Scotland noise map: what it shows and misses

Where is the noise map for Scotland?

Scotland's noise website, hosted by SEPA, carries the online noise map at noise.environment.gov.scot/map.html. SEPA's noise page describes the viewer as showing round 2 and round 3 data.

Round 4 mapping data, for 2021, is also published as open data through data.gov.uk. Because the viewer and the open data can show different rounds, check which round you are looking at before comparing places.

What do the Scottish noise maps show?

The maps cover road, rail and air traffic noise, plus industry in the largest urban areas. For rounds 2 and 3 the criteria are major roads (over 3 million vehicle passages a year), railways (over 30,000 train passages a year), airports (over 50,000 air traffic movements a year) and urban areas of over 100,000 people.

The round 4 data published as open data is described as covering major and non-major roads and railways, four airports, and industry in the main urban areas.

Why does the round matter?

Each round is a snapshot, and later rounds do not always map the same things or in the same way. A quiet-looking street on an older round may simply not have been mapped, so look at which sources the round you are viewing includes.

What a noise map cannot tell you

A national noise map is modelled, not measured. It shows an estimated level for an area, not what it sounds like in one garden or bedroom, and it describes a single mapping year, so it will not show a road or railway that has changed since.

A blank or pale area is not a guarantee of silence: maps stop at a lowest level, so quieter areas show no colour. And individual events, such as a single lorry or a passing freight train, are averaged out.

Using the map when you are buying in Scotland

Treat the map as the start of your checks. Look at night-time exposure as well as daytime, visit at different times of day, and ask the seller what has been done about noise. Our guide to Lden and Lnight explains the two measures most maps use, and our guide to buying a house near a motorway or busy road has a fuller checklist.

Does AcoustaPLOT cover Scotland?

Not yet. AcoustaPLOT's address check currently covers addresses in England only, so we cannot give a modelled result for a Scottish address. Our UK noise map guide lists the official map for every nation.