Distant motorway hum (Priorslee, Telford)

[TerrifiedOfNoise]

for various reasons we had settled on Priorslee in Telford as our choice location for our next ( hopefully forever) home. However, finally now about to put ours on the market we went to view a new build there and I couldn’t get past the distant hum of the motorway. Where we live now is peaceful and quiet and no home either of us has ever lived in (even the same distance from the motorway on the other side of town) has had this noise in the background.

so, do you think this is a noise you learn to ignore?

other threads have recommended water features in the garden but one of the appeals of this area is the play parks, lakes etc. so it would ruin the peacefulness of these.

If anyone knows the area, are there parts of Priorslee where you don’t hear it?

I really don’t know what to do if I can’t get past this noise as Priorslee was really the area we had decided worked practically for us and which was also a nice area, but now I’m not so sure. Any words of wisdom? Ideas for coping with it? Alternative areas?

If you are talking about the new estate just off the M54/A4640 I can understand why you would hear the motorway. It's not far away and there is no steep bank or terrain between to stop the noise.

What are your requirements and budget? Is new build really a needed as you can get some very good almost new places for the same money in Telford.

I think any house near a motorway - or busy A road will have the constant hum of the traffic. Within half a mile as the crow flies I would say, with the hum getting louder the closer you are. Obvs!

I used to live on a busy A road in West London - top floor flat in a old Victorian house - and I could hear the hum of the underground, the buses, the trains, and the cars. Oh and the planes - it was 5-6 miles as the crow flies to Heathrow, so the planes were quite low when they came over. Not hugely low but quite. Have to say, after about 3 days I didn't notice any of this 'noise!'

Priorslee is nice! People knock Telford, but for every crappy part, there is a lovely part. I hope you will be happy there. Shawbirch is nice too - and Muxton. Like Priorslee, they are on the 'outskirts.' You can get some gorgeous properties for decent prices in Telford!

@TheNoonBell we’re not dead set on a newbuild but liked the layout of this one. We need 4 good sized bedrooms (minimum of 3 decent doubles) and top of budget is 440k (depending on what we sell ours for there is a little wiggle room). The house we looked at wasn’t the closest estates to the motorways, it was up towards redhill, I imagine it’s even noisier further down castle farm way.

@SweetBirdsong thank you, I’ve lived by a trainline and airport before but found the intermittent noise fine (even soothing in its regularity), it’s this constant hum that set my teeth on edge and it really surprised me. Shawbirch is the wrong side of Telford for us and Muxton doesn’t have the train station access we were after, but I agree they’re both areas you get a lot for your money in.

How about this, 3 double beds plus a single, fairly modern kitchen and bathrooms. Double garage, utility and next to a 450 acre park, with the town centre (and station) being a 20ish minute walk through the park? £415k asking.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144083447#/?channel=RES_BUY

@TheNoonBell we have mulled over proximity to the town park, but ultimately we lived close to it before but in an area that is otherwise not great and decided to move away so that the kids were in a place we were more comfortable with them walking to the shops etc. My OH grew up in Telford (I didn’t) so is pretty set on where he does/doesn’t like and I’ve suggested houses around there before that he’s vetoed.

How about Shifnal?

I used to live in a house right behind a railway, I blanked the noise out after a few weeks.

Also, petrol cars are on the way out so thinking long term the noise will decrease.

@tchotchke we are considering Shifnal, but it doesn’t seem as nice as Priorslee and we certainly couldn’t cycle to Telford town park from there (something we’d like to be able to do).

@winewolfhowls that is a very good point, although I think it will be decades before the motorway is free of noisy petrol/diesel vehicles and I don’t know if I could cope in the intervening years.

I've lived 2 blocks from a major us freeway - sounds like a river!

new build in hearing distance of the motorway in Telford. Sounds dreamy

@Moodicum put like that it doesn’t, but the reality of life is that practicality (transport, schools, good parks, opportunities for kids to fly the nest but still get home via train etc.) are thin on the ground in this region of the world. We are also restricted by our own jobs and where our families live, so it’s not like we can just up sticks and move to Cornwall or something. The new build we looked at has a great layout and spec with a good sized garden and it was minutes from a small park and playground, but the motorway noise put me off. Basically it was practically perfect but I just didn’t get that ‘feeling’ you need when moving into a house.

