Assessment of Traffic Noise Pollution in Al-Khobar, a Typical City in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

(Abdul Aziz bin Ibrahim Ghonaimy)

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Abstract

city. The main objective of this study was to evaluate traffic noise pollution in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) cities. Four major streets were monitored: those are, Dhahran, king abdulaziz, Amir Turki street and twenty eight. The monitoring was conducted for a duration of 24 hours for most of the selected locations. Equivalent A-weighted sound pressure level (LAeq) index was used, and the effect of workday and weekend traffic were investigated. A variation noticed in the results. The results indicate that traffic noise levels in al-Khobar are higher than those recommended by noise standards for the day, afternoon and evening periods residential and commercial areas. Spectral analyses of the sound pressure show consistent behavior of typical spectrum of freely flowing traffic stream. The study confirms the urgent need to establish a center in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for noise pollution monitoring and to develop local traffic noise standards. Key word: noise pollution assessment, traffic noise, KSA noise survey.
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