How to reduce road noise in the garden

When faced with a noisy main road, a garden filled with trees protected by a conservation area and a local bat community, Hornby Garden Designs knew this was going to be a unique and bespoke project. In this interesting case study we demonstrate how one garden designer utilised acoustic fencing to reduce noise at the back of their property from nearby traffic.

Acoustic fence

Hornby were approached by a client with a growing frustration with the level of noise coming from the busy highway at the end of garden. With the unfortunate positioning of a bus stop and ever increasing levels of traffic, the glorious outside space the property adorned was left unused.

How to soundproof your garden from road noise

Before

Jacksons Reflective® barrier was chosen to alleviate the noise pollution created by the busy highway, situated meters from the base of the garden. The 1.8m tall Jakoustic® Reflective barrier reflects noise away using specially designed timber boards, constructed to eliminate gaps in which the sound can travel through. It features an attractive timber facade that creates a natural, aesthetically pleasing backdrop whilst adding a higher level of privacy to the garden. The acoustic barrier replaced the previously existing post and wire fence, which had been the only barrier between the road and the garden.

acoustic fence in residential area

As the property lies within an area of conservation, it was necessary to acquire planning permission from the Shropshire Council before starting the project. Shropshire Council recognised the importance of the trees, taking special care within the planning of the project in order to preserve and protect the existing trees. Hornby Garden Design also understood the importance and enlisted specialist tree surgeons to help with the task of uplifting and moving numerous trees up to 500mm back from the new intended fence line.

The garden designers were keen to deliver the brief of reducing the noise pollution from the busy road but also stressed the importance of abiding by the councils ruling of planning permission and protecting the wildlife. Before tackling dead trees Hornby designs approached local ecologists to discuss how removing these trees would affect the local bat community. After consulting the ecologist, the trees were able to be removed without disturbing the bats.

Reducing traffic noise with acoustic fencing

The Jakoustic® Reflective barrier successfully reduced the impact of noise in the garden, allowing the clients to enjoy their garden space without the disturbance of traffic commotion. The new acoustic fence blends perfectly into the natural tree line and secures the property much better than the previous dilapidated wire fence.

acoustic fence design

*Please note: when we state 'soundproofing' we do not explicitly define this as our acoustic fencing being able to completely mitigate all noise when sitting in an external environment but, instead can reduce the level of noise heard as a result of being installed. For more information see our Acoustic Fencing area. 

How Jakoustic Reflective works