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Quiet Areas and the Need for Quietness in Amsterdam

Author

Listed:
  • Hester Booi

    (Department for Research and Statistics (O+S), Municipality of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 2200, 1000 CE Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

  • Frits Van den Berg

    (Public Health Services (GGD), Municipality of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 2200, 1000 CE Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

Abstract

This paper describes the Quiet Places Project in Amsterdam. The purpose of the study was to find out: (1) which public quiet places there are according to Amsterdam residents; (2) what characterizes a quiet place; (3) to what extent do residents want peace and quiet; (4) how do residents realize these needs. The factors determining the need for quietness are presented in a model showing the influence of demographic and socio-economic issues, health status, sensitiveness to noise, daily activities and the noisiness in and around home. Most important of these factors is sensitivity to noise. Elderly and less healthy people are more often sensitive to noise. People who are annoyed by sound from traffic, airplanes and the like show a higher need for quietness. People with a lively household or neighbourhood report lower needs for quietness. Visiting a quiet place and going outside to walk or bike can have a compensating effect on the need for quietness. This suggests that creating quiet places and enhancing possibilities for quiet recreation in urban environments can have a positive effect on the quality of life in the city. Objective noise levels at the quiet places were taken from environmental noise maps. This shows that there may be a preference for low transportation noise levels, but levels up to 60 dB L day are acceptable. Apparently this depends on a relative quietness or on non-acoustic characteristics of an area: the presence of vegetation and other pleasant stimuli.

Suggested Citation

  • Hester Booi & Frits Van den Berg, 2012. "Quiet Areas and the Need for Quietness in Amsterdam," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-21, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:9:y:2012:i:4:p:1030-1050:d:16839
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Gunnar Cerwén & Frans Mossberg, 2019. "Implementation of Quiet Areas in Sweden," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-18, January.
    2. Yvonne De Kluizenaar & Sabine A. Janssen & Henk Vos & Erik M. Salomons & Han Zhou & Frits Van den Berg, 2013. "Road Traffic Noise and Annoyance: A Quantification of the Effect of Quiet Side Exposure at Dwellings," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-13, June.
    3. Robert Thorne & Daniel Shepherd, 2013. "Quiet as an Environmental Value: A Contrast between Two Legislative Approaches," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-19, July.
    4. Sarah R. Payne & Neil Bruce, 2019. "Exploring the Relationship between Urban Quiet Areas and Perceived Restorative Benefits," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-25, May.
    5. Aggelos Tsaligopoulos & Stella Kyvelou & Nefta-Eleftheria Votsi & Aimilia Karapostoli & Chris Economou & Yiannis G. Matsinos, 2021. "Revisiting the Concept of Quietness in the Urban Environment—Towards Ecosystems’ Health and Human Well-Being," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-19, March.
    6. Yalcin Yildirim & Diane Jones Allen & Amy Albright, 2019. "The Relationship between Sound and Amenities of Transit-Oriented Developments," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-19, July.
    7. Francesco Aletta & Tin Oberman & Jian Kang, 2018. "Associations between Positive Health-Related Effects and Soundscapes Perceptual Constructs: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-15, October.
    8. David Welch & Mark Reybrouck & Piotr Podlipniak, 2022. "Meaning in Music Is Intentional, but in Soundscape It Is Not—A Naturalistic Approach to the Qualia of Sounds," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-18, December.

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