Results

The Noise Low Emission Zones Abacus has been realized, as an outcome of preliminary actions. It was carried out in the first months of the project and it contains detailed information about the actual state of the art: the most recent monitoring system of noise and air quality, health indicators, actions and its effects of the noise, air quality and health.

The ‘top-down’ actions have focused on ‘Viale Libertà’. Particularly, in the first months of the project, the Limited Traffic Zone, so-called ZTL, was introduced for the limitation of accesses to the avenue for heavy vehicles - max 3.5 tons initially from December 2018 to May 2019 and max 7.5 tons from May 2019 to August 2020-. An alternative pathway has been foreseen for excluded means of transports outside the city centre.

1) On large scale, the low-noise asphalt represents the main instrument for the decrease of the traffic noise through interventions at the noise source and nowadays several technologies are available and based on composition, used materials and field of use.

For the laying of the asphalt, the typology “Dense graded at optimized weaving” has been chosen, which guarantees results of 3-4 dB(A) in term of acoustic abatement and an efficiency period of about five years from the laying. In Figure 1 the section of Viale Libertà interested by the new asphalt laying is shown. In this road the work has foreseen the removal of the old road surface and the laying of 4 cm of link-layer (BINDER) and 4 cm of DENSE GRADED asphalt on the top.

The laying works for the new low-noise asphalt started on Monday 17th September 2018 and finished on Saturday 22nd.

Figure 1 – Detail design of interventions in Viale Libertà

Figure 2 – New road pavement on Viale Libertà (photo taken by LIFE MONZA staff)

2) Regarding the limitations of the traffic in the pilot area of Libertà district, the first one was already ongoing since 21st January 2019. For the first six months (January-July 2019) the access to vehicles heavier than 3,5 ton was forbidden, whereas in the following three months (July- October 2019) the limitation regarded only vehicles heavier than 7,5 ton.

Among the activities carried out in the LIFE MONZA project, the noise monitoring has been planned in the ante and post-operam scenario, by using both the class I instrumentation and a new low-cost monitoring sensor network developed into the project, in order to study the efficiency of interventions planned to reduce the traffic noise in this area. Moreover, some counter-traffic units were put in place to monitor road traffic flows.

About bottom-up actions, for encouraging the involvement of citizens in the project phase, a “Pedibus” service has been provided in school years 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 for all pupils of the primary school located in Viale Libertà.

Pedibus foresees the following actions:

  • Survey of scholastic mobility through a questionnaire to school students;
  • Educational meeting at school with students and teachers;
  • A meeting for the awareness, coordination and monitoring of the mid-term assessment on the pedibus.

 

A meeting for the Libertà City Centre was carried out in November 2018 together with local associations and citizens to create a group of voluntaries as helpers and supporters of the Pedibus (Figure 3).

Figure 3 – Meeting of the steering committee of Libertà district (photo taken by LIFE MONZA staff)

It was decided to design a free application for mobile phones that can manage some Pedibus services and another service called “on foot or by bike in Libertà”, which measures the movements people do while walking or cycling within the Libertà district, with incentives for more virtuous citizens.

Moreover, acoustics data are available within the App and they will have periodical assessments thanks to the HARMONICA index. Accessory services and additional tools, suggested by citizens, will be available in this App.

Following networking activity with other projects such as LIFE DYNAMAP project which developed a low-cost technology of the monitoring Smart noise monitoring system and one of a low cost have been designed. The network of monitoring has ten sensors and has been installed in strategical positions in Libertà district (Figures 4,5).

Figure 4 – Sensors of the network of low-cost acoustic monitoring (photo taken by LIFE MONZA staff)

Figure 5 – Smart sensor of the network of low-cost acoustic monitoring (photo taken by LIFE MONZA staff)

In Figure 6, the noise monitoring positions are shown, together with the positions of counter-traffic control units and low-cost sensors (Smart Noise Monitoring System “SNMS”) to evaluate noise pollution both in ante and post-operam scenario.