APPENDIX M NOISE ANALYSIS

APPENDIX M NOISE ANALYSIS

McCORMICK RANKIN CORPORATION 2655 North Sheridan Way, Suite 300 Mississauga, Ontario, L5K 2P8 Tel: (905)823-8500 Fax: (905) 823-8503 E-mail: mrc@mrc.ca Website: www.mrc.ca MEMO TO: Andrew Head, Halton Region FROM: Gino Dela Cruz, MRC DATE: August 25, 2011 (Revised June 13, 2012) COPIES: Marek Trzaski, MRC; Greg Moore, Ecoplans OUR FILE: 7695 SUBJECT: Tremaine Road Class EA Derry Rd. to Britannia Rd. 1. INTRODUCTION Halton Region retained MRC to undertake the Tremaine Road, from Derry Road to Britannia Road, Class Environmental Assessment (EA) Study in the Town of Milton. This study is being conducted in accordance with Schedule C of the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (October 2000, amended 2007 & 2011), which is approved under the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act. As part of the Class EA Study, a noise assessment was conducted by MRC which is documented herein. 2. STUDY AREA Tremaine Road is currently a rural north-south two-lane arterial road (Regional Road 22) beginning at Dundas Street in the Town of Oakville/City of Burlington extending north of Highway 401 in the Town of Milton. Located on the west periphery of the Town of Milton, the Tremaine Road corridor traverses through rural area in the south and then into the Milton Urban Area in the north. The Region of Halton Official Plan and the Transportation Master Plan envision Tremaine Road as a major north-south arterial providing regional connection west of the Town of Milton. A new Tremaine Road interchange at Highway 401 is also planned and currently in detailed design. Tremaine Road is also the border between the Town of Milton Urban Area and the protected Niagara Escarpment natural/rural area from Highway 401 to south of Derry Road. The Town of Milton Urban Area has been expanded further south to Britannia Road (RR 6), as envisioned in the Sherwood Survey Secondary Plan and the Boyne Survey Secondary Plan. The Town of Milton is also planning the development of the Milton Education Village located on the west side of Tremaine Road extending from south of Derry Road to Britannia Road. Exhibit 2-1 below illustrates the study area.

Exhibit 2-1 Study Area MAIN ST TREMAINE RD (REG. RD. 22) BELL SCHOOL LINE DERRY RD (REG. RD. 7) STUDY AREA SCOTT BLVD FIRST LINE CNR BRITANNIA RD (REG. RD 6) 3. METHODOLOGY Noise levels are predicted in decibels in the A-weighted dba scale, which best approximates the human perception of sound over a specified time period. An increase of 2 3 decibels in noise levels is considered to be just perceivable to the average person. It should be noted that a 3 dba increase in noise equates to a doubling of traffic volumes. 3.1 Ministry of the Environment Guidelines Since roadway sound levels vary over time, the noise descriptor used in Ontario to assess noise is the equivalent sound level, Leq. Leq is identified as the continuous sound level, which has the same energy as a time varying sound level over a specified time period. For the purposes of assessing municipal roadway noise, Leq is calculated on the basis of the 16 hour daytime period, 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. For Outdoor Living Areas (OLAs) under new development, the provincial objective for sound level is 55 dba for the daytime period (for calculation purposes this is defined as 3 metres from the back of the house, at a height of 1.5m). Based on the Ministry of Environment (MOE) / Ministry of Transportation (MTO) Noise Protocol, where a new or expanded roadway is proposed adjacent to a Noise Sensitive Area Page 2 of 6

