200 (Kish, 1965, p. 17). The sample size here is forty-six. 85% of survey respondents are either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the existing alignment of the TCH. It is not unreasonable to deduce that 85% of all the residents that live adjacent to the TCH are either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the existing alignment of the TCH as it runs through Medicine Hat.
The European Union uses a method entitled the Calculation of Road Traffic Noise (CoRTN) which generates dB levels at a point 10 m from the edge of the road over which the hourly volume of traffic passes. The province of Alberta publishes this data and it is suitable for use in the CoRTN.
The Calculation of Road Traffic Noise (CRTN) is an online calculator that calculates LA10(1 hr) at a distance of 10 meters from the edge of the road over which a volume of traffic passes in one hour. This value must be adjusted to measure LAeq(1 hr) which is 3 dB(A) less than LA10(1 hr).
These tables have been created for every hour of every day of every month for 365 days. This enables the calculation of Lden365, the value required by most jurisdictions for noise evaluation.
Construction is scheduled to begin on the twinning of Hwy 3. Eventually it will be twinned all the way to Medicine Hat. Plans for the TCH to bypass Medicine Hat have been in the works for almost fifteen years. This will result in both a decrease in noise pollution and noxious exhaust fumes. It makes sense to combine the construction infrastructure developed for the twinning with construction of the bypass.
Ontario's gold standard for noise regulation
Alberta Transportation sets the upper dB(A) limit at 65 dB(A). There is no scientific justification for this limit of 65 dB(A).
The WHO recommends a daytime limit of 53 dB(A) and a nighttime limit of 45 dB(A).
These figures are scientifically justified and it is only reasonable to discard any other limits arbitrarily arrived at and use the WHO numbers.
A highway is a line source of noise. The rule of thumb for calculating the attenuation of noise over distance is to subtract 3 dB for every doubling of distance. Lnight365 for South Ridge is 76.4 and this value does not reduce to below the 65 dB(A) level specified by Alberta Transportation until a distance of 140 meters from the edge of the TCH is reached.
There is also evidence that noise, including traffic noise, contributes to crime rates.
The numbers and symbols used to describe to describe the intensity of noise are unfamiliar to most people. It helps to use a chart to relate every day noises to decibels.
The Calculation of Road Traffic Noise (CRTN) is an online calculator that calculates LA10(1 hr) at a distance of 10 meters from the edge of the road over which a volume of traffic passes in one hour. This value must be adjusted to measure LAeq(1 hr) which is 3 dB(A) less than LA10(1 hr).
Below is a view of the neighbourhood of Ross Glen taken from the TCH. The upper stories of the residences are afforded no protection from the berm. Sound is diffracted over the berm and impacts living space below the top of the berm.
These results summarize the average dB(A) for the neighbourhoods of Ross Glen and Souyth Ridge for every hour of every day from Oct 1, 2021 to Sept 30, 2022
The World Health Organization (WHO) is the United Nations agency working to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable.
Lden (average loudness for day, evening and night) and Ln (average loudness for night) are values universally accepted as scientific measures of loudness.
Health effects from noise include
No scientific justification for the dBA limits ordained by these jurisdictions can be found except perhaps in the case of Ontario.
The plans for a bypass of the TransCanada Highway (TCH) have been in the works for years. The noise generated by this situation will only get worse. The time for building of the bypass is long overdue.
The promotion of such a bypass is always accompanied by a great deal of rending of hair, gnashing of teeth and flapping of arms. These concerns are unjustified. The negative psychological effects of highway noise is a present fact. Impacts on business are largely imagined.
Construction and maintainance of the TCH as it traverses Alberta is the responsibility of the provincial government. Provincial elections are imminent. There is a general election on May 22 2023. There is a by-election on November 8 2022 in the Brooks-Medicine Hat riding through which arguably the most offensive stretch of the TCH runs. Those who find the will to protest TCH noise can have some effect here.
Nova Scotia Economic Impacts of Highway Bypass Development on Communities which concludes "In general, the studies reviewed focused on communities of similar size to the Town of Antigonish, with populations ranging from between 2,500 to 7,500. Various techniques were employed drawing from a broad range of data from a number of communities. The general results were largely consistent among studies. The key findings indicate that the development of a highway bypass results in short-term impacts primarily to drive through traffic-dependent businesses, but little or no significant long-term economic impacts overall. In addition, the magnitude of negative impacts is lessened with a pre-existing strong economic base within the community, or history of being a trade centre for the region, and implementation of appropriate planning and an economic development strategy."
Case Studies of the Economic Impact of Highway Bypasses in Kansas which concludes "The principal conclusions of the study are as follows: (1) the statistical results are consistent with the conclusion that the bypasses did not have a statistically significant effect on total employment in the bypass towns, (2) a majority of the owners and the managers of the travel- related business firms interviewed felt that the bypass had a major effect on retail sales of their firm in the 1999 to 2001 period. However, they felt it did not have any effect on their employment during the same time period. (3) There was substantial variation in the opinions and perceptions of the respondents concerning the impact of the bypass on retail sales and employment of the four industry groups in the sample. (4) Total road and bridge maintenance expenditures of the seven counties increased an average of 2.3 percent per year (not inflation adjusted) over the five year period. To finance road and bridge maintenance, all seven counties employed the property tax."
Impacts of Highway Bypasses on Kansas Towns which concludes "In the long term, bypasses in Kansas typically have not had significant negative effects on the local economy. In fact, many counties and towns have enjoyed some long-term benefits from the construction of bypasses. The major part of this benefit consis ted of an encouragement of basic industries due to the improved transportation system. Growth in basic industry then had second-round effects on local retailing and services. In the first two or three years during and after construction, Kansas bypasses typically have not had negative effects on the bypassed town as a whole. Bypasses have had transitory negative impacts on selected firms. The negatively-impacted firms tend to be concentrated in travel-related businesses, including restaurants, bars, motels, and service stations. However, not all travel-related firms in a bypassed town were negatively impacted in the short term."
There are many more studies like this and they all draw similar conclusions. Google the appropriate terms for further exploration.
Noise pollution is endemic. It has profound effects on humans, land animals, marine mammals and even fish. It affects the value of civic real estate. Across Europe, according to the European Environment Agency, it estimated 113 million people are affected by road traffic noise levels above 55 decibels, somewhere between the loudness of a refridgerator and a conversation in a restaurant. This may not sound like much until it is understood that this noise is present 24 hours a day.
Lden (average loudness for day, evening and night) and Ln (average loudness for night) are values universally accepted as scientific measures of loudness.
Several cities in Alberta are enacting tough noise bylaws. Edmonton is cracking down and a councillor there is recommending a $5,000 fine for the first offence and $10,000 fine for the second. His petition has gathered 5,700 signatures for his proposal
Red Deer is enforcing their noise bylaw. The Medicine Hat police Commission and City council are reviewing the CMH bylaw and ways to enforce it.
Calgary is on the band wagon also. This is their noise bylaw. This is what they are doing to do to strengthen and enforce it.
The allowable decibel limit in these municipalities varies from 65 dB to 95 dB. The WHO recommends a daytime dB of 53 and a nighttime dB of 45.