Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to undertake work to reduce road traffic noise along major roads.

Highways England is committed to mitigating noise pollution on the Strategic Road Network. Highways England’s key performance indicator for noise requires mitigation to be installed at 1,150 Noise Important Areas by the end of the first Road Investment Strategy period in March 2020. To support this objective Highways England is:

• installing low noise surfacing, where appropriate, as part of the road renewal programme, for example outside houses, schools and hospitals;
• when delivering schemes, seeking to mitigate potential noise impacts in line with national policy, through the use of: low noise surfacing, noise barriers, earth bunds, and through the scheme design process;
• delivering new noise barriers through the Environmental Designated Fund, and renewal of existing noise barriers where required; and
• installing acoustic glazing to residential properties in Noise Important Areas, delivered through the Environmental Designated Fund.

Further to the work of HE, the Department for Transport is promoting the use of Electric Vehicles which will significantly reduce the noise pollution on major roads.