(NSA), the MOE requires that the future noise level with and without the facility be compared. Where increases in noise levels are predicted, the following actions are recommended: 0 to 5 dba increase - no action is required greater than 5 dba - investigate noise control measures within the right-of-way Where introduced, noise control measures should achieve a minimum of 5 dba attenuation over the first row receivers. Noise control measures should mitigate to ambient, as administratively, economically, and technically feasible. The Ontario Road Noise Analysis Method (ORNAMENT), which was developed by the Ministry of the Environment, is used to assess potential noise impacts on existing residential areas where changes are proposed to existing roads. ORNAMENT, based on a model developed by the United States Federal Highway Administration, is designed for land use planning and has been modified for use on a personal computer using the STAMSON 5.0 computer program. The program is used to predict noise levels generated from road sources at the outdoor activity areas (typically backyards) of Noise Sensitive Areas (NSAs). It considers numerous variables including traffic volumes, percentage of trucks, distance from roadway, road grade, posted speed, topography, barriers and vegetation. 3.2 Proposed Future Development Where new development is proposed, developers will be required to submit noise study reports as per the MOE requirements for approval. Based on MOE requirements, those who develop land for residential uses adjacent to an existing or planned noise generator (i.e. highway, roadway, factory, etc.) are responsible for ensuring that noise levels in the outdoor living area are consistent with the provincial objective of 55 dba ten years after construction. In such cases, it is the responsibility of the developer to identify and implement indoor and outdoor noise attenuation (i.e. noise walls, air conditioning, forced ventilation, etc.). Even with noise attenuation measures, if the provincial objective of 55 dba cannot be achieved ten years after construction, noise warning clauses are required on title of those properties affected. Within the study area for the, the following recently constructed and proposed future developments are noted: Proposed residential condo development east of Tremaine Road, south of Derry Road Existing Residential Development east of Tremaine Road between south of Derry Road to south of Dymott Avenue Proposed Residential Development east of Tremaine Road, north of Louis St. Laurent Avenue Given that future noise levels for the above developments would have been addressed as part of the land use planning approvals process, the noise analysis for the did not account for the potential noise impacts to these proposed and recent developments. 4. NOISE SENSITIVE AREAS (NSAs) Noise Sensitive Areas (NSAs) within the study area were identified in accordance with the criteria outlined in the MTO/MOE Noise Protocol. Based on the review of the study area, four (4) receiver locations were identified to represent the NSAs along Tremaine Road (shown in Exhibit 4-1). Page 3 of 6

As noted in Section 2, the study area is currently being redeveloped on the east side of Tremaine Road for residential uses, as envisioned in the Sherwood Survey Secondary Plan and the ongoing Boyne Survey Secondary Plan. Also, further development of lands west of Tremaine Road between south of Derry Road and Britannia Road, known as Milton Education Village, is being planned by the Town of Milton. It is anticipated that most of the existing NSAs east (south of Louis St. Laurent Avenue), and west (south of Derry Road to Britannia Road) of Tremaine Road will no longer exist in the future. Nonetheless, they were included since some approved plans are not in place. 5. NOISE IMPACT ASSESSMENT The review of potential noise impacts assumed that the future Tremaine Road is the dominant noise source within the study area given the proximity of the NSAs to the roadway. Noise modelling was carried out for the following scenarios: Future noise levels (Year 2031) without Tremaine Road widening Future noise levels (Year 2031) with Tremaine Road widening to six lanes The following factors used in the noise impact assessment are summarized in Table 5-1. Exhibit 5-1 Factors Used in the Noise Analysis Factor Noise Descriptor Posted Speed Traffic Volumes Tremaine Road (AADT Year 2031) Truck Percentages (Medium/Heavy) Receptor Height Assumptions Future Conditions: L eq (16 hr) 80 km/h Future Without Proposed Widening 60 km/h Future With Proposed Widening Future Conditions Without Proposed Widening: Between Derry Road and Britannia Road 12,000 (assumed capacity of 2 lane urban road) Future Conditions With Proposed Widening: Between Derry Road and Louis St. Laurent Avenue 44,000 Between Louis St. Laurent Avenue and Britannia Road 31,000 1.8 % / 1.4 % 1.5 m above the ground Page 4 of 6

R2 R3 R1 R4 Match Line Match Line Tremaine Road Derry Road to Britannia Rd Class Environmental Assessment Noise Receiver Locations Exhibit 4-1

Noise levels were calculated at the selected receiver locations as shown in Exhibit 4-1 with and without the proposed improvements to Tremaine Road. Table 5-2 summarizes the calculated future noise levels at the receiver locations, the predicted change in future noise levels due to the proposed improvements to Tremaine Road, and whether or not the consideration of noise mitigation is required based on the Ministry of Environment (MOE) / Ministry of Transportation (MTO) Noise Protocol. STAMSON output sheets for are on file with MRC and Halton Region. As shown in Table 5-2, the predicted increases in future noise levels are less than 5 dba for all receiver locations as a result of the proposed improvements to Tremaine Road. Given this, the consideration of noise mitigation is not warranted based on MTO/MOE criteria. Receiver Table 5-2 Summary of Calculated Noise Levels Projected Noise Level (Year 2031) dba Leq (16) Without Proposed Improvements With Proposed Improvements Projected Change (dba) Consideration of Noise Mitigation Required Based on MTO/MOE Criteria ( 5 dba change) R1 53.0 53.3 + 0.3 No R2 50.8 52.5 + 1.7 No R3 53.7 55.2 + 1.5 No R4 51.3 54.4 + 3.1 No 6. CONCLUSION The predicted increase in noise levels are less than 5 dba with the proposed improvements on Tremaine Road at all receiver locations. Therefore, the consideration of noise mitigation is not warranted based on MTO/MOE Noise Protocol. Page 6 of 6