AUTHOR=Nguyen Thulan , Morinaga Makoto 

TITLE=Effect of roadside trees on pedestrians’ psychological evaluation of traffic noise

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=Volume 14 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1166318

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1166318

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=Trees are often planted along roadsides to enhance the urban environment and restore a more natural setting. The evaluation of the impact of roadside trees on pedestrians' perception of traffic noise was conducted for various combinations of traffic volume and tree density. Two experimental conditions were created for each combination: (1) listening to a binaural recording of sound only and (2) listening to the binaural recording while watching a VR video. The evaluation of the roadside scene without trees was similar in both experimental conditions. However, when the density of roadside plants was high, the evaluation of the sound and VR video combination was more positive compared to the evaluation of sound only. Additionally, the evaluation of sound intensity differed significantly between low and medium tree density levels. However, the evaluations among participants did not differ significantly in terms of their perception of noise level, as evaluated by a quiet-noisy scale. In other words, the participants did not perceive a decrease in noise loudness due to the presence of roadside trees. However, the overall evaluation of the sound environment in scenes with roadside trees was generally positive across all study locations. Although they do not significantly reduce physical noise levels, roadside trees can significantly enhance the overall quality of life and health of urban residents.