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RevolutionaryCoyote t1_jdl39tn wrote

Reply to comment by 2019_Stealth in Road Noise Makes Your Blood Pressure Rise – Literally | Study shows the sound of traffic is associated with increased risk of hypertension, calls for public health measures to reduce noise exposure by Hrmbee

If a car is going over about 30-40 mph most of the noise is from the tires. So EVs are just as loud.

https://physicstoday.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/1.3273080

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IceBearCares t1_jdl6194 wrote

Anecdotally of course, but I once lived about 2 blocks from a major freeway out west. When I moved in, the main streets were loud but the freeway... I could hear it.

After a year there the state repaved it with rubberized asphalt. The noise 2 blocks away was limited to some engines, crashes, horns. But no road noise. And driving on it was just as amazing. So quiet.

Don't know why it's not everywhere.

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reid0 t1_jdlvw30 wrote

Sure, but I don’t hear any road noise from my apartment except for the odd motorcyclist or car tearing down the street at full throttle, and it’s definitely not the tyres that I’m hearing.

So yep, quieter tyres are great, but EVs’ lack of an obnoxiously and unnecessarily loud exhaust is definitely a big bonus, too.

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RevolutionaryCoyote t1_jdmpzt6 wrote

I have never used the Common Noise Assessment Method that they referred to, since it sounds like a European thing. But I used to work in noise control in the US and even published research on traffic noise modeling.

It sounds like this model would have assessed your home as having low noise impacts, since it's pretty sporadic. They usually are based on average daily traffic counts.

This research is establishing a causal relationship between the steady background noise and increased hypertension. Transient noise from horns or an obnoxious motorcycle are related, but outside of what they were looking into.

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Ftpini t1_jdm44ej wrote

Nah. That’s a dull “hum” that is basically constant. Since it is constant it’s quite easy to tune out and forget it’s there. It’s the engines that break through and become distinct.

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RevolutionaryCoyote t1_jdmonli wrote

That's not what the research in the article says. The research is looking into the constant noise.

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Ftpini t1_jdmt3y4 wrote

Clearly. And constant noise is not a problem. It’s inconsistent noise that is the big problem and what people notice. The article provides only correlation and no causation. It’s just as likely if not more that the exhaust and other air pollution from the cars is the problem.

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RevolutionaryCoyote t1_jdmx8ri wrote

I haven't read the actual research paper, but they claim to have controlled for air pollution and established causation.

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Ftpini t1_jdmzn05 wrote

It’s still just correlation. Showing causation requires a far more precise study than just looking at where they live and whether they developed hypertension or not.

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ytjameslee t1_jdod29u wrote

Tell that to all the assholes with massive trucks who want to be heard, motorcycles, and idiots with modified exhausts. They recently extended a two lane to a four lane by my house and I can’t believe how many asshole drivers there are. It’s a residential area too.

I never heard a loud vehicle then look out my window and saw an EV.

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