After a promising trial in 2023 in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France, Groupe Renault has announced a partnership with Bruitparif to create the first real map of the acoustic state of the streets of the Ile-de-France region. This project, according to the French giant, is a significant step towards greater environmental awareness and more efficient management of road infrastructure.
Acoustic monitoring with advanced technology
The project involves the use of a thirty Megane E-Tech vehiclesequipped with sensors and a device called Apache box, developed by engineers from the Renault Group. These vehicles will measure, for a period of two years, the noise levels of the roads they travel on, following the movements of their owners. The intensity of road noise is a crucial indicator of the state of deterioration of the roads themselves: between a recent road surface, which offers good sound absorption properties, and an old or severely deteriorated one, the rolling noise produced by vehicles can vary significantly, with a ratio of up to 1 to 10.
Environmental and energy impacts
The deterioration of the roads not only affects the acoustic comfort, but also increases the rolling resistance of vehicles. This increase in resistance translates into greater energy consumption and increased emissions of CO2 and polluting particles, as well as tire abrasion. Therefore, monitoring the acoustic condition of roads is not only a matter of quality of life, but also of environmental sustainability.
Benefits for local authorities
Creating a detailed road noise map will enable local authorities to better understand the real state of the road network for which they are responsible. With information that until now was not available in an exhaustive manner, administrations will be able to make more informed decisions regarding the restoration of roads, intervening as a priority in the most critical areas. In short, this initiative will not only contribute to the reduction of noise pollution, but will also have positive effects on public health, mitigating the negative impacts of road traffic. And Renault is the protagonist.
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