A European study called RANCH examined how aircraft and road traffic noise affects reading comprehension and attention in nearly 3,000 children aged 9-10 in the UK, Netherlands, and Spain. Results showed that higher aircraft noise exposure was significantly linked to poorer reading comprehension, while road traffic noise showed no such effect; neither type of noise impacted sustained attention. The findings suggest aircraft noise poses a greater risk to children's cognitive development than road traffic noise, with implications for school siting and noise exposure policies near airports.Open full document
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A European research study examining the dose-effect relationships between aircraft noise, road traffic noise, and their combinations on reading comprehension and sustained attention in 9-10 year old children across the Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The study found significant impairment in reading comprehension associated with aircraft noise exposure but no effects from road traffic noise.
