VIBRATION DAMAGE TO OCCUPIED BUILDINGS

This report presents the results of an investigation into the possible effects of traffic induced vibration on roadside dwellings. The programme of research was designed by the Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL) and Travers Morgan Planning. Three separate study areas in Great Britain were selected - King's Lynn, Bridgewater, and Cardiff - representing a combination of conditions of high traffic exposure and poor soil conditions. These study areas were considered representative of generally worst case conditions in terms of possible building damage effects from vibration. At each site, an extensive survey of building damage was made at properties fronting both heavily trafficked and quiet side roads. A paired comparison of damage effects was then made for each area. Measurements of noise and vibration, soil conditions and building settlement were also made at individual properties within each study area. The results showed that there was no apparent difference in the extent of major damage effects between properties fronting heavily trafficked roads and controls. Problems in detecting small differences in damage and in discovering historical damage covered up by redecoration works were, however, apparent during the survey. It remains a possibility that more subtle damage effects may therefore occur near busy roads and this requires further investigation. Measurements of the front facades of the houses indicated some tilting in many cases. A higher proportion of the tilting was towards the road than away from the road, but this was observed in both exposed and control sites, so it is not a consequence of traffic volume or vibration. The cause is unknown, though it may be connected to road structure or drainage. It may also be a result of all walls of a building tilting outwards due to spreading of the building at roof level. (TRRL)