Road traffic noise mapping in Spain and its presentation to the citizen

The future success or failure of the action plans to reduce traffic noise in Europe (as a global objective of the new Environmental Directive) will depend on the ability developed by the local administrations to coordinate: social response to noise through information and awareness-raising tools; diagnostic and decision making tools together with evolution indicators and goals; action plan to reduce noise according to each local real situation. Such a complex task for the administrations involved in noise control should be fought, supported by acoustic experts, with the most innovative techniques to get the goals. This paper presents the most up to day innovative techniques to help local administrations to manage the huge amount of traffic noise information from noise mapping in an easy way, based on Geographical Information Systems as a powerful tool for decision making. This tool based on prediction methods to evaluate noise propagation in the city, is also a tool for awareness to the public, based on a social survey. The experience of some local Spanish administrations focus on this tools will be presented within an European frame.