Do you really get used to road noise?

[Noodles17]

Hi,

My parents are moving to be closer to family and after a shaky start, think they may have found a house that works for them. Nice, well equipped area, close (but not too close 😉) to me, decent size house and garden, so doesn't feel like a big downsize, which is something they were worried about. Plus it's under budget by quite a bit, which is a huge, unexpected bonus! The only real sticking point is the road noise. The village is just off a very busy main road. Not so close you'd worry about pollution, but close enough to hear a constant whoosh, only in the garden, but a garden is very important to them, as is general peace and quiet and they do sit in their garden a lot.

I think because it ticks so many other boxes, they're wondering if this is something they'd get used to and perhaps not really notice in time - almost like white noise.

If you do live or have lived somewhere near a noisy road, did you get used to it or do you regret it?

TIA

You get used to it but you still might not like it, we have lived for 20 years in a house three doors down a side street from a busy road (30mph but a lot of braking and accelerating for the traffic lights). It doesn't disturb our sleep but it is annoying, I love getting up early on Sunday mornings and pottering in the garden when there's no traffic just birdsong and it was absolutely lovely during lockdown. I also lived very close to a railway line for ten years and never really stopped noticing that either.

I lived close to a main road and at first I really hated the constant noise. I did eventually get used to it, it became more like a background noise.
I would consider more carefully though, if I ever moved again.

This.

If I've understood your description correctly, you aren't even talking about living ON a main road.

Likewise. Bothers me less but still has the potential to wake me up if it's thundering lorries or twats revving bikes. Seems worse when it's wet weather as well.

I grew up a few hundred metres from a motorway and never noticed the noise as it was fairly constant.

I do notice it now when I visit my parents, but nowhere near as much as I notice the stop start traffic, idling cars etc near my own house.

I lived half a mile from the M5 and never got used to it. It was over a field and down a cliff, so not flat terrain. Sitting in the garden in the summer, when the rest of the country was speeding into Devon and Cornwall, was a real.endurance test. For the last two houses we have been careful to listen for road noise.

I live on a main road in a fairly busy town. I'd say we don't notice the noise much in general. It doesn't disturb our enjoyment of the garden for instance. However, it's night time that is an issue - trying to sleep with the windows open in summer can be quite noisy. Even with ear plugs in.

The noise only really becomes apparent to us when we go to stay with relatives who live rurally. The lack of noise amplifies how noisy our daily life is!

I adjusted quickly, have lived 2 streets from a motorway, on a main road etc. it's actually more disturbing when there's occasional loud vehicles which we have in current house

Thanks for all your replies. They've been very helpful.

It seems on the whole most people seem to be able to adjust, but I guess the problem is, you don't know if you're one of them until after you've moved in.

My bedroom is on a main road.

I'm used to it and can sleep, but I wouldn't say I particularly love it - I'd prefer it to be quieter.

I live on a 30mph road. A car passes roughly every 5 seconds (sitting in the garden counting). The inky times I notice the noise is when the boy racers are out and when it’s snowing- so really the lack of noise.

Nope, I never got used to it. I would never live like that again.

We can hear the traffic in the distance from a busy road when in the garden. I was concerned about it when we viewed the house but I don't hear it now. It's a consistent noise as not near a junction which helps, so no unexpected loud revving.

I suspect the answer to this is going to be linked with where you (they, in this case) are moving from.
If you've lived the last 40 years in a tiny hamlet that is a 40minute drive to the nearest A road, you will presumably have a different tolerance level from those of us that have always lived in the City.

Not really. Lived on a country 'B' road with a 60 mph limit. This was later reduced to 40, which helped a lot. Had a water feature that masked the sound a little.
The worst things were motor bikes, which you could hear from about a mile before, and a mile past.
But I did live there for 25 years, so obviously, I did come to accept it...🤪

I suppose it depends how noisy it is - I live close to the A1, I can't see it and its a fair distance but no other houses inbetween. Depends which way the wind is blowing as to how noisy it is but I don't really notice it now, its just a constant low noise.

I live near a road and a train line and you do get used to it, but we did decide against a house that was closer to a busy road as you literally couldn't hear anything else when the lorries went by. The limit for me was being able to talk at normal volume in the garden.

Agree with this post. We bought a house in a village on an A road. In the 9 years we have been here the road traffic has more than doubled at is is noticeable.

The windows keep the noise out when closed, but really noticeable in the summer when I open a window. There is no getting away from the noise in the garden.

I’d keep looking! Our wish list for the next house has “quiet road” at the top of it.

I agree that some people get used to things relatively easily, but you can't tell whether or not you're one of them until after you've moved. One flat that we lived in looked over the Thames. We bought it in the winter and found it quiet, but then summer came along with late night party boats while we had our bedroom window open. We thought we had made a terrible mistake, but by the time summer was half-way through we were just sleeping through the noise.

I spent 5 long years living next to a busy road and i hated it never got used to it.

I live on a main road and I am completely used to it, and I am quite sensitive to things. We were on a busy (but not a main) road in our last house too and for the first few weeks all I could hear were the cars at night but I soon got used to it and never really noticed them after that. It's far preferable to noisy neighbours (I realise you can have both!) so if your parents are looking for quiet, I'd focus more on who lives next door!

The thing I do like about my road is the convenience. The road almost directly takes me to most places I need to get around here which I really like as our old house was a right faff trying to get to anywhere from.

I actually quite like a bit of road noise as it means I don't need to be as quiet or conscious of myself. I find that in itself more relaxing!
All other boxes ticked I wouldn't be put off by reasonable road noise but If they're in the garden a lot and highly prioritise and value the quiet then I can imagine it might bother them more.

I have lived on a busy road and for me it wasn't the noise that was my main concern it was the poor air quality. My windows were constantly dusty and if I had left a window open for any period of time so was the inside of the house. You could feel the dust if you walked barefoot and if wearing socks they would be grey underneath even if I had just cleaned the day before. My quality of life was definitely compromised and I am sure it does some pretty bad damage to your lungs too.

I live on a main road and mostly it's background noise. I have been woken up by big vehicles driving along the cats eyes. Worst is the boy racers, they treat it like a race track but to be fair, you can hear their exhausts when they're miles away. It is noisy in our garden and that's more difficult to ignore but like I say, we are right beside the road.

I still hear it -5+ years here. It is much better in the summer because the trees leaf out.

so a large wall, trees/vegetation, and maybe those horrible wind chimes can drown it out. Depends on your winter and winter garden use. Coniferous trees take a long time to grow enough to block the sounds.