Regina looking at possibility of pressing pause on noise monitoring
The next Regina city council meeting is likely to be a noisy affair — not because of the volume in the council chamber, but rather because of one of the topics set to be discussed.
The city is looking to amend its Roadway Noise Attenuation policy to remove noise-monitoring activities from the city's responsibilities until a new policy is in place.
A vote on the motion is expected at the April 29 city council meeting.
It's a move that would save the city some $43,000 a year, according to a report presented to the city's public works committee at its April 18 meeting.
In the past the city paid Golder Associates Ltd. to study noise along 10 major transportation routes and determine if they met the standards for acceptable sound levels.
Two locations — Ring Road adjacent to Dewdney Avenue, and the Highway 1 bypass near Shannon Road — were identified as exceeding the current policy limits for noise.
"Golder indicated 2.3 kilometres of noise attenuation would be required to address those two locations," the report says.
Golder's study indicated that an additional 12.24 kilometres of noise reduction barriers are expected to be required at 24 more locations by 2024, according to the report.
Ward 5 Coun. John Findura called the policy outdated during the public works committee meeting earlier this month.
CBC News tried to contact Findura for comment on the matter, but he was unavailable by deadline.
The policy was adopted in 1990 to address roadway noise from high-speed and high-volume roadways.
If it votes in favour of the plan, the City of Regina's administration will look to modernize the policy to update its language and address best practices in measurement, modelling and noise level standards.
In the meantime, the onus for constructing noise attenuation barriers in new developments would be the responsibility of those constructing them — part of their current requirements.
Residents coping with noise levels
People who live near the Dewdney Avenue on-ramp to Ring Road told CBC News they've either learned to adjust to the noise or have introduced their own coping mechanisms.
"The on-ramp is where we notice the noise, because everybody's picking up speed," said resident Craig Selensky.
Some in his neighbourhood are working to reinsulate their houses against the noise from the on-ramp. Others, like Selensky, simply close their windows to shut out the sounds.
He said his wife works early morning shifts and she can't sleep unless the windows of their home are closed.
Selensky said he used to live closer to Dewdney Avenue, and that was louder than the noise that came from the on-ramp he hears on a daily basis now.
"We have to accommodate for it right now," Selensky said.
"It'd be nice to leave the windows open in the evenings, but in that case, the noise levels are just too high."