My uncle lives right on top of an A road and claims when he goes away he struggles to sleep without the gentle drone of it around him. I lived with him for a while and I slept in their room whilst they were away and it didn't bother me in the slightest after the first two nights. That's quite high praise for someone who has had chronic insomnia on and off for 24 years.

I now live somewhere where there are unexpected noise nuisances. Sudden gunshot outside your window. Light aircraft going over. The thud and thump of heavy machinery going over a speed bump outside my window. Dogs barking or people shouting at dogs at 5am. Some twat who goes up country lanes with a thumping stereo at 5am every day. These are VERY hard to get used to and fall back to sleep after.

I find regular, lulling noise is something that is easy to get used to because it's mostly always there and you really do tune it out.

His garden was a bit noisy and annoying til about 8pm but his back garden was only about 40ft from the A2 approaching London.

Awww, well Priorslee is nice though. And it is closer to the big shopping centre and retail parks and the train station. But yeah close to the motorway.

Although... the M54 is not super busy. More like a bit of a busy A road. Not like the M6 or M5 or M1.

All the best anyway, and I hope you find your lovely home soon and are very happy in it forever!

I think if the noise puts your teeth on edge, it’s too much of a risk, unless you can rent nearby for six months first.

I don’t live in Telford but live 0.3 miles from a major road. It’s always busy but we can’t hear it at all. It’s an old house; though, and I think the town was designed so the old houses are walking distance to everything but protected from the noise. We’ve got over 100ft of garden; too, so decent plots and planning! Unfortunately you’d not get anywhere near 4 bedrooms for £440 or I’d suggest it as somewhere to explore - but perhaps older houses near where you want to be are worth exploring? Ours is Victorian.

@YouveGotAFastCar thank you. Priorslee doesn’t really have ‘old’ houses, though there are homes that are 30 years or so old and I think I would prefer these. I currently have an 80ft garden and love it, but this new build plot was a corner with wrap around gardens so it actually wasn’t much difference in square meters just a different shape.

@YouveGotAFastCar

I don't know where you live, but you can get a lovely, spacious detached 4-bed house for less than £440K in Priorslee Telford, and often much less. In fact you can get 4 AND 5 bed detached properties with a decent garden, in a nice area in many other areas of Telford too for less than £440K. Some are as cheap as £320K in some parts of Telford.

Here's a link to some 4-bed detached houses. (In Priorslee Telford.)

.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E20314&maxBedrooms=4&minBedrooms=4&sortType=6&propertyTypes=detached%2Csemi-detached%2Cterraced&mustHave=&dontShow=&furnishTypes=&keywords=

And here's a link to some 5-bed detached properties in other areas of Telford.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E1323&maxBedrooms=5&minBedrooms=5&sortType=6&propertyTypes=detached%2Csemi-detached%2Cterraced&includeSSTC=false&mustHave=&dontShow=&furnishTypes=&keywords=

My son lives there and I think he actually likes the noise. It wouldn't bother me at all but my mum would have to wear earplugs to sleep so I think it depends on you. I moved to a house with a railway line behind it five years ago and after a year I switched from noticing the trains to only noticing when they aren't running. Christmas Day is too quiet.

I lived right on a very busy main road for 4 years once and no longer heard anything after a while. Tuned it out. Also, last night we stayed in a Premier Inn right next to a very fast dual carriageway (almost all vehicles doing 70-80mph) with the ground floor bedroom window right on the roadside and it didn't bother me in the slightest or interrupt our sleep at all.
Would there be funds in the budget for triple glazing throughout? I mean, if the house is already built, you could easily sell the ones that are currently installed to help towards the cost

I realise having triple glazing doesn't really help whilst you're in the garden but thought I'd mention it anyway

@TheNoonBell i showed my OH this house and actually he loved the idea of being back by the town park, so we may have an alternative area/idea to Priorslee. Thank you!

@SweetBirdsong thank you, we know you can spend less and hope to do so but we want/need a big house (not just 4 beds but lots of living space too) as we have a big family and my partner works from home half the week so we need an office space too.

Awww, best of luck @TerrifiedOfNoise !

Priorslee is great. I'm sure you'll get used to the hum of the motorway. It's when traffic stops and starts outside your door that it's an issue in my experience