Page 223 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 16 February 2011
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MR STANHOPE (Ginninderra—Chief Minister, Minister for Transport, Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, Minister for Business and Economic Development, Minister for Land and Property Services, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs and Minister for the Arts and Heritage) (5.23): I thank Mr Smyth for the motion, for his representation and for his advocacy for the residents of Falkiner Place. I too have received a representation in relation to this issue—one representation from one resident over the last 10 years. I agree that it is an issue that has been raised with the government.
These are important issues. I think we all appreciate how important it is that we can enjoy all the amenity of living in this fantastic garden city of ours. The noise generated by passing traffic is an issue that is raised with the government from time to time. We all know that it is an important issue. In some regards, it is a subjective issue; noise does impact on different people in different ways.
Mr Smyth makes the point that something that is important in relation to noise is the perception of noise—of how loud a particular road is. In relation to traffic noise in Macarthur generated from Isabella Drive, as I have just indicated, I became aware of the issue last year when a resident of Falkiner Place wrote to me shortly after the earth mound which Mr Smyth has referred to, which acts as a barrier for traffic noise, was reduced in height as a consequence of some work that was undertaken by Telstra. That did occur; we acknowledge that.
In response to the letter, I asked the department to investigate the situation. They did, and they did so thoroughly. Roads ACT arranged for a traffic noise survey to be conducted from this resident’s backyard from 1 to 9 June 2010. The survey indicated, measured over that period of nine days, that the average traffic noise levels ranged from 54 to 59 decibels, which is well within the ACT traffic noise guidelines of 65 decibels for an established residential area. The noise level was measured from one metre from the rear of the house.
The ACT traffic noise guidelines are similar to traffic noise standards in most other jurisdictions in Australia and have been in place since 1996. I have been advised that the traffic noise report that was developed as a result of the request from the resident at Falkiner Place was provided to the resident; on the basis of that traffic noise report, there is no technical requirement to provide additional measures to ameliorate traffic noise from the nearby Isabella Drive.
However, as I have already indicated, I and the government take this issue seriously. The peace, the quiet enjoyment and the amenity of one’s home are very highly valued. I acknowledge and I accept that even a perception that these amenities, most particularly peace and quiet enjoyment, have been eroded is a source of concern.
Let me go to what I think is the nub of the government’s position in response to this particular issue. This is the nub of the issue, and it is a position which we take in government. Interestingly, it is the position which the previous government took in government and it is the position which Mr Smyth took when he was minister for territory and municipal services. The department does have specifications, does
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