Environmental noise
Environmental or ambient noise is the general sound that can be heard in any locality. It can come from a variety of sources but the biggest sources are from transport and industry.
For overview of the ambient noise environment in large urban areas and from major transport sources in England see Defra's noise mapping website
In Camden road traffic is the main source of ambient noise. Railways and aircraft do lead to complaints in a few areas, but noise from industry is of very limited significance.
We undertake surveys of environmental noise from time to time to monitor environmental noise trends in the borough.
In 2004, we worked with the Greater London Authority and three other inner London boroughs (Southwark, Tower Hamlets and Westminster) to monitor environmental noise levels in inner London and to compare these with a national survery that the Government carried out in 2001.
The results showed that environmental noise levels in Camden are amongst the highest in the country. Key findings were:
- inner London noise levels were higher than outer London levels by nearly 4dB
- the relatively quiet night time period is of shorter duration in Greater London than the UK average
- the difference in noise level between day and night is smaller in inner and central London than in outer London, and smaller in all of London than the UK average
- there is significant variation between sites and boroughs within inner London, with the average noise level for the measurements sites in Southwark being lower than those for Camden and Tower Hamlets, and similar to those for the outer London boroughs measured in NNIS. Additionally, the average levels for Westminster are higher than those for Camden and Tower Hamlets.
- road traffic noise was audible at all inner London measurement sites, and aircraft noise was audible at a higher proportion of sites that was the case for the national survey
In 2006 and 2007, we conducted our own more detailed survey at four locations in the borough, with support from Transport for London, monitoring continuously at each site for one week. The four sites were Camden Town Hall, Finchley Road at Swiss Cottage, Caversham Road in Kentish Town, and Dancers End in Highgate. The sites were intended to reflect the variety of locations in the borough, from sites near busy roads to quieter residential locations. Key findings were:
- levels measured in 2006 and 2007 were very similar, indicating that environmental noise levels are stable
- levels measured at Camden Town Hall and Swiss Cottage were signicantly higher than the average level for Camden established in the 2004 London Noise Survey
- average 24 hour levels at Kentish Town and Highgate were slightly below the UK average, although the night-time levels at Kentish Town were above the UK average
The full reports are available for you to read:
Contact Camden 020 7974 4444