Critics Turn Up Volume on EU Vehicle Noise Limits

BRUSSELS – With more than three in four residents of the European Union residing in cities and traffic volumes rising, the number of complaints linked to environmental noise in the region has been increasing.

Members of the European Parliament responded earlier this month by backing proposals from the EU executive, the European Commission, to reduce vehicle noise 25% in cities by the year 2024. According to the Commission, vehicle noise standards had not been refreshed since the 1990s, and a new regulation was drafted in 2011.

The regulation says noise emitted by cars, vans, buses and coaches with combustion engines must be decreased 4 decibels (dB), from 72 dB to 68 dB, during a phase-in period from 2016 to 2026. Various educational and commercial sources peg 72 dB as the approximate sound of a vacuum cleaner from 3 ft. (0.9 m) away, while 68 dB approximates the noise level of normal conversation.

Deadlines and noise limits are adjusted for trucks and other more-powerful vehicles, and vary according to recently revised testing methods.

The new law also would require labels informing buyers of new cars’ noise levels as well as new test methods to measure sound emissions. Electric and hybrid-electric vehicles would be fitted with sound-generating devices that lawmakers believe would improve safety for pedestrians and visually impaired persons.

Miroslav Ouzky, a Czech conservative member of the European Parliament involved in negotiating the legislation, calls it “an optimal compromise that will contribute to the protection of health of our European citizens.”

Ouzky believes the law will not hurt the European automotive industry's competitiveness. But while acknowledging it is high time for some legal certainty and technical predictability on the matter, the ACEA automakers’ association says the noise-reduction levels present many complex technical challenges for vehicle manufacturers.

“To achieve these reduced noise levels, various sectors will need to work together, including with infrastructure providers and tire manufacturers, as non-vehicle factors (such as road surfaces) are a significant cause of road noise,” Erik Jonnaert, ACEA secretary general, tells WardsAuto, noting modern vehicles are 90% quieter than those on the road during the 1970s.

Price to Pay for Lower Noise Levels

The France-based Federation Internationale de l'Automobile, the global governing body for motor sport, cautions that while noise levels definitely should be reduced on the road, this could come at a cost.

“Research and development must be done to provide new technologies and materials for efficient solutions so that there is no additional financial burden for users,” says Jacob Bangsgaard, director general of FIA Region I comprising Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Bangsgaard nevertheless would prefer a shorter phase-in for the regulation: “Although we support the decrease in vehicle noise levels and the targets set by the European Parliament, the FIA feels that the original 2011 timeline…tabled by the Commission (requiring full implementation after seven years rather than 15) would have been a better option to achieve this goal."

Cecile Toubeau, policy officer at Transport & Environment, a Brussels-based nongovernmental organization, agrees. “Because the European car fleet renews every 15 years, the full benefits of lower noise levels will only be heard after 30 years,” she says. “By choosing this weakened proposal, the EU has saved the car industry €1.3 billion ($1.8 billion) in costs, while the cost to society (in terms of noise-related public-health damage) is €67 billion ($93 billion).”

Certainly, environmental advocates wanted a tougher law. Satu Hassi, a Finnish Green League party member of Parliament, tells WardsAuto.com the law is a victory for the “noisy-car lobby…(that) was successful in considerably weakening the legislation based on what was proposed and what is in the interest of the vast majority of EU citizens.

“Given this is the first time this legislation has been updated in 20 years, this is a grossly irresponsible act and a massive missed opportunity.”