Case study: Prediction and field tests of railway noise and effects of a low-height noise barrier

Railway noise is calculated to predict the impact of new or reconstructed railway tracks on nearby residential areas. The results are used to prepare adequate countermeasures, and the calculation results are directly related to the cost of the action plans. The calculated values were used to produce noise maps for each area of interest. The Schall 03 2012 is one of the most frequently used methods for the production of noise maps. The latest version was released in 2012 and uses various input parameters associated with the latest rail vehicles and track systems in Germany. This version has not been sufficiently used in South Korea, and there is a lack of standard guidelines and a precise manual for Korean railway systems. Thus, it is not clear what input parameters will match specific local cases. This study investigates the modeling procedure for Korean railway systems and the differences between calculated railway sound levels and measured values obtained using the Schall 03 2012 model. Depending on the location of sound receivers, the difference between the calculated and measured values was within approximately 4 dB for various train types. In the case of high-speed trains, the value was approximately 7 dB. A noise-reducing measure was also modeled. The noise reduction effect of a low-height noise barrier system was predicted and evaluated for operating railway sites within the framework of a national research project in Korea. The comparison of calculated and measured values showed differences within 2.5 dB. © 2020 Institute of Noise Control Engineering.