Hearing is believing! Metrolinx, the regional transit agency in Ontario, Canada, was looking to enhance communications with community stakeholders during public consultation for the portion of the proposed Ontario Line project which will operate in the GO Union Station and Lakeshore East rail corridors (referred to as the Lakeshore East Joint Corridor). AECOM was commissioned by Metrolinx to prepare an interactive sound demonstration to help answer two questions from local stakeholders: How much noise will come from passing trains once the Ontario Line opens? And how will this compare to the sound of today’s heavy commuter GO trains, currently passing through the neighbourhood?
AECOM’s technical Noise and Vibration study report, prepared as part of the Lakeshore East Joint Corridor early works impact assessment, includes tables of numerical results and noise contour figures, which help to explain the noise impacts of the proposed Ontario Line project, but these can sometimes be difficult to understand or interpret. Sound demonstrations provide an intuitive way to experience what the planned infrastructure changes will sound like by listening to comparative scenarios. AECOM created an interactive Immersive Sound Studio website to present the sound demonstrations. An in-person physical presentation during the coronavirus pandemic was not possible, so the website tool responds to this challenge by allowing a broad audience to access the sound demonstrations from anywhere at any time, which is another benefit to the community. The immersive sound studio represents a significant achievement in noise engineering, combining innovative auralization technology and environmental noise modelling, 3-dimensional audio recording, calibrated sound level measurements, audio processing, visual rendering and animation, video editing and web development.
Whilst sound demonstrations have been prepared for infrastructure projects in the past, this project is the first of its kind in Canada, with a dedicated website with interactive audio and video functionality. Access the Ontario Line Immersive Sound Studio site here: www.ontariolinesoundstudio.ca.
PRIMARY CANDIDATE NAME: Alan Oldfield
ORGANIZATION: AECOM
PROJECT ROLE: Senior Acoustic Engineer
TELEPHONE NUMBER: 905-712-7058
EMAIL ADDRESS: alan.oldfield@aecom.com
SECOND CANDIDATE NAME: Brian Bulnes
ORGANIZATION: AECOM
PROJECT ROLE: Lead Acoustic Engineer
TELEPHONE NUMBER: 905-712-7057
EMAIL ADDRESS: brian.bulnes@aecom.com
THIRD CANDIDATE NAME: Alex Southern
ORGANIZATION: AECOM
PROJECT ROLE: Auralization Lead
TELEPHONE NUMBER: +44-7823-354-660
EMAIL ADDRESS: alex.southern@aecom.com
