PLANNING AND DESIGN OF NEW RAILWAYS - NOISE AND VIBRATION CONTROL

The promoter of a new railway scheme in the UK must examine its noise and vibration impacts in great detail, to be able to handle the inevitable issues arising during the passage of the necessary Act of Parliament. This paper discusses the legal requirements for the control of noise during railway construction and from operating railways, and for environmental impact assessment. Noise from construction is subject to: (1) Sections 60 and 61 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974; (2) Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act; and (3) the common law of nuisance. At the time of writing, there were no specific legal requirements relating to noise or vibration from operating railways, but their impacts must be assessed in an Environmental Statement. The Mitchell Committee, reporting in 1991, recommended a scheme where noise insulation is provided for buildings under certain specified criteria relating to various noise levels. The relation of these criteria to actual practice for new railways in London is discussed. Environmental Statements must allow for the noise and vibration effects of: (1) intensification of existing rail corridors; (2) establishment of new rail corridors; (3) reinstatement of disused rail corridors; and (4) street-running tramways and other special cases. For the covering abstract see IRRD 867830.