MOTOR VEHICLE NOISE CONTROL LEGISLATION IN AUSTRALIA

Prior to 1972, the legislative control of motor vehicle noise in Australia was limited to the subjective assessment of new-vehicle noise by police or registration personnel. Australian Design Rule (ADR) 28 was issued in 1972 by the Federal Department of Transport, establishing maximum sound levels for different categories of new vehicles. This design rule was drawn up by the motor vehicle industry and representatives from transport authorities and motoring organizations. ADR 28 was regarded by many as little more than a statement of status quo, and the original drafting committee, the Advisory Committee for Safety in Vehicle Design, was requested to review the design rule. The committee was augmented by experts in the field of acoustics and representatives from environmental protection agencies, including the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) of Victoria. In 1976, a revised design rule (ADR 28A) was finalized, reducing the maximum permissible noise levels; its implementation has been deferred pending decisions on new design rule criteria in Europe. Following extensive surveys, the EPA of Victoria introduced the first Australian in-service passenger car noise regulations in 1976. Since then, the authority has prepared similar draft regulations for trucks, buses, and motorcycles. It is anticipated that these criteria will be adopted by all the Australian states.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Also published in HS-029 192 (SAE-SP-456), "Vehicle Noise Regulation and Reduction," Warrendale, Pennsylvania, 1980 pp 67-79. Presented at SAE Congress and Exposition, Detroit, 27 February-3 March 1978.
• Corporate Authors:

  Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)

  400 Commonwealth Drive
  Warrendale, PA  United States  15096
• Authors:
  • SNOW, R
  • Law, R
• Publication Date: 1980

Media Info

• Pagination: 13 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Laws; Noise control; Regulations; Sound level; Vehicles
• Geographic Terms: Australia
• Subject Areas: Law; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00386647
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• Report/Paper Numbers: SAE 780384, HS-029 201
• Files: HSL, USDOT
• Created Date: Jun 28 1984 12:00AM