On the Nicosia Perimeter Road, sound barriers have been placed even in places where the earth is elevated and is in itself a "cutter" of sound, as evidenced by relevant photos that we publish. At the same time, in some cases, the nearest houses are hundreds of meters away. In other places behind the sound barriers there are only fields.
It is noted that the problem with the large front/length of the sound barriers had been identified by the Public Works, on the initiative of which part of them was not implemented.
However, in some places the sound barriers were installed and at first glance in the eyes of a non-expert it seems that the installation was not justified and may even constitute a waste of public money.
The answer given to "F" regarding the sound barriers which are intended to be installed at a future stage and which, on a nationwide basis, extend over a length of 50,000 meters with the cost being duly estimated at €100 million.
Of course, the Department of Public Works clarifies that the sound barriers will not be installed overnight and the installation will be implemented according to the financial capabilities of the state.
The Department of Public Works, in response to a relevant question from "F", states that
"the location of the noise barriers in the Nicosia Perimeter Project was determined by the environmental study carried out through computer simulations and taking into account areas with existing or future developments". In other words, the Department recognizes what is visible to the naked eye. That is, that there are no houses near the highway and by extension the sound barriers. However, he refers to the long term with the reasoning that "somewhere, at some point the area will develop. It is noted that the number of cacti located at a great distance from the sound barriers is minimal. After all, it is a question whether some will choose to build or buy along the busy Perimeter.
The Department of Public Works adds that a "similar tactic" (installation of sound barriers after a study and after taking into account future development) "is now followed in all major projects, so that the installation of sound barriers is included in the construction contract of the project and there is no need for their retrospective design and construction with a separate contract and significantly higher costs".
As stated in the Department's response, "for phase A1 that has been completed and given to traffic, the noise barriers were placed according to the relevant study and always at the level of the highway and at the boundary of the road surface, i.e. as close as possible to the source of the noise, in order to prevent its diffusion".
In the same response of the Department, it is stated that "in areas where there are trenches at the required height of sound barriers on the back side, the environmental study was reviewed and a small reduction in the length of the noise barriers was made, only to the extent that this reduction would not affect their effectiveness". In other words, it is recognized that the study was not gospel and that it obviously provided for an excessive length of sound barriers or in any case more than is considered necessary and that is why they were reduced, even if the reduction is characterized as "small".
The Department also states that "for the purposes of the effectiveness of the sound barriers, important parameters are the height, the distance from the noise source (traffic lane) and the continuous length of the sound barrier so that there is no lateral diffusion of noise. In order to ensure these parameters in the area in question in a uniform manner, it was necessary, as mentioned, to overcover the sound barrier and the trench in some sections.
It is noted that from our on-site visit we found that the length of the sound floors which were placed in front of elevated points, which in some cases are higher than the sound barriers, is not negligible.
Their total length is two and a half thousand meters - Gradual installation is planned in areas adjacent to expressways
The Department states in its response that the total length of the noise barriers installed in Phase A1 is 2,522 meters, with a total cost of €1,574,863, which is equivalent to less than half the cost per current meter of noise barriers installed retrospectively on roads that have already been built. Based on the above numbers, each measure costs €624.
According to Public Works, in other areas with noise, where noise barriers have not yet been installed, their gradual installation is planned in areas adjacent to expressways, with traffic of more than three million vehicles per year and with a minimum speed limit of 80 km/h. They inform us that these cases in the existing road network throughout Cyprus exceed 50,000 meters in length and have a very high implementation cost (over €100 million).
Therefore, the Department of Public Works continues in its answer, the competent departments (Urban Planning, Environment, Public Works) have agreed that the installation of new noise barriers, in the areas where noise levels beyond the limits proposed by the Department of Environment are measured, is done gradually and with a prioritization of priorities, to cover sensitive receivers (e.g. schools, hospitals) and densely populated areas.
