So here we are- little gusts of wind, mostly overcast day. Over a mile from one expressway I-55 and just under 1 mile to the other expressway I-294. When we bought our house in 2003- it was quiet. I study bird song for a living and yes, it was quiet at and around our house. I cannot speak for those who live near the park as we didn't have children at the time. We are outdoor people- lots of bicycle riding, hiking, gardening, ice skating, cross country skiing, etc... To think we would not notice 50 dB traffic noise any day of the week- let alone a weekend is a joke. To imply that it has always been that way is a bigger joke because I find it hard to sleep with the windows closed at 50 dB let alone when we have our windows open at night which is most of the spring and summer (a good chunk of fall too).
We noticed a few years ago now that the traffic noise had increased dramatically. Considering an increase of 10 decibels gives the impression of the sound level doubling by most people- yes, studies have been done and I will try to find those and cite them. I contacted public works and the current mayor. The response from public works was that an incredible number of ash trees had been removed leading to the increase. The mayor, on the other hand said he has been living in the village for 15+ years and had no sense of an increase in sound. In fact it turns out he live only a few block away from me. His response in no way was rude- he just pointed out he did not sense any increase in noise.
So- I started an experiment 1 year ago on March 1st 2015. I've been using a Bruel & Kjaer 2209 sound meter to check the sound levels in the morning. I started measuring sound levels as I leave for work near 73rd and Oak Grove Ave. The link below is the doc I've been compiling. In most cases the sound from I-294 direction is greater.
To give you some background, at 38 dB the road noise is very quiet and takes some effort to pick out. At 42 dB the road noise is very tolerable, at 45 dB it starts to drowned out everything else, at ~48 dB it sounds louder than the birds singing and can be heard through double pane windows if the house is quiet (e.g. sleeping at night). No recordings are done while local traffic can be seen or heard and no trains/planes.
Oh, and for the brick I found on my lawn that was written "STOP" on; here is your one word answer "NO". I didn't feel obliged to answer via brick-
Follow me logging the traffic noise levels here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IpXXYpW4u5Ey7fHMUo721Wq45kjGIL8gQCU0Kuw-36I/edit?usp=sharing
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