How to solve the noise problem when the road is in front of the house? Ventilated and soundproof windows have the answer!

On June 13th, Southern Metropolis Daily reported on the noise pollution caused by Shenzhen's elevated subway lines, sparking widespread resonance across the city. Following the report, it quickly garnered strong responses in various Shenzhen homeowner groups and on social media, with readership rapidly exceeding 100,000 across multiple platforms, generating countless comments and shares, becoming a hot topic of public discussion. On July 2nd, the 39th meeting of the 7th Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress Standing Committee held a special inquiry into Shenzhen's noise pollution prevention and control efforts. Han Liqing, Director of the Shenzhen Municipal Transportation Bureau, and Huang Liping, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of Shenzhen Metro Group Co., Ltd., answered questions from members of the Standing Committee on how to reduce noise pollution in situations where the subway was built before housing development.

What measures should be taken to address the situation where roads are built before buildings are constructed?

The elevated lines in the 37km sensitive area have all reduced their operating speeds.

At the inquiry meeting, Yang Yunbiao, director of the Representatives' Working Committee of the Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress Standing Committee, asked whether the Transportation Bureau and the Metro Group had taken any measures to reduce residents' complaints and maintain social stability, given that the subway was built before the housing was constructed.

In response, Han Liqing, Director of the Shenzhen Municipal Transportation Bureau, stated on-site, "We have not completely shifted the responsibility to the developers and local governments. Based on the legal principle of 'later construction must yield to earlier construction,' we have worked with the Metro Group to take comprehensive measures to reduce noise to the greatest extent possible. In addition, we have actively coordinated with the district government and relevant developers to reduce noise by adding soundproof windows and installing fresh air systems."

Huang Liping, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of Shenzhen Metro Group Co., Ltd., also admitted that the noise pollution from rail transit mainly comes from some of the early-built elevated lines, concentrated on Line 4 and Phase I and II of Line 5, from the impact noise generated by the collision of wheels running on the tracks. In 2024, approximately 7,000 employees were working from midnight to early morning every day to maintain the normal operation of the network, carrying out maintenance and repairs. A total of 87km of rails were ground, and nearly 18km of rails were coated with oil. Measures such as reducing the operating speed were implemented on 37km of elevated lines in sensitive areas. Starting from the second phase of Phase III, the entire line has been converted to underground.

How to solve the problem of noise pollution that "meets standards but still disturbs residents"?

We will begin to develop standards that are more in line with local realities.

During the inquiry meeting, a representative of the National People's Congress pointed out that there is still a certain difference between the methods of noise assessment and the subjective feelings of the public. Is this due to flaws in the relevant standards? How will the Ecological and Environmental Protection Bureau address this issue?

Li Shuisheng, Director of the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment, stated that the phenomenon of noise levels "meeting standards but still disturbing residents" is quite common. This is mainly because the impact of noise on people is highly subjective, and current monitoring methods require continuous measurement for 20 minutes and averaging. Even if the final result meets the standards, a sudden high-intensity noise (such as a loud bang) can still wake residents. The limitations of this monitoring method also bring practical difficulties to noise management. To address this, the Bureau of Ecology and Environment is taking two measures: First, it is developing standards more suited to local conditions. Second, in terms of monitoring, it will include the "annoyance level" of noise in the monitoring scope based on specific circumstances. During this process, it will specifically evaluate sharp and particularly loud sudden noises to more comprehensively assess whether the noise situation in the area is reasonable.

The above content is quoted from: Southern Metropolis Daily

The problem of traffic noise pollution from elevated roads, subways, and railway tracks is not unique to Shenzhen; it exists in almost every city. While common control measures can bring noise levels up to standard, the impact of noise on people is highly subjective. Meeting noise standards does not mean that noise is no longer a nuisance. To reduce the impact of noise on people, it is not enough to control it at the source; an additional layer of defense is needed. Ventilated and soundproof windows are this layer of defense, effectively solving the problem that traditional soundproof windows do not block sound when open and do not provide ventilation when closed.