TRAFFIC NOISE
3.1.2.3 VLärmSchR 97: Guidelines for Traffic Noise Protection at Federal Highways of Public Easement

The Guidelines for Traffic Noise Protection apply to structural measures at federal highways of public easement

• at the planning stage (noise control through planning),
• when new roads are constructed or existing roads substantially modified (noise precaution),
• when noise pollution is subsequently reduced at existing roads (acoustic treatment) and
• for compensatory measures when disturbances continue.

The Traffic Noise Protection Guidelines thus combine the provisions of the 16th Federal Immission Control Ordinance (noise precaution) and those of the 24th Federal Immission Control Ordinance (noise abatement measures at buildings) and add provisions on noise control at existing roads (acoustic treatment). They are especially applied and referred to for acoustic treatment measures.

The regulations on noise abatement measures (active noise protection, noise-reducing surfaces) have been subject to several modifications during the past years. The action values for noise abatement as laid down in the original version were reduced by 3 dB each by the Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development in June 2010. This reduction was adopted in Baden-Württemberg in a letter by the Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Transport addressed to the regional administrative authorities on 9 August 2010 for roads in the responsibility of the Länder. The letter recommended that district and local authorities shall adopt the regulations and apply them to roads within their responsibility.

They regulate that acoustic treatment measures at roads of public or federal state easement are to be considered if the rating levels calculated according to RLS-90 exceed one of the following action values (previously called immission limit values) (see table 3/4):

Table 3/4: Action values for acoustic treatment measures at roads of public or federal state easement (in dB(A))

When these values are exceeded, the road construction authorities can grant a voluntary assistance in line with their available means and implement active noise abatement measures or cover 75 % of the costs for soundproof windows. The expression "voluntary assistance" makes clear that there is no legal claim here.