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Abstract: This paper critically examines recent responses by and interactions between stakeholders in negotiating the acceptability of aircraft noise standards in Australia in order to help inform debate in Britain. It investigates the interplay of the politics of noise with the broader land use planning context focusing on the role of government, airports, community interests, and the development sector. Different local environments inevitably frame diverse contexts, but the pervasive challenge is in securing the acceptable trade‐off between the economic dividends promised by airports and local quality of life. Discussion is structured around four main issues: an introduction to the Australian politics of airport noise, an historical timeline of key contextual events, identification of the major actors in the noise governance framework, and a focus on an issue of increasing political significance, namely the different positions of airports and developers in the increasing intensification of urban development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As transportation network companies (TNC) such as Uber and Lyft drive a change in modern transport behaviours, fewer passengers pay for services such as parking or commercial vehicle drop-off at airports; meaning, what once was a primary revenue source for airports now has a tenuous future. Therefore, airports must find a way to counterbalance the revenue losses created by these changes. One such solution has been on the rise in the united kingdom. With airport drop-off and pick-up charges, private vehicles must pay for the convenience of loading or unloading passengers at the airport entrance. Not only does this practice have the potential to generate millions of dollars in annual revenue, but it also offers a remedy for other maladies, such as congestion and safety issues on airport roads. This paper examines the effects the drop-off and pick-up charges have had in the United Kingdom and explores what US airports might expect should they too adopt the practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the new standard International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 20906-2009 entitled "Acoustics - Unattended monitoring of aircraft sound in the vicinity of airports," which aims to help professionals, researchers and regulators in their effort to lessen noise in the vicinity of airports in Great Britain in 2010.

The article reports on the commitment made by Glasgow Airport to reduce its noise levels in Scotland. It states that measures for noise reduction have been implemented at Gatwick Airport and Stansted Airport. The Civil Aviation Authority of Great Britain said that noise pollution levels have reduced in recent years.

Studies in West London have found associations between aircraft noise exposure and childrens’ cognitive performance. This has culminated in the RANCH Study examining exposure-effect associations between aircraft and road traffic noise exposure and cognitive performance and health. The RANCH project, the largest cross-sectional study of noise and childrens health, examined 2844 children, 9–10 years old, from 89 schools around three major airports: in the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom. Children were selected by external aircraft and road traffic noise exposure at school predicted from noise contour maps, modeling and on-site measurements. A substudy indicated high internal levels of noise within classrooms. Schools were matched for socioeconomic position within countries. Cognitive and health outcomes were measured by standardized tests and questionnaires administered in the classroom. A parental questionnaire collected information on socioeconomic position, parental education and ethnicity. Linear exposure-effect associations were found between chronic aircraft noise exposure and impairment of reading comprehension and recognition memory, maintained after adjustment for mothers education, socioeconomic factors, longstanding illness and classroom insulation. Road traffic noise exposure was linearly associated with episodic memory. The implications of these results for childrens’ learning environments will be discussed. [Work supported by European Community (QLRT-2000-00197) Vth framework program.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]