Seamless noise-reduction screens to reduce sound from ring roads

IMPROVED noise-reduction screens will be set up along the Middle Ring Road this year, and noise-reducing road surface material will be laid in Hongkou District.


The screens and asphalt are needed to cut down noise on elevated roads, as a large number of highrise apartment buildings have been built along those roads and residents often complain about noise late at night.


"It's important to upgrade infrastructure material to reduce noise, which is harmful to people's health," said Qian Jianguo of the Shanghai Engineering Administrative Bureau.
 The new noise-reduction screens reduce sounds by about 10 decibels, while the old screens only reduced noise by about six to seven decibels.
The improvement is due to seamless links between panels on the screens, that prevent noise from penetrating them. Officials refused to say how much the new screens cost, however, or compare the price to the old screens.


The new screens will first be installed along the under-construction Middle Ring Road - which is scheduled to be put into use by the end of this year.


Currently, about 20 percent of the 78 kilometers of elevated roads in downtown have been equipped with the screens.
It will take several years to set up the screens along the Inner Ring Road, which was constructed in the early 1990s when there were very few tall residential buildings alongside the artery.


According to the city's urban planning authority, there are more than 4,800 existing and under-construction tall buildings - those over 18 stories - in Shanghai.


"Noise-reduction screens will play some role in reducing noise, but most importantly, the government should strictly control construction near the elevated roads," said Zhao Guotong, an environmental protection expert.


On the ground, the Hongkou District government will use noise-reduction asphalt to renovate the surface of Shanyin Road.


The new asphalt has more small openings, which can absorb three to five decibels of noise.


According to Zhu Jianming, head of Hongkou's environment monitoring station, if the new surface works well, the district will use it on other streets this year.