s. neda ghazizadeh

Sound comfort is an essential aspect of physical comfort of urban parks. In this research in order to demonstrate a method for evaluating the acoustic comfort questionnaire surveyed¡ and noise emission levels were measured in 30 points distributed in five parks included Mellat, Saei, Laleh, Shahr and Besat parks in Tehran.

LAeq (equivalent continues noise level) LAFmax, LAFmin, LA10, LA50 and LA90 were measured and calculated. Moreover¡ intensive questionnaire surveyed acoustic comfort based on the quality and sound source.

The sound level at most of the points evaluated 63dB in the parks exceeded the 55 dB(A). Perception of sound sources within the Soundscape was found to be a better predictor of Soundscape quality than measured sound levels. The results of the research clearly indicate the level of discomfort or comfort of a population is not necessarily connected only to sound levels¡ but includes other factors in the environment and in the receiver himself.

The results show the space planning¡ distance from main city roads, green belt around park’s boundary and music player’s position considerably affect acoustic comfort in the urban parks.