Increasing complaints about traffic noise along regional roads has led one regional councillor to suggest staff needs to come up with a master plan that would see noise walls installed in the same way sidewalks and bike lanes are added to road projects now.
Coun. Sean Strickland was speaking to calls for a solution to traffic noise for residents along Highland Road West in Kitchener at Tuesday's planning and public works committee meeting when he made the suggestion to make noise walls part of high-traffic regional road project regardless of what noise studies say.
Council recently agreed to spend $2 million to add noise walls to the end of Franklin Boulevard in Cambridge after staff discovered a "miscalculation" in a decade old noise study that predicted traffic sounds, where it links to McQueen Shaver Boulevard, wouldn't be as bad as they are.
Residents whose homes back on to the south boundary road have been calling for the same for months.
But they won't get their answer until noise modeling and traffic data is completed for a study that could see McQueen Shaver become a designated heavy truck bypass.
In the meantime, regional staff have said decibel levels from traffic along the city's southern boundary are below the threshold that requires noise mitigation.
“Residents don’t want to hear about physics and the engineering of sound,” a frustrated Strickland told regional staff following a lengthy presentation about noise models and projected decibel levels on Highland Road West.
He believes it’s time to take a “more holistic approach” to the issue, saying it’s not a criticism of staff.
“It’s the taxpayers’ money and if so many folks keep coming to us on a consistent basis concerned about noise because of increased traffic along a regional roads, rather than getting into these bun fights about whether they get a wall, or whether they don’t, or they pay for it or we pay for it, or the developer should have paid for it 30 years ago, I think we should look at a plan on how to put noise attenuation walls at taxpayers’ expense along regional roads,” he said.
He wants to see a long term plan for noise walls, similar to plans for sidewalks and cycling infrastructure and asked that it be referred back to staff for an idea of how much it would cost.
“We don’t have to do it in a year, we don’t have to do it in 10 years. Maybe it’s 50 or 20 years.
“I think we need to find a way to solve this problem, rather than constantly getting into these battles with residents,” he said.
North Dumfries Mayor Sue Foxton agreed, saying she was going to suggest the same herself.
“I think anywhere where we’re putting in four lanes should automatically be walls for residences,” she said.
But commissioner of transportation and environmental services Thomas Schmidt said staff would need a considerable amount of time to think about the approach in terms of criteria.
“I don’t think it’s going to come down to just a dollars and cents question,” Schmidt said, adding it would impact more than just budget and include the nature of the road and roadscape design.
Chair Karen Redman agreed, saying the issue is larger than a simple referral to staff. She called it “a philosophical change” with large implications in terms of budget and legacy impact to future councils. She wanted the request added to a motion.
Strickland then asked for a motion, saying he understands the "complexities and far reaching implications," but believes staff should be able to bring something forward for budget consideration in November that would allow council to debate the cost implications.
Foxton said another option she wants staff to consider is the idea of forcing developers to install noise walls, but was unsure if it was feasible.
The motion carried unanimously.
