Droitwich residents say "Stop the noise" - M5 report responses

9.48.24pm GMT Thu 18th Mar 2010

Noise from M5 is now a serious problem

Residents in the Droitwich area have made their views known about the noise nuisance caused by the closeness of the motorway in their response to a consultation report last year.

Draft noise action plans drawn up by defra included the M5 through Droitwich Spa and Wychbold as 'first priority locations' and local authorities and members of the public were invited to respond to the plans.

In spite of stakeholder workshops being held at 5 different locations across England (not including Droitwich) during September 2009, the majority of responses were from the Droitwich area.

56 local residents responded to a consultation conducted by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (defra) which ended last November. There were only 19 responses from the rest of the country submitted by private individuals.

Cllr Margaret Rowley, who had made local residents aware of the consultation last year, said

"Previous meetings we have arranged with defra and the Highways Agency have played down the problems of noise from the M5 in the area, but the government cannot ignore the results of this consultation.

" Now further investigations will be carried out to look at what measures can be taken."

Authorities can propose measures such as sound barriers alongside roads, better road surfaces, and lower speed limits for drivers. Insulation such as secondary glazing might also be installed in affected homes.

Defra has also published the Noise Policy Statement for England which sets out noise management policy for the first time with a long term vision to manage noise and improve health and the quality of life. All the documents can be seen by following links from www.defra.gov.uk/news/2010/100315